On Thursday, Oct. 5, over 20 breastfeeding women gathered at the Smithers Pregnancy Outreach Program to celebrate breastfeeding week, Oct. 1-7.
The goal of the event was to raise awareness about the importance of supporting breastfeeding mothers in the Bulkley Valley.
“I think it’s so important that breastfeeding is valued in our community,” said nursing mother Lydia Howard, who helped organize the event.
At the event, each mother had a chance to have a free photo portrait taken of her breastfeeding her baby by local photographer Mandi Storey of Storey Photography.
“It was a wonderful event, celebrating and capturing the natural beauty of breastfeeding,” said Storey. “Many of the moms commented on loving the opportunity to have a portrait of themselves and their baby around such an important aspect of their lives.
“Events like these normalized breastfeeding and encourage women to feel empowered about their choices as mothers. A huge thank you to our wonderful community for supporting breastfeeding”
The Smithers Pregnancy Outreach Program is one of the programs run by Northern Society for Domestic Peace. The team at the Pregnancy Outreach Program provides support and up-to-date information to women during pregnancy, birth, and postpartum up to one year.
In a confidential and relaxed setting, the Smithers Pregnancy Outreach team assists women and their families with a wide range of topics, including breastfeeding support. Once a month the Smithers Pregnancy Outreach also hosts Breastfeeding Cafes, which are a chance for breastfeeding women to get together, gain support for challenges they may be facing, and discuss a range of topics with the support team at Pregnancy Outreach and local professionals such as lactation counsellors, registered dietician and registered nurse.
The breastfeeding awareness event was sponsored by the Pregnancy Outreach Program as well as local businesses Storey Photography, Nature’s Pantry and Whanau Forestry.
– Submitted by Smithers Pregnancy Outreach Program.