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MOVING TO ARVADA Milk bank, children’s health agency planning to relocate BY CRYSTAL ANDERSON • CANDERSON@COLORADOCOMMUNITYMEDIA.COM
To accommodate growth and expand services, Denver-based Mothers’ Milk Bank and the Rocky Mountain Children’s Health Foundation are relocating to Arvada.
DONATION STATISTICS • Mothers’ Milk Bank processes up to 3,100 ounces of milk daily. • In 2014, the bank processed more than 500,000 ounces of donated breast milk. • Mothers’ Milk Bank has collection depots and receiving hospitals in more than 40 states, and has received donations from donors in all 50 states.
One of the Mothers’ Milk Bank technicians mixes different milk donations together to create optimal fat content in the milk supply. Photos by Crystal Anderson
• It is the second-largest milk bank in the country, according to a 2014 Human Milk Banking Association of North America (HMBANA) Conference, and is on the fast track to being No. 1.
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WHEAT RIDGE TRANSCRIPT (ISSN 1089-9197)
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“We need to grow,” said Luanne Williams, executive director of the nonprofit Rocky Mountain Children’s Health Foundation, which operates the milk bank. “Even though last year we did 500,000 ounces, our goal in 3-5 years is to produce a million ounces, and in order to do that we need to have more space.” Started in 1983, Mothers’ Milk Bank, a nonprofit program of the children’s foundation, receives, pasteurizes and sends donated human breast milk to neo-natal intensive care units (NICUs) across the country, helping pre-term and sick infants thrive. “Around 9 million ounces of milk are needed, per year, to fill the gap between mom’s own milk not being available and pre-term infants who could very much benefit from human milk,” said Laraine Lockhart Borman, director of outreach for the Mothers’ Milk Bank.
“Pre-term infant lives can be saved from donor milk, because it prevents infections.” Beginning in June, the bank and the foundation, which provides a variety of resources to pediatric patients and their families, will be housed at 5394 Marshall St. Currently housed on two campuses at Presbyterian/St. Luke’s Hospital in Denver, the organizations will double the space for receiving and shipping donated milk as well as allow the bank to add and utilize a state-of-the-art milk processing ISO 7 lab, a distinguishing factor that the group believes would be the first in the country. “We’re kicking it up a notch,” Williams said of the new lab. “Basically, it’s a clean room … it ensures there’s no particulates Nonprofit continues on Page 12
Donated milk is stored in four- and eight-ounce jars following pasteurization, and then shipped out to various hospitals around the nation.
World seemed ready ‘to tilt upside down’ Nepalese business owner in Golden tells family’s story after April 25 quake By Christy Steadman csteadman@colorado communitymedia.com
Lhakpa Sherpa spent two days and nights trying to reach his family in Nepal, but the devastating earthquake had knocked out power and telephone services. He knew his mother visited the Boudhanath Stupa near her Kathmandu home every day to walk or meditate. The Buddhist religious monument and UNESCO World Heritage site was damaged by the April 25 temblor that destroyed many other historical temples. So to get the call from his mother in the late afternoon of April 27 brought him joy. “It was one of the best phone calls I’ve ever received,” said Sherpa, 40, a Golden resident for about 16 years who runs a landscaping company and is the founding owner of the Sherpa House, a Himalayan restaurant and cultural center in downtown Golden. A 7.8-magnitude earthquake shook Nepal
on April 25, leaving 11 districts of the small Asian country severely damaged and many others with a “significant loss of life and property,” the World Health Organization reported. An estimated 8 million people were affected, with a death toll of more than 5,000 people as of April 29. Video footage of the damage “almost creates a depression,” Sherpa said, making it difficult to sleep at night and find motivation during the day. Besides Kathmandu, where his parents live, Sherpa also has family in a small village called Lukla, which is the beginning point for all Mount Everest expeditions in the Himalayas. Power returned to the city April 27, Sherpa said, but rural areas remained without communication. Sherpa’s mother told him the immediate family is fine. However, his cousin’s brother died in the avalanche on Mount Everest, leaving a wife and two young daughters. A few other people Sherpa knew lost their lives, he said, including a friend in Kathmandu who died after an electrical pole fell on the taxi he was in World continues on Page 12
HOW TO HELP There are a couple of immediate ways people can help the Nepalese earthquake victims. Donate Donate medical supplies, clothing and shoes and blankets at the Golden City Brewery or the Sherpa House. The Saint Joseph Catholic Parish of Golden has an international aid group that is responsible to getting the donations to Nepal. Contact the brewery: 9201/2 12th St., Golden; www.gcbrewery.com; (303) 279-8092; Or on the GCB Facebook page Contact the Sherpa House: 1518 Washington Avenue, Golden; www.ussherpahouse.com; (303) 278-7939; Facebook page available Both establishments are also accepting monetary donations. Crowdfund The Sherpa House and Golden City Brewery have set up a crowdfunding page on the website Indiegogo Life. The tagline is HELP Nepal!, but Indiegogo Life has a number of crowdfunding options for Nepal, so to support the local efforts, visit the Sherpa House’s Facebook page or the Golden City Brewery’s website for a direct link. The goal is to raise $10,000 in 15 days. As of April 29, $5,815 has been raised, with 11 days left.