The Nurture Project
Donation protected
Those crazy, surreal days after you have a baby. The worries, the insecurity, the sense of being in a cocoon. The torment of deciding which nipple cream to try next, or if the beanbag feeding cushion will work better than the memory foam one. How upset you get when you settle yourself to breastfeed and then realise you have left the TV remote on the other side of the room.
How blessed I was: a calm, clean(ish) home, surrounded by my own things; caring friends and family to support me as I struggled to breastfeed my first child; superb NHS services to offer advice and support; whole supermarket aisles full of so many different baby products you would have to bear more children just to try them all.
Imagine then trying to provide the same care for your newborn when you have left everything you own behind. When you're living in dirty, makeshift accommodation, surrounded by strangers, reliant on donations. The only washing facilities are communal and unsanitary, and breastfeeding in public is just not an option.
Nurture Project International is a US based nonprofit organisation committed to ensuring special protection for the most vulnerable women and children – victims of war, disasters, extreme poverty, all forms of violence and exploitation, and those with disabilities.
Along with ante/post natal care and expert advice on breastfeeding (still the cheapest and safest feeding option) and complementary feeding help when it comes time for weaning, the group builds Mother & Baby tents inside the refugee camps to provide a safe, quiet space for mothers to feed and wash their babies and experience some of that collective support that is so vital to the wellbeing of both mother and child.
I have been given a very special opportunity to go and work directly with this organisation in one of the refugee camps in Northern Greece - I'm no expert in post natal care, but I can wash and clean and hand out nappies.
The organisation desperately needs funds - donations of goods are well meant, but often just aren't the right thing, or don't come at the right time - and don't help the local economy. I am paying my own travel and living expenses, but am looking to collect donations from anyone wishing to support NPI's work. All the money raised will be taken with me to pay for logistics and supplies, or help with the cost of providing the expert medical care.
Every little helps, as they say, so don't be shy - $10 can feed and care for a breastfeeding mother for a day, $15 for both mother and child. $25 fills five backpacks with essentials for newborns, while $40 provides lactation support for 40 families.
Thanks for reading, and I hope I can count on your support.
Mary
http://nurtureprojectinternational.org/
How blessed I was: a calm, clean(ish) home, surrounded by my own things; caring friends and family to support me as I struggled to breastfeed my first child; superb NHS services to offer advice and support; whole supermarket aisles full of so many different baby products you would have to bear more children just to try them all.
Imagine then trying to provide the same care for your newborn when you have left everything you own behind. When you're living in dirty, makeshift accommodation, surrounded by strangers, reliant on donations. The only washing facilities are communal and unsanitary, and breastfeeding in public is just not an option.
Nurture Project International is a US based nonprofit organisation committed to ensuring special protection for the most vulnerable women and children – victims of war, disasters, extreme poverty, all forms of violence and exploitation, and those with disabilities.
Along with ante/post natal care and expert advice on breastfeeding (still the cheapest and safest feeding option) and complementary feeding help when it comes time for weaning, the group builds Mother & Baby tents inside the refugee camps to provide a safe, quiet space for mothers to feed and wash their babies and experience some of that collective support that is so vital to the wellbeing of both mother and child.
I have been given a very special opportunity to go and work directly with this organisation in one of the refugee camps in Northern Greece - I'm no expert in post natal care, but I can wash and clean and hand out nappies.
The organisation desperately needs funds - donations of goods are well meant, but often just aren't the right thing, or don't come at the right time - and don't help the local economy. I am paying my own travel and living expenses, but am looking to collect donations from anyone wishing to support NPI's work. All the money raised will be taken with me to pay for logistics and supplies, or help with the cost of providing the expert medical care.
Every little helps, as they say, so don't be shy - $10 can feed and care for a breastfeeding mother for a day, $15 for both mother and child. $25 fills five backpacks with essentials for newborns, while $40 provides lactation support for 40 families.
Thanks for reading, and I hope I can count on your support.
Mary
http://nurtureprojectinternational.org/
Organizer
Mary Osborne
Organizer