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Mothers provide the milk of human kindness for motherless baby Sheralee Couch says her grandson Elijah has received so much donated breast milk that he's not very fond of formula. [Mail Tribune / Andy Atkinson] Monday Aug 28, 2017 at 12:01 AM Buffy Pollock for the Mail Tribune CENTRAL POINT — Never imagining she would say goodbye to a daughter at the same time she welcomed her newest grandson, Blackwell Hill area resident Sheralee Couch and her family found themselves simultaneously planning a funeral and figuring out how to feed a motherless newborn. Just over 3 months old, Baby Elijah settled in for a recent cuddle session with his doting grandmother, chubby legs tucked toward her body and dimples in all the expected places on the well-fed baby. Ten hours after Elijah was born, his 29-year-old mother, Jessie, died from a ruptured aneurysm. She had intended to breastfeed her new son and Couch wanted to honor her daughter's wishes, beginning with donated breast milk provided by the hospital. Couch said she never realized sharing breast milk “was a thing.” Not only did some co-workers — Couch is a nurse — offer extra supplies, but an online group dubbed “Human Milk 4 Human Babies” yielded a network of milk-producing mothers willing to provide sustenance for Elijah. “Initially, I think we hoped to get him past a few weeks or even a month, whatever we could do, but these moms have helped fill a freezer. We’ve got at least three months’ worth and he’s healthy as can be. He’s got rolls on his rolls,” Couch said. “Because he’s had breast milk, he actually doesn’t really care for formula on the rare occasion he’s had to have it. It upsets his tummy.” Grants Pass resident Amber Schatz, one of the many moms working to feed Elijah, said she had recently served as a surrogate and had milk supplies to spare. Having already stocked a freezer with milk for the babies she delivered, Schatz said she was touched by Couch’s request for her grandson. “Reading Elijah's story touched my heart and I knew I wanted to help him. I was able to pump and donate 250 ounces to help. I feel so blessed to be able to help another family out, Schatz said. “It felt amazing to help a baby but I also felt sad she never had the chance herself.” Couch said she was surprised by the willingness of so many mothers willing to donate for Elijah, from those who “overproduce” for their own babies to mothers who have weaned their babies but are still producing milk. Medford mother Melissa Cate had her fourth baby in June and got to be part of both the receiving and sharing aspect of donated breast milk. “When I had my fourth baby in June, it was the first time I had a baby early so I had to supplement with formula or donor milk. My sister brought donor milk for me and I was so thankful. That was my first experience of needing donor milk,” Cate said. “My sister adopted a baby right after I had my baby, so by then I donated milk to her. A bunch of us actually kept the baby in supply for six to eight months, which was really awesome. I follow these milk share sites so when I heard about Elijah, I had been pumping and freezing extra milk so I reached out.” Eagle Point mother and nurse Kristina Lawson, yet another of Elijah’s two dozen “milk mamas,” said helping another mother’s baby was the right thing to do. Both Couch and Lawson said they hoped Elijah’s story would raise awareness about donating breast milk. For Lawson's part, she didn’t realize until having her second baby that she could provide extra breast milk to those in need. To date, she says she’s helped Elijah and a set of twins whose mother needed the extra supplies. “I kind of hoarded my frozen stock with my first baby," said Lawson, "because I had this deep, new mom fear of, ‘Oh, my goodness, what if something happens to me or my milk supply? I need a backup supply.’ I’m a nurse; I work in the ER and CCU so I see a lot of tragedy and my brain tends to prepare for the worst. But at the end of it all, the milk had gone bad and I had to throw out so much. “So this (second) time, I only keep a small stock for my baby and I donate anything else that I pump.” Lawson said she hoped any mother would be willing to help another whose baby was in need. “For situations like little Elijah, it just feels amazing to help in some small way. As both a mama and a nurse I absolutely grieve for his family in the loss of his mama,” she said. “It’s a very sad tragedy that no one should have to endure, but if I was to pass away I would hope that other mamas would donate breast milk to my baby as well and help out my family and baby if they were able. Not only is formula super expensive, but it's just simply never going to be able to provide all the benefits that breast milk can.” Couch has only to stroke the cheek of her grandson to feel a strong sense of gratitude to the community of mothers who have helped to love him. “I don’t have the words to express what they’ve given to our family,” she said. “The generosity of these mothers absolutely leaves me speechless.” For more on the organization Human Milk 4 Human Babies, see www.hm4hb.net. — Buffy Pollock is a freelance writer living in Medford. Email her at [email protected].