News and Awards

No Texan enjoys cold temps and icy roads, but here at Mothers’ Milk Bank at Austin, we don’t let that chilly weather stop us from getting lifesaving donor human milk to the babies who need it. We’re so grateful to KUT’s Olivia Aldridge for shining a light on the work we do no matter the

January 9, 2024, marks an exceptional milestone in the history of Mothers’ Milk Bank at Austin. It’s the day that we dispensed 10 million ounces of donor human milk. We could not have reached this landmark were it not for the generosity of our donors and the hard work of our depot partners. “Every ounce of

Thanks to Houston Methodist Childbirth Center at Sugar Land, donating human milk just became a little easier for area moms. Learn more about our newest depot and our partnership with Houston Methodist.

Olympic champion, 23-time Grand Slam winner, mom, human milk donor–Serena Williams is pretty accomplished. The tennis star, who gave birth in August, decided to donate some of her frozen milk to a local milk bank. Just like other milk donors, she completed a screening process and was approved to make an anonymous donation. Learn more

We applaud Huston-Tillotson University, the historically Black university based in Austin, Texas, for their new program that will train lactation consultants, doulas, and midwives to battle the high maternal mortality rate in the state, especially among Black mothers. Learn more about this initiative here.  

On Thursday, August 23, the Fort Cavazos WIC office celebrated the official opening of the first donor human milk depot on a military base. We’re delighted to partner with Fort Cavazos in a shared mission to help babies in need. Read on below to learn more.

Former Mothers’ Milk Bank at Austin Board member, Veronica Cogwin, talks to Hand to Hold’s Kathryn Whitaker about her experience using donor human milk for her youngest infant, born at 24 weeks nine years ago. We are so honored to have helped Victoria! YouTube Interview Hand to Hold Podcast

Here’s a Throwback Thursday all the way from 2010. Keep Austin Breastfeeding celebrated World Breastfeeding Day with a choreographed flash mob that converged on Zilker Park on August 1 in celebration of World Breastfeeding Day.

While enjoying some beer and pretzels, the dads from Dad Labs discuss the topic of public breastfeeding. Is public breastfeeding rude or offensive to others, or is it a natural, normal practice other Americans should learn to accept?

U.S. News has just ranked Houston Methodist Hospital as one of the country’s top hospitals for obstetrics and gynecology. We’re proud to serve this illustrious hospital. Read more about how Houston Methodist Hospital received this ranking here.  

  On Wednesday, May 10, we met with Austin Energy to celebrate our switch to solar energy. Per Austin Energy, our solar panels save us the equivalent of 80 baby bottles worth of milk per day. We are so thankful for the generous solar rebates Austin Energy has provided, which has made solar energy sustainable

With Mother’s Day around the corner, we thought it fitting to share some of our fave mom-related jams with you. We hope you enjoy it!  

Great news for employed lactating mothers! As of April 28th, 2023, the Pump Act takes full effect, extending the right to break time and space to pump milk to nearly all workers nationwide. Here, you can learn more about the rights of breastfeeding moms at work.

As demand for pasteurized donor human milk increases, so must the support for nonprofit milk banks processing that milk, write Dr. Sarah Taylor and Deborah Youngblood, Ph.D., executive director of Mothers’ Milk Bank Northeast, in the Hartford Courant. Read more about how nonprofit milk banks provide invaluable nourishment to the country’s most vulnerable newborns.

March 30, 2023, is the official opening day of the Human Milk Institute at UC San Diego. Mothers’ Milk Bank at Austin collaborates with the Human Milk Institute’s director, Lars Bode, and others seeking to explain the mysteries of the lifesaving power of human milk. Read more about this innovative institute.  

We’re so excited to share the second video of recipient parents Brooke and Elijah talking with KXAN. Help us help more babies like Judah. If you know a new mom who might make a good donor, please share this video with her, or share this video on your social media channels.

Recipient parents Brooke and Elijah sat down with Austin news station KXAN about the ways donor human milk helped their son thrive during difficult and sometimes scary circumstances. MMBA’s executive director, Kim Updegrove, also discussed the science and importance of donor human milk and why more milk donors are urgently needed.  

This year’s Under the Milky Way gala has been a tremendous success. If you joined us for UTMW 2023, we’re so glad you came and hope you had as much fun as we did.            

