Emma holds a PhD in Business Administration from UCTs Graduate School of Business, M.Ed and B.Ed. She has been a teacher of children with disabilities, university lecturer and researcher in the area of disability studies and inclusive education at five universities. She has conducted research and training across over 11 African countries in the area of disability, education and inclusion for organisations including UNICEF, UNDP and the World Bank and is dedicated to accurately sharing experiences and co-creating solutions.

As a previous milk donor at Milk Matters (4 years and 2 months) she understands the vital role human breast milk donation plays in the lives of the premature babies and is passionate about creating awareness.

Lester is the Treasurer of the organisation. He has extensive experience with non-profit companies as an audit partner of Deloitte & Touche for 35 years. He remains a Chartered Accountant (S.A.) after retiring from the profession. During his working life Lester was actively involved in the education sphere and served on the committee that set the final qualifying exam for Chartered Accountants for 12 years. He was also a member of Convocation at the University of Cape Town for a number of years.

The vision and objectives of Milk Matters resonate strongly with Lester and he is very happy to be able to add some value in financial and related matters of the organisation. Lester was appointed as Treasurer in late 2023.

As a registered dietitian since 2012, and a South African Certified Lactation Consultant since 2017, Theresa recognises the crucial role of donor breast milk for babies in need. Throughout her career Theresa has been an avid supporter of breastfeeding protection and promotion.

Before leaving KwaZulu-Natal in 2016, Theresa facilitated the establishment of a milk bank at Murchison District Hospital. She now works as a dietitian at St Joseph’s Intermediate Paediatric Care where she has provided nutrition services to the 175-bed facility since 2018.

Theresa has worked at district hospitals and NPO’s in rural and urban settings where she has worked to resolve the devastation of severe acute malnutrition in vulnerable infants and children in South Africa. This has fuelled her dedication towards improving breastfeeding support and advocacy in South Africa. Theresa was appointed as Secretary of the Board at Milk Matters at the start of 2024.

Emma is a highly qualified nurse and lactation consultant with a deep desire to make a difference in people’s lives. Emma has a particular interest in supporting breastfeeding, which she does via, amongst other things, her private practice as a lactation consultant, as a co-founder of an online platform offering breastfeeding courses and resources and with her long-standing support of Milk Matters.

Emma initially qualified in Midwifery, Psychiatry, General Nursing and Community and went on to add qualifications in nursing management, counselling and a BA degree in Communication Science and Psychology and a BSc (Hons)Psychology. Building on her passion for breastfeeding and supporting new mothers and babies in their breastfeeding journeys, Emma qualified as both a South African Certified Lactation Specialist (Wits) S.A.C.L.C and an Internationally Board Certified Lactation Specialist I.B.C.L.C.

Jenny is the CEO of the non-profit human milk bank Milk Matters, having joined the organisation in 2005 to assist with running this small but growing and developing non-profit organisation. A passion for supporting mothers and babies, promoting and supporting breastfeeding and ensuring that premature babies have access to the lifeline of donor breastmilk, has kept Jenny at Milk Matters ever since.

Jenny serves on the Human Milk Banking Association of South Africa (HMBASA) Committee, is a member of the Global Alliance of Human Milk Banks and Associations (GAMBA), serves on the Netcare Ncelisa Human Milk Banks’ Advisory Panel and is a member of the NPO Working Group.