Megan Moffitt - Internship Experience

My name is Megan, and I am the marketing intern at Mothers' Milk Bank of Tennessee. Three months ago, I applied to this nonprofit for real-world marketing experience and the opportunity to make an impact.

Mothers' Milk Bank's mission is to provide breastmilk to premature and medically fragile babies that need it most, and that could have been me. I was born at 26 weeks, a whole 3 months before I was supposed to be born. I weighed 2 pounds and 2 ounces, meaning I needed to gain weight quickly. I was fortunate enough to have a mother who could produce her own breastmilk, but this is generally not the case for NICU moms. My mom spent 9 weeks in the NICU and made friends with many other moms who had to rely on breastmilk donations to keep their babies fed and growing. When these babies don't get breastmilk or their breastmilk has an insufficient amount of calories, they run the risk of developing NEC, which can be fatal.

I am honored to play a small part in the milk bank's mission to provide breastmilk to the babies that need it most, mainly because many were like me. We don't just provide breastmilk, though; we offer support to parents and build connections. We can play a small role in soothing parents' worries and being a listening ear. 

I'm excited to learn skills related to my degree, such as emails and social media. Still, more than anything else, I am excited to connect with others in the community. I can't wait to talk to more donor moms and get to know them, all while helping spread awareness of this essential place where I work.