MiKayla’s Story
Our beautiful daughter was born eight weeks premature. She was immediately rushed into ICU where she fought a long battle to survive, but ultimately her tiny body failed.
There was nothing that anybody could have done, there is nobody to blame, it was just her time to return Home. I found peace and comfort knowing that she was no longer suffering, and she had returned safely Home with God, but I still felt the deepest pain of loss and sadness.
As her mother, I cannot put to words the beautiful connection of Love that we share, and the emptiness that followed when she passed away. Healing takes time, as does the acceptance and understanding of so many things.
I found comfort knowing that my baby’s milk would be used to feed and possibly even save the life of another baby without the means of having breast milk. And I found peace knowing that everything happens for a reason, and that God will never give us more than we can handle.
Life is not measured by how long we are given, but by what we do with the time we have. When I look at MiKayla’s life, although it was brief she touched and changed the lives of so many around her. Her breast milk will feed those who are hungry, and her clothing and blankets will help give warmth and comfort to those in need. And foremost her memory will always bring joy and Love to those who shared her life.
Everything unto the natural has a beginning and end, but Love and memories last forever in time and space. I’m grateful for absolutely every moment that was given, for it is so much more than most. None of us are guaranteed tomorrow.
When I look back at my own life I ask myself, “How many lives have I touched? How will I be remembered? And what will I do with the time I am given?” If we are able to positively affect even just one soul through our existence, then our living is not in vain.
It was through my ultimate loss of little MiKayla that I can now truly see the Blessings and gratitude in absolutely everything, and the importance of Loving deep, living strong and cherishing every Blessed breath of life.
I have no regrets, and continue forward with a deeper Love, an unmovable Faith, and sincerest Hope in the beauty of Life and the chance to make a difference in my immediate world.
DID YOU KNOW
W.H.O. - 1 million infants die annually of complications associated with prematurity…Thank You letter to all the mothers donating milk
Dear Mothers
I would like to express my heartfelt appreciation, thanks and gratitude to all the mothers who have donated breast milk.
Breast feeding is not easy. You have gone beyond your call of duty and shown incredible effort, commitment, dedication and generosity to provide milk, not only to your own child but also to a child in need. You have shown that goodness can still prevail in these trying times.
You have restored hope and life, which otherwise may have been lost. We see the miracle of life unfolding before our eyes as these babies grow and develop. This miracle is realised because of your milk. The walls laced with thank you cards, smiling pictures of toddlers and children bear testimony to the lives you have saved and enriched.
The premature infants, their parents, doctors and nursing staff thank you from the deepest recesses of our hearts. We know not your names, how you look or were you come from, but our bond is close and you are always in our thoughts and prays.
Best wishes and love,
Dr Shukri Raban
Neonatal fellow
Groote Schuur Hospital
Cape Town, South Africa
Testimonials
I decided to donate breastmilk for two reasons.
Firstly, as a doctor working in the NICU I have seen disastrous consequences when an immature gut has been exposed to formula.Secondly, as a mom I realise how challenging it can be to breastfeed, even in my ideal circumstances, and hope that by providing milk for other babies I can improve not only their survival, but their quality of life.
Donor mothers, you have gone beyond your call of duty and shown incredible effort, commitment, dedication and generosity to provide milk, not only to your own child but also to a child in need. You have shown that goodness can still prevail in these trying times.
The term Milk “Bank” is perfect – it simultaneously describes the safety and the value of donated milk.
It was a very rewarding experience knowing that I could make such a difference.
I’m so grateful that I discovered the opportunity to donate my milk – donating really made me feel good about myself, knowing that the recipient babies would be given a boost in life.
Without human milk banks we would lose more premature infants and we would not be seeing so many premature infants going home healthy.
I highly recommend donating breastmilk. Knowing that breastmilk may help to take these babies out of harms way definitely gave me a feeling of fulfilment.
When I had my daughter I really battled with breastfeeding and thought, “Wow, I wish I could have donated milk.” When I had my son I had plenty of milk to spare and decided to donate to Milk Matters.The entire process was so easy. I truly recommend becoming a breast milk donor to all mothers, it is such a rewarding experience.
I remember with fondness the year when I was able to help with my milk I pumped every morning. Talita is now 4 years old, and she feels very proud of sharing her ‘lolo’ with sick babies in South Africa.
I LOVE donating milk, especially since I have far too much of it, and love knowing I can give other babies a nutritious start in life.
My little Gabe had the benefit of donor milk from Milk Matters! He was born at 27 weeks, 900grams (dropped to 750 grams) and he is now 2.3kg!!He has had very little serious health problems and it is my firm believe that it is due to the donor breast milk that he received!!
What a privilege it has been to be able to donate breastmilk for the tiny little premature babies who need it so desperately.
