Filling the Role of Donor Mom

Thursday, 5/26/2016

Donor moms discover Mothers’ Milk Bank of North Texas in a variety of ways, from word of mouth to hospital materials. Sometimes, though, all it takes is a simple Google search. That’s what happened when donor mom Mattie traveled to Fort Worth for work and didn’t want her extra breastmilk to go to waste.

As a costume designer, Mattie’s job requires her to travel often. A recent project working on Fort Worth Opera’s ”JFK“ brought her into MMBNT territory. She needed to keep up her pump schedule in order to maintain her milk supply, but she knew she wouldn’t be able to transport all the milk back to her home in New York. That’s where MMBNT enters the picture.

Mattie began the donor screening process and pumping milk to donate as soon as she got in town. “The process was easy and very manageable as I broke it up over a few days,” she said. “The donor coordinators were also great to work with.”

Typically, Mattie wakes up early and pumps for half an hour before her daughter Ruby wakes up. Her battery-operated pump makes the process easier, as does having extra help from her mother and mother-in-law. She advises new moms to be diligent and keep at it, but to also stay calm in order to help things go smoothly.

However, Mattie admires that every mom has her own unique experience. “There are so many opinions out there, but it’s important to follow your instincts and do what works for you,” she said.

Mattie’s experience is certainly unique. Her profession as a costume designer has allowed her to travel extensively and work on opera, theater and film. While she’s designed costumes for a number of productions in New York and across the country, many of her designs have been showcased on stages overseas. Locations include Austria, Germany, Norway, Russia and Spain.

When it comes to her role as a milk donor, Mattie is happy to be of help to other families. By putting herself in the recipient moms’ shoes, she sees how big of an impact it can have. “It would be so hard to not be able to provide milk, along with facing the stress of whatever other issues may be happening,” she said.

Of all the places she’s traveled, we’re thankful Mattie landed in Fort Worth for a while and became part of our MMBNT family.