MMBA business manager Molly Fonseca sat down with lactation educator Schantalyn-Danielle Jacobs. Schantalyn-Danielle discusses her experiences with breastfeeding, Black maternal mortality rates in the United States, and how she supports new moms and their breastfeeding goals.                                      

Donor mom Casey and her peanut had a tough road when he came into the world at a pound and a half. But that didn’t stop Casey from helping other babies in the NICU to thrive. “My son was born at 26 weeks at NAMC in Austin. He was 11” long and weighed one pound,

Families with formula-fed infants are in crisis due to the formula recalls and supply interruptions experienced by the industry throughout the US. It is understandably a frightening and maddening time. Mothers’ Milk Bank at Austin provides prescribed pasteurized donor human milk to babies with a medical need throughout the US. These babies are usually in

Mothers’ Milk Bank at Austin executive director Kim Updegrove spoke with KXAN’s Nabil Remadna about the decline in milk donations. If you’re considering becoming a donor, please give us a call at 512-494-0800.    

Recent recalls of infant formulas manufactured in a Michigan plant have created chaos as families struggle to replace their powdered infant formulas with safer options. If you are one of these families, please read this important FDA guidance.    

Take a bow, Tucson Medical Center! Since TMC opened its milk depot last August, it has sent the Milk Bank about 4,000 ounces of donor breast milk. That liquid gold helps save the lives of premature and fragile babies across the nation. Learn more about the Tucson Medical Center milk depot here.

Calling all Houston donors! Texas Lactation Consultants and Children’s Memorial Hermann are currently down for maintenance, so they’re unfortunately unable to receive donations at this time. Please refer to our website for alternative drop-off locations nearest you. Keep the upcoming holiday in mind, and contact your local depot if you need to bring in donations

Congratulations to the Tucson Medical Center! TMC launched its first milk depot on August 2, just in time to kick off National Breastfeeding Month. The hospital has a long-standing relationship with the Mothers’ Milk Bank at Austin and has been using donor milk from MMBA in its postpartum unit for years. Learn more about the

Last week, Mothers’ Milk Bank at Austin said goodbye to our intern, Trinity Carter, who has completed her Masters of Public Health degree at Baylor University. During her nine-month internship at MMBA, Trinity worked with Breast Milk Equity and Education (BEEP) Program Manager Kristina Garrison-Clarke, MSW and Executive Director Kim Updegrove, CNM, MSN, MPH, who

Impact Austin – June 12, 2021 Girls Giving Grants is a youth initiative of Impact Austin. Last year the 95 members of Girls Giving Grants made their largest award ever – $10,300 – and divided it between Friends of the Children Austin & Mothers’ Milk Bank Austin. This grant will support MMBA’s Charitable Care Program,

Mothers’ Milk Bank at Austin’s is proud to recognize Kim Updegrove, our executive director since 2010, on her selection as a 2021 Fellow of the American College of Nurse-Midwives (ACNM). The induction ceremony took place during the association’s virtual annual meeting on May 23. “Fellowship in the American College of Nurse-Midwives is an honor bestowed

Community Impact Newspaper – May 20, 2021 The Willowbrook location will allow easier access for northwest Houstonians to donate breast milk, which is in high demand, according to officials. Eligible donors include women who are currently breastfeeding infants younger than 1. Read full article!

San Antonio Express-News – May 10, 2021 Noelle Thomas, a NICU nurse manager at St. Luke’s Health — The Woodlands Hospital, drove to the Austin milk bank in the winter storm to pick up donor human milk and take it to several hospitals. The COVID-19 pandemic has changed the way we, as a community, look

KWTX – April 28, 2021 “A local mom hit a major milestone, donating more than 5,000 ounces of breast milk, and she’s encouraging other moms to consider donating, too. Aubrie donated breast milk to Baylor Scott & White Hillcrest Medical Center in Waco from May 2020 to January of this year providing enough milk for

KSAT San Antonio – February 27, 2021 Our Executive Director, Kim Updegrove, comments on the need for research on COVID-19 and human milk Read full article!

We’re saving babies’ lives one drop of donor human milk at a time: Provided over 7,220 gallons of milk to 155 hospitals and 145 in-home babies in TX and 21 other states Received over 1.4 million ounces of milk from 1,898 unique milk donors Donated $250,000 in charitable care to medically fragile babies whose insurance

How has the COVID crisis impacted donations, either from the perspective of the donor or the staff? And is the COVID-19 virus released into the milk, and if so, can it be destroyed through Holder pasteurization? Is donor milk a “breastmilk substitute”, or not? Find out the answers to these and other questions on this

EZVid Wiki – November 15, 2019 From people living with devastating diseases to new mothers dealing with birth complications to kids with broken arms, we all rely on health care services at some point in our lives. The Texas organizations listed here are dedicated to helping their communities by providing quality care and life-saving services,

WBIR Knoxville – September 17, 2019 A new milk depot in Knoxville is helping with the nationwide demand to help babies in the NICU. It allows new moms to give back and support others in need. It all started late last year when a lactation consultant realized Knoxville was the only major Tennessee city that

KXAN – October 12, 2018 “For months, Randan Steinhauser pumped breast milk, in hopes her seven-week premature twin daughters would be able to drink it once they got out of the hospital. “The one thing that I could do when I was at home, to feel connected to them when I was at home, was

