SAN ANTONIO – Breast milk is often called liquid gold — not just for its nutritional value but for its ability to save lives.
Thousands of ounces of donated breast milk are quietly flowing through San Antonio, saving the lives of premature and medically fragile babies.
Katie Franklin’s baby, Ally, was born six weeks early. Her child needed two things: to be placed in the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU) and breast milk.
Franklin was able to use donated breast milk at North Central Baptist Hospital, which saved Ally’s life.
“You’re doing all these things, just praying that your body’s going to produce,” Franklin said. “And so, to have that donor milk as a backup, knowing that that’s available to support your little one, it just puts you at ease. It’s just a beautiful thing.”
Franklin, a pediatric physical therapist who predominantly works with babies in the NICU, said that even with her medical knowledge, nothing can quite prepare anyone for how it feels when it’s your baby in the NICU needing donated breast milk.
“One time, when our son was born a couple years ago, a mom told me that when they give you hand-me-downs, it’s like they’re giving you a piece of their heart, right?” Franklin said. “Somebody’s giving of their time, of their energy, of their body. How beautiful — how special is that?”
North Central Baptist Hospital is one of the few breast milk donation depots in San Antonio where mothers can donate their frozen breast milk.
The milk is sent to the largest milk bank in the country, located in Austin, which distributes the milk to 160 hospitals statewide.
Anna Wood, a lactation specialist at North Central Baptist, said breast milk is critical for premature or medically fragile babies.
“Nutrients, antibodies that protect against infection, all and so many more, so many benefits from breast milk in general,” Wood said. “But specifically for those little preterm babies.”
After birth, Wood said mothers produce colostrum before their breast milk comes in a couple of days post-birth. When a baby is born early or is sick, donated milk can be a lifesaver.
“For those first few days, while babies can’t quite get the colostrum out themselves, donor milk is very important,” Wood said.
Franklin and Wood are hoping to raise awareness about the importance of donating breast milk.
To donate, mothers can visit milkbank.org, answer the questions and undergo some lab tests to learn if they get approved.
Since January, North Central Baptist Hospital has provided 11,000 ounces of donated breast milk. In 2024, 31,000 ounces were collected.
“If you have the ability to do so, I would really encourage you to consider it because it makes a big difference,” Franklin said.
Other donation depots in San Antonio include University Health, Methodist Children’s Hospital and the San Antonio Food Bank.
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