I never knew that formula milk could have such negative side effects on premature babies, until I got involved.
I am a donor and recently met a mother whose twins received donor milk as they were born at 32 weeks. She thanked me and said it was people like us that saved her babies’ lives. It really hit home then!
A donor mom’s expereince of donating breastmilk:
“Positive, encouraging, accessible – thank you!”
Being a Milk Donor was something that had never crossed my mind pre motherhood. I learned that my excess milk could save premature babies lives. I just thought: what a blessing, what an opportunity. I could help save a life.
After giving birth to my teeny tiny son at 25 weeks 6 days, I expressed milk for him religiously as I wanted to be able to give him the best start that I could in his very early life.
I had soooo much milk! I knew I could afford to share it. So I contacted Milk Matters. It felt so good to give my precious milk to other little babies just like my son.
I viewed a pamphlet about Milk Matters one day and I thought to myself, “Wow can people actually do something like that?”
I thought to myself I have more than enough milk for my daughter so I might as well spare some for those small little angels.
Remember that your small effort can make a huge difference in the lives of babies that struggle for survival.
I have no doubt that donor milk saves premature babies’ lives and helps prevent HIV infection.
It was great to know that my baby’s milk wasn’t going to be wasted; instead, it would be used to feed babies that really needed it.
Breastfeeding is a noble task that most mothers, no matter how poor or rich are biologically empowered to perform.
Thank you donors, having been on the receiving end, I know what a huge difference it makes to those tiny babes and their mums!
After work, I’d dash for the train so I could get home to put the milk in the fridge. I felt I was carrying a scarce resource that I had to guard with my life.
Greatest privilege to be able to bless a little one with what your own body brings forth! Has been a privilege to donate for the past 14 months of breastfeeding!
I truly enjoy donating. Thank you Milk Matters. I started out wanting to bless others and in the end I was the one that’s been blessed.Sending my milk feels like sending a life line to so many helpless babies in need! What a simple way to help save lives! It’s true! The gift IS in the giving!
Donor milk really saved my sons life.
He weighed 985g when he was born at 27 weeks.
Because of your organisation, most of all your donors, my son is healthy, his weight at the moment is 4.5kg – getting fatter by the day. May God bless you all and the work you do. THANK YOU! THANK YOU!
I would like to express my heartfelt appreciation, thanks and gratitude to all the mothers who have donated breast milk.
You have restored hope and life, which otherwise may have been lost.We see the miracle of life unfolding before our eyes as these babies grow and develop. This miracle is realised because of your milk.
Donating breast milk is an act that involves the least pain and the most gain, compared to any other human tissue or organ donation. It is potentially life-saving and is worth more than equipment or staff.
I will do whatever I can to help save these little babies. I am glad to be able to donate my milk to them.
When Milk Matters told me that preemies needed just 50ml a day to survive and I was feeding my son breastmilk all day long, I wanted to help and knew I could.
It is such a great privilege and pleasure to be able to give what I can give. It is truly an honour.
Donating breastmilk has been a wonderful experience and I feel that I have made a difference.
The generous offer of donor milk came as such a relief to me and, maybe because I no longer felt so stressed, I found that my milk supply increased substantially – in fact, I suddenly found that I had more milk than Luca needed! So I decided to donate the extra milk to the breast milk bank.
What a privilege to be able to help so many little ones in need and it’s been an absolute pleasure dealing with Milk Matters.
I am so thankful that my babies got the best by receiving donor milk, and that I was given a bit of leeway to get my own milk going without too much stress.
Having had a baby almost 8 weeks early myself, it meant a lot to help other prem babies, without milk from their moms, by donating milk to Milk Matters, a very special organisation that is very close to my heart.
It felt wonderful to be able to help other moms and babies in the same way that I had been helped. It has been very special to be both a donor and recipient of breastmilk through the milk bank.
It felt wonderful to be able to help other moms and babies in the same way that I had been helped. It has been very special to be both a donor and recipient of breastmilk through the milk bank.
The incredible experience of Gabi’s premature birth gave us the unexpected opportunity to make a real difference to the lives of others by donating breastmilk.
I gave birth to a 13 week premature baby who weighed 905 grams and dropped to 750 grams. I was producing very little milk at the time and I was able to secure some donor milk through Milk Matters!I would urge any lady who has surplus breast milk to please donate it to Milk Matters. The benefits to premature and all babies are really too many to put in words.
Please, please donate your extra breast milk!
So easy to donate – no hassle. Seen many babies in hospital neonatal ICUs do so well on donor milk.
Milk Matters made it easy and convenient for me to donate expressed milk.
It cost me nothing and took just a bit of my time. More importantly, I was saving a life, a little baby’s life.
