Dear Friends and Collegues,

Happy Thanksgiving!  This is the first opportunity, since joining last
August, that I have had to do a nice extra, like write to LACTNET and think
about what all this busy-ness means.  Since it is Thanksgiving Day here in
the US, I am thinking particularly about gratitutde.

I just received my LLLI renewal notice and saw that it is "gratis" because of
25 years of being a Leader!  Time flies when you are having fun!  I am so
grateful for the Founding Mothers and the Second Generation of women who
continue to make LLLI happen,  creating a place of affirmation and acceptance
in a world that sometimes seems more and more intolerant and contemptuous.
 Who would we be without their influence?

And I am so grateful for the founders of the lactation consultant profession
as well:  Kathleen Auerbach, Linda J Smith, JoAnne Scott, Chele Marmet, Pris
Bornmann, ... I had better stop, because I will leave someone out.  You all
know who you are!  I was an LC before we had a name for it.  I saw us as a
transitional profession once.  I have come to believe in us, you, as an
example of a new paradigm of care:  collaborative, empowering, and adaptable.
 Knowing you all gives me hope for the future.

And I am grateful for the physicians and other professionals who have given
leadership and expertise to all of our efforts:  Niles Newton, Larry Gartner,
Audry Naylor, Bud Tanis, again, there are too many to name.  It takes courage
to stand up for a new and often misunderstood and ridiculed subject.  Thank
you for caring enough to do more than is necessary.

And thank you to the many civil servants in the WIC program who are making
breastfeeding information and support, peer counseling, and new attitudes a
reality:
Catherine Bertini, Janet Roarke, Brenda Lisi, Andrea Von Ogeltree,  etc etc
etc.  You are making a dream come true.

I am sure most of you would also include in a list of thank yous, your own
families.  I do.  Frank, Roy, and Catherine tolerate my work with
breastfeeding with good humor and not just a little pride.  They know what
really counts in this world.  There is no substitute for basic love and
trust.  Babies matter.

And thanks to the Board of Directors and members of ILCA for supporting my
work these past seven years to represent ILCA in the public arena.

I hope you all are having a wonderful day.  We ate turkey and dressing
outside on the deck at my sister-in-law's!  Lotsa love from sunny San
Antonio....

Nancy Schweers