The ILCA Conference Scholarship Fund

Written by Glenna Thurston, ILCA Membership Coordinator

San Diego 2011 Conference LT – RT .Cathy Carothers (ILCA Pres) Natalia , Rita , Kathy Parkes (ILCA Treas)

“The feeling of being invested in has truly empowered me to move forward in the work that I do.” – Rita Rahayu Omar, BSc, IBCLC, Malaysia

“It was the wind at my back that I needed to overcome all the obstacles in my path.” – Irena Zakarija-Grkovic, MD, IBCLC, Croatia

“I couldn’t believe that other people would make my dream come true.” – Natalia Razakhatskaya, IBCLC, Belarus

These quotes are from some amazing women who are previous ILCA Conference scholarship recipients. Donations from our wonderful ILCA members paved the way for their inspiring and life-changing experiences.

The 2012 Conference is coming up quickly and we want to give as many people as possible the opportunity to attend. If each of ILCA’s more than 6,000 members donated just $5, we could offer over $30,000 in ILCA conference scholarships to women all over the world.

Please take just five minutes today to make a small donation to the ILCA Conference scholarship fund, To make donations, click here  http://www.ilca.org/i4a/ams/amsstore/category.cfm?category_id=17  (If you prefer, you may send a donation to ILCA by check or call 888-452-2478 to donate by phone.) Also, please encourage your colleagues and local Breastfeeding groups to participate in providing this great scholarship opportunity to women like Rita, Irena, and Natalia.

Read below to hear more from scholarship recipients about what the scholarship meant to them.

Thank you,

Glenna Thurston

ILCA Membership Coordinator

“Being a recipient of the ILCA conference scholarship has opened my eyes to the spirit of giving of ILCA members. The humbleness, spirit of sharing, the love, respect of all participants is something I will never forget. In a nutshell, it defines us not just as a professional but as a person. ILCA genuinely cares about the advancement of knowledge. Personally, the feeling of being invested in has truly empowered me to move forward in the work that I do. I believe that when you have people who are willing to help further education, it’s really a blessing…and there will always be a way and you will be lead towards that.” – Rita Rahayu Omar, BSc, IBCLC, Malaysia; 2011 ILCA Conference Scholarship Recipient

“Never before have I felt so special and privileged. It was the wind at my back that I needed to overcome all the obstacles in my path.” – Irena Zakarija-Grkovic, MD, IBCLC, Croatia; 2007 ILCA Conference Scholarship Recipient

“Never hesitate to try such a great opportunity. You deserve it. I couldn’t believe that other people would make my dream come true. I will always appreciate this treasure from my destiny!” – Natallia Razakhatskaya, IBCLC, Belarus; 2011 ILCA Conference Scholarship Recipient

“Given a chance to be at ILCA conference in 2009 made me so grateful and inspired me to initiate more productive programs back in Malaysia. Together with like minded friends we had initiated Malaysian Breastfeeding Peer Counselor program and conducted a Lactation Conference in 2010. These are definitely inspiring more and more breastfeeding programs in our country. Thank you so much.” – Nor Kamariah Mohamad Alwi, Malaysia; 2009 ILCA Conference Scholarship Recipient

“I passed my IBCLC exam in 2011 and now I am working in the private hospital as a LC. It is something completely new and unheard here, a special person for breastfeeding support who is not a nurse, midwife or a doctor. Sometimes it is not easy to help mother-baby dyads even when mothers are very motivated to breastfeed, as many Labor and Delivery practices still need improvement and sometimes they just need more encouragement and support. Now I understand how important for me was the University of California San Diego (UCSD) Medical Center Tour. I have now a picture how all this breastfeeding support works in a large hospital. It helps me a lot when I face challenges on my new job.” – Victoria Nesterova, IBCLC, Ukraine; 2011 ILCA Conference Scholarship Recipient

“My scholarship allowed me to attend my first ICLA conference. I would not have been able to attend otherwise, as my family had had many unexpected expenses due to frequent hospitalization of my husband that year, and the hospital for which I worked was unwilling to support any continuing education activities. The conference helped to reinvigorate me, and get me recharged to go back to do my job with new ideas as well as connect with other IBCLCs, with whom I have been able to keep in contact with. In fact, I no longer work for the non-supportive hospital and have a much more fulfilling job as an outpatient consultant with a free-standing pediatrician and working for a more supportive hospital part-time.” – Pam McArthur, RNC, CCM, IBCLC, USA; 2009 ILCA Conference Scholarship Recipient

“What an honor it was to receive this scholarship.  The conference was so informative; also it was so wonderful to be among all the many other people with a goal of gaining knowledge to help breastfeeding Mothers and Babies.” – Judy Swoboda, RNC, IBCLC, TX, USA; 2010 ILCA Conference Scholarship Recipient