I decided to donate breastmilk because as a doctor working in the NICU I have seen how our babies benefit from receiving breastmilk only. So often we have seen disastrous consequences when an immature gut has been exposed to formula.
I am so glad to be a part of donating milk to save premmi babies lives… I will carry on with this in the UK! I am proud to be among the first to donate from Hermanus!
I had tried donating milk in my country but they didn’t have a system and never got back to me, so the idea of the possibility of donating made me really happy.
Opening a milk bank in an African setting, such as Queen Elisabeth Hospital in Blantyre, Malawi, is one of the best things I have done during my career as a Neonatologist. It saves probably more lives than anything else I have done.
Donating milk is so wonderful, and one feels so good! I dropped 16 bottles off at depot this morning, feels great!
I never knew the babies I donated to, but I am very happy in the knowledge that my body was able to provide for sickly newborns whose mothers were unable to breastfeed.
My husband dropped off milk this morning. I am feeling very empowered and grateful that I am able to help such tiny humans!
A doctor’s thanks to donor mothers:
You have restored hope and life, which otherwise may have been lost.The premature infants, their parents, doctors and nursing staff thank you from the deepest recesses of our hearts. We know not your names, how you look or where you come from, but our bond is close and you are always in our thoughts and prayers.
Together with Kangaroo Mother Care, breastmilk donation is an intervention that most doctors themselves cannot give, but most mothers can – it completes medical care.
I firmly believe that the practice of Milk Banking is still in its infancy, globally and especially in South Africa. I expect it will steadily increase in profile and will progressively gain support until it overshadows blood transfusion both in the public and medical eye.
I hope that this project keeps going for years to come – it is truly a fantastic initiative. What a great way to make a huge difference in the lives of those special little people.
As a working mom who must travel for work, I was thrilled to discover Milk Matters on my recent trip to Cape Town. I spent a week there and Milk Matters made the whole experience of donating milk so easy.I was so pleased that I could donate my milk to babies who could really use it instead of having to throw it away. I would encourage more travelling mamas to do the same.
I have cherished the opportunity to donate milk to a worthy cause.
It is awesome to be able to do so little but make such a big difference!
Has been so great to help babies in need, especially since it was so easy.I wish I could continue to donate as it’s the most rewarding act of kindness a Mother can do and thanks to Milk Matters I was able to help.
It has felt good to donate milk and be able to give something to babies who are not so lucky and are not blessed with a mother who can breastfeed them.
It made me feel proud to know that my milk would go to a very deserving child. Having a baby is a miracle and if I could help just one child it would be an honour.
Donating breastmilk to Milk Matters was the best thing I could have done for anybody as anything could have gone wrong with me and my baby but God protected us and I thought this was my way of saying thank you and paying it forward.
I have adjusted my milk expressing to suit my life style (currently once a day) which has been such a little sacrifice for me, to make such a huge difference. I would highly recommend donating milk, the rewards are endless.
Donor milk is providing a life-line to 700g, abandoned, premature Baby X.On Day 34 of receiving donor milk for Baby X, one of the nurses caring for him said,
“He has definitely been to heaven and back a couple of times but is doing well thanks to all the donor milk!”
My son was born at 27 weeks with weight 985gr. He needed milk. I was unable to give him breastmilk.Thank you very much to the donors who donated breast milk. It really saved my sons life.
No matter how much milk I managed to donate (which at times wasn’t much) it was gratefully received by Milk Matters.
They were also very helpful and organised, making the whole process really smooth and painless. I definitely plan to donate again in the future.
It was a priviledge to share my daughter’s milk. Hope to have another baby soon & loooads of milk!
I do not have time to do charity work, nor do I have an abundance of money to donate to all those worthy causes out there, so this was my way of giving back to society.
Wouldn’t you hope that a mom out there would step up and do the same thing for your baby?
A premature baby needs so little breastmilk. I was always so careful not to spill any of it. I know of mothers who express surplus milk in the shower or simply throw it down the drain. It’s just such a waste!
After having donated my milk I really can’t wait to, in the future when she’s older, tell my daughter about the experience of how she shared one of the most precious gifts I was able to give her as a baby with babies that weren’t as lucky.
It was very rewarding knowing that by my donating a bit of my breast milk every day, I was able to make a big difference in a very tiny baby’s life! It is a real gift of life.
Without human milk banks we would lose more premature infants and we would not be seeing so many premature infants going home healthy.
My baby had 24 hours of donor milk. I’d just like to say thank you for the wonderful work you do, and thank you to the donor.
I’m so grateful that there are people who are willing
We are more than happy that we can help by donating milk. The Lord has truly provided for us and our baby in abundance and we would like to share his goodness to those little ones in need.
