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When I first had my son last year, I was so unprepared for just how challenging breastfeeding would be. I was completely overwhelmed with everything surrounding his birth and trying to care for him, so when he wasn’t able to successfully breastfeed, I was devastated. At the time I didn’t have information regarding local sources of donor milk and the hospital had barely any on hand, so I want to spread the word about this Milk Bank Challenge in hopes of helping other mothers who both need milk and those who are able to donate.
You can earn a $5 gift card to a store of your choice (Amazon, Starbucks, Walmart, Whole Foods, etc) just by reading about the challenge here, and if you make a donation, once you submit your information ConceiveAbilities will provide you with a $250 gift card as a thank you for your donation. What a wonderful way to encourage women to save lives!
Learn more about the challenge below (courtesy of the ConceiveAbilities website):
ConceiveAbilities is thrilled to once again support milk banks across the country with the #MilkBankChallenge. We hope to attract 1,500 women to be donors in this year’s challenge, who will each earn a $250 gift card to assist with their expenses and time. Our goal? 1,000,000 ounces of donated breast milk. We are so excited to lend a hand to the milk banks working tirelessly for the babies and the families that are in such great need for this milk. The infant formula shortage, which started in 2022, is unfortunately not over and your support is still needed.
We have enormous gratitude for all the women who joined the Milk Bank Challenge in 2022 who, together, donated almost 650,000 ounces of breast milk to milk banks across America to help feed infants most in need. Since a baby in the NICU requires one ounce of milk per day, and if the baby were to need 100 days of nutritional support with donated breast milk, 6,500 infants were benefitted by these donations. In 2023, we are ready to support even more needy infants with the power of this collective movement.
“In our work to help build families for more than twenty-five years, we know that many women find purpose in helping other families at a time of great need,” shared Founder Nazca Fontes, adding, “Like surrogacy, milk banks play a vital role in supporting families. We stand ready to assist all women who are able to help lift up other women and families and help provide much needed nutrition to their babies. While there is – yet still – so much work to be done to address the infant formula shortage, we hope an increase of breast milk donations will be a lifeline for these families at this critical time.”
How Can You Join the #MilkBankChallenge?
First, Everyone can play a role in the 2023 #MilkBankChallenge and earn rewards. Create a Customized Share Link and text, email and share on your social channels with potentially lactating women. For each person in your community who enters their email to learn more about the #MilkBankChallenge, you earn a $5 reward and so do they!
Second, Donate Breast Milk to Help Families During The Baby Formula Shortage. Your donation can make a profound impact and every donor receives a $250 gift card. Help us reach our 2023 goal of 1,000,000 ounces of donor milk by following these 3 steps.
- Visit your local milk bank website for instructions on how to donate breast milk. You can also check out our How To Pump, Ship and Donate Breast Milk Surrogacy Tutorial that we prepared for our surrogates.
- Make a donation on or after March 3, 2023 to your local milk bank and make a difference!
- Submit your information via email to donate@conceiveabilities.com to receive your $250 gift card. Your submission has to include the following:
- Name of the Milk Bank you donated to
- Date of Milk Bank donation
- Number of ounces donated
- Your name, email address, and phone number
- Proof of donation, which can be in the form of: A photo of you and your milk donation (all photos may be used for promotional purposes to inspire others to join the movement) A copy of the confirmation email sent to you from the milk bank A screenshot or photo of your donor portal
- Donors are eligible to earn $250 gift card once per campaign.
How It Started
In the midst of a national baby formula shortage, many American families were struggling to feed their infants. Inspired by the giving nature of their surrogates, ConceiveAbilities Surrogacy and Egg Donor Agency launched the #MilkBankChallenge, a movement to replenish milk bank supplies across the nation to help these families in need. And you responded first by achieving 50,000 ounces of donor milk, then 350,000 and finally reaching over 650,000 ounces of milk in 2022.
Gina-Marie Madow, Director of Legal Services, adds, “Our surrogates are incredibly giving and often donate their breast milk after their surrogacy journey. By inspiring more women to donate, we hope those who are facing this uncertainty can rest easy at night knowing they can provide critical nutrition for their babies.”
Learn More About Milk Banks
Listen to the podcast Is The Infant Formula Shortage Over? with HMBANA Executive Director Lindsay Groff to learn more about why replenishing milk banks across America is so important.
The Planking Traveler 