Austin Moms Blog – September 12, 2018  “I live here, I give here. This statement is powerful, and it shows that we can make a difference with our money, time, and talent in the city we love so dearly. I’ve rounded up 12 of my favorite nonprofits for moms in Austin. I chose these because

KEYE CBS Austin – May 11, 2018 Haley downplays the gifts she has to give – love and devotion to her son whom she nurtured through the NICU stay and beyond; dedication to creating the precious milk first provided to her son by donors to the Milk Bank; time, energy, and expertise for volunteer milk

Austin 360 – Dec. 14, 2017  “As of Thursday, Mothers’ Milk Bank at Austin officially has distributed 5 million ounces of breast milk to preterm and medically fragile babies since it opened in 1999. The milk has been donated by more than 8,000 mothers, and been given to more than 29,000 babies from around the

Dec. 15, 2017 – “Every ounce of milk dispensed represents a compassionate gift from a donor, and a lifesaving gift to a recipient. Over the past 18 years, with the support of our community, we have expanded our impact to serve babies in need across Texas and 22 other states,” said Kim Updegrove, Milk Bank’s

ATX Woman Magazine – July 2017 Read the exciting article about our Executive Director, Kim Updegrove, and her journey to becoming the ED of the largest Milk Bank in North America. “After 30 years spent working in the health sector, matched with her extensive experience directing the largest milk bank in the country, Updegrove says

Travis County Medical Journal – May-June 2017 The Mothers’ Milk Bank at Austin is proud to be featured in the May-June 2017 Edition of the Travis County Medical Journal on page 28. Read full article!    

Thank you the everyone who joined us on Feb. 2nd 2017 for our Beer, Babies & Boobs Kick-Off Party! We had an amazing time enjoying food from the ART of TACOS, music from the Jon Klekman Quartet, on-site screen printing by Fine Southern Gentlemen and showcasing the art of Villafaña Art – Art by Marcy

We want to extend our most heartfelt appreciation to everyone who joined us for our Sip & Slab Celebration. At the end of the day we walked through our future home reading the messages on the walls–our eyes a little teary and our hearts filled with joy–knowing without YOU this dream would not be possible.

Gratitude was on display everywhere at the St. David’s winter grant announcement event. 50 nonprofits were the recipients of grants, and Mothers’ Milk Bank Austin received $290,000 to support the launch of a new lactation and doula education program.   December 19, 2019   Read full article!    

KSAT News – April 24, 2020 Mothers’ Milk Bank Austin, our milk collection sites, and local hospitals are taking extra steps during the pandemic to protect babies and donors. During this interview, our Executive Director Kim Updegrove talks about the need for more donor milk during this pandemic. Read full article!  

Parents Magazine – May 26,2020 Beaumont, TX is home to a milk drop-off site where Lactation Consultant Kara Michael is working overtime to recruit new milk donors and facilitate easy drop-offs. Local Beaumont donors have contributed over 5,500 ounces of milk since March, helping us keep hospitals supplied with donor milk that’s more in demand

There are over 60,000 preterm births in the United States each year. Breastmilk can be medicine for these babies which makes breastmilk donation so important. Kim Updegrove, executive director of the Mothers Milk Bank at Austin is our guest today.   Tune in!    

Milk banking Non-profit milk banking in the United States is rapidly growing! We have the Human Milk Banking Association of North America (HMBANA) here is the US, Mexico, and Canada. At this point we have 27 milk banks and 5 under development in North America. Milk banking was developed in 1985. Tune in! 

Kim Updegrove, executive director of the largest milk bank in the world, shares the Mother’s Milk Bank at Austin with us. Why is there a need for donor milk? What are the issues with informal sharing? Learn how you can help save the most fragile babies, and families from more heartache.   Motherhood is a

The Ethics in Business & Community Award, sponsored by Recognize Good, is given annually to businesses, nonprofits, and individuals who exemplify ethical practices in their official dealings and day-to-day endeavors including outstanding honesty, fairness, respect, social justice, and sustainability.      

In this time of pandemic, the Austin milk bank has seen an increase in the number of mothers donating — 900 women in the first six months, up 20 percent from 2019, which was the bank’s record year.   Read More

Regional One Health is helping “donor warriors” provide mom-to-mom, woman-to-woman support through their milk collection site in Memphis, TN.   Read More

Despite the pandemic, local hospitals still encourage mothers who are able to produce breast milk to help donate if they can to MMBA.   Read More

Breastfeeding in the age of COVID-19. A conversation with 3 members of the HMBANA organization about human milk banking during the pandemic.   Tune In!    

This award is presented to a stand-out organization whose relentless focus on results has created powerful progress for the Central Texas community.   Read More