About the WLC
Mission
The Washington State Lactation Collaborative champions evidence-based support, advocates for equitable access to human milk, and partners with communities to create opportunities for all Washington families.
Vision
Our vision is that every community in Washington State has equitable environments that support the use of human milk and lactation for lifelong health and wellness.
Goals
- Advocate and implement best practices that support lactation within hospitals, birthing facilities, health clinics, workplaces, and childcare facilities.
- Promote and protect a supportive environment for breastfeeding, chest feeding, and the use of human milk.
- Increase equitable access to accurate information, lactation services, and culturally relevant, person-centered support.
- Promote success among coalition members by facilitating communication, diverse membership representation, and visibility in local communities.
- Enhance access to data that accurately represents initiation, duration, and exclusivity rates for the purposes of evaluating and directing our work.
Key Documents
- Bylaws (updated 2023)
- Report from 2024 Needs Assessment
Board of Directors
Jean O'Leary, MPH, RD
Jean recently retired as the Breastfeeding Coordinator and Breastfeeding & WIC Food Supervisor for the Washington State WIC Nutrition Program.
Mara Andrus, RDN, CD, CLE
Mara is a nutrition consultant in Community Health Services with Public Health Seattle and King County and the Breastfeeding Coordinator for Public Health Seattle and King County.
Kate Majestic, IBCLC
Kate has been an IBCLC since 2014, a member of the Skagit Lactation Coalition, and works primarily in private practice. Her journey in this field began right here in Washington state. She then moved around the United States with her wife and child, in concert with her wife’s Naval career. Along her journey she has served on multiple breastfeeding coalition boards at the state and local level, to include serving as the Coalition Regional Representative for the Mid-Atlantic region for the United States Breastfeeding Committee. Kate is excited to collaborate with individuals and organizations to help build a system of support, empowering Washington families to meet their personal breastfeeding, chestfeeding and human milk feeding goals.
JonaRose Feinberg, MA, IBCLC
Jona holds an MA in Communication and was an IBCLC in private practice with a particular interest in supporting families with twins/multiples. Her current focus is connecting families and professionals with relevant resources, and increasing access to breastfeeding support. She lives in Edmonds and is the proud mother of college-aged twins.
Patricia Alva, MBA-HCM
Patricia is Chair of the Pierce County Breastfeeding Alliance and works in the WIC Nutrition Program at Sea Mar Community Health Centers.
Delores Baccus, RN, IBCLC
Delores is the Breastfeeding Peer Counselor Manager for Public Health Seattle & King County's Breastfeeding Peer Counseling Program, co-chair of the Pierce County Breastfeeding Alliance, and Executive Director of Mahogany Moms.
Janette Garza
Janette is a Community Care/Breastfeeding Coordinator at Grant County Health District. With 17 years of community-minded work experience, including 15 years with WIC, Janette has dedicated her career to caring, empathizing, and supporting people in her community. I worked in WIC for 15 of those years. Janette continues to use her skills and experience in leading the Grant County Breastfeeding Coalition. In her free time, Janette likes to spend time with family, support her children in their extracurriculars, and travel.
Stacy Hackenmueller, MS, RDN, CLE
Stacy works with the WIC program at Yakima Valley Farm Workers Clinic and co-chairs the Yakima Valley Breastfeeding Coalition. Stacy’s passion is on building intersectional relationships in maternal child healthcare and supporting equitable access to breastfeeding education and support.
Monica Richter, MD, PhD, IBCLC, FAAP, FABM
Dr. Richter is a Fellow of the Academy of Breastfeeding Medicine, a member of the Executive Committee of the AAP Section on Breastfeeding, and the Breastfeeding Co-coordinator for WCAAP. She is a retired Pediatrician at Valley Children's Clinic in Renton and a Clinical Professor of Pediatrics at the University of Washington. She is married with two grown children and one grandson.
Alex Sosa, MS, IBCLC
Alex is Director of the Simkin Center at Bastyr University. She was formerly the Breastfeeding Promotion Manager at WithinReach and the Coordinator of the Breastfeeding Coalition of Washington.