Small Beginnings
Founder Pat Shelly consulting with a mom and baby at the old K Street location.
“The Breastfeeding Center for Greater Washington began as an overcrowded K Street staple in 1998. Founder Pat Shelly’s vision grew over the years to include a retail storefront, individual consultations, a robust class curriculum (with long waiting lists) and a rental outpost. ‘I built the center around asking and answering the question of what women needed and making sure that it was available to her. I also knew women wanted to share experiences and I wanted to create just the right environment for them,’ Shelly says.” -Washington Post, 2017
That simple vision continues to guide The Breastfeeding Center, now more than 20 years later. As our community and programming grow, we continue to ask how we can help families feel supported to meet their goals and thrive.
MISSION
Our mission is to support families from pregnancy through the transitions of early parenthood with relationship-based care, evidence-based instruction and resources, and integrative health services for lactation and postpartum. We're here to help you navigate pregnancy, lactation, and postpartum with greater ease and joy, and provide you the tools to make informed and empowered decisions that feel best for you and your family.
Evidence-based
All information clients receive from the Breastfeeding Center and its staff is researched and evidence-based.
Empowering
We help parents to identify their vision of a healthy, thriving family and supporting them to eliminate or overcome the barriers to enacting that vision.
Supportive
We support our clients in any way they need to help them make the decisions they deem best for their families and to meet their goals.
Accessible
The care that we offer must be accessible and relevant to all, regardless of race, ethnicity, gender identity, sexual orientation, immigration status, partnership status, income, or ability. In order to serve our community better, our staff--and the lactation field more broadly--must begin to represent the diversity of the clients we serve. The Center will also work with other organizations in the lactation field to make training, educational opportunities, and employment more accessible to underrepresented groups.
Inclusive
Our staff is culturally aware and continuously works to confront our own internal biases. We are intentional about making our services and space welcoming to people from all backgrounds.
Collaborative
We work cohesively as a staff to meet our mission. We also collaborate with other organizations to increase both our and their impact.