From Hawaii with love and great care, donor Stacey

“My husband, Brandon, and I have been married for 6 years and have 3 boys, Emmitt, 5, Ethan, 3 and Everett, 6 months. I was born and raised in Hawaii and am a nuclear pharmacist at a hospital in Honolulu. I enjoy hunting, golfing, traveling, and spending time with my family.

My family believes it is our ‘kuleana’ (responsibility and privilege) to ‘malama’ (take care of and protect others). With all 3 of my sons, I have had an oversupply of breast milk, and it was important to me to share it with others. We do not have a local milk bank in Hawaii and donating informally online made me feel uneasy, so I started donating to Tiny Treasures during my breastfeeding journey with Ethan and haven't looked back! I'm now on my second donation journey, with Everett, and have donated over 14,000 ounces to Tiny Treasures between the two journeys.

Donating my milk to help the tiniest and most vulnerable babies brings me so much joy. The compensation is a bonus; since the cost of living in Hawaii is so high, it allows us to do some fun activities with the kids. The staff at Tiny Treasures (our Milk Bank team) does their best to make the donation process easy, and I am grateful for the appreciation they show us.

Donating to Tiny Treasures has had a positive impact on how long I plan to breastfeed. Thanks to donation, I was able to breastfeed Ethan for 2 years and plan to do the same with Everett. My husband has been very supportive of my donation journey and always helps me with organizing my milk stash, packing coolers, and sterilizing bottles and pump parts.

My advice to other donors: All we can do is try our best. Prioritize yourself and take that vacation with your family!”

* Any views, opinions, findings, assertions, conclusions or recommendations expressed are solely those of the individual. The content is provided for informational purposes only and should not be taken as medical advice.