Hero Officer breast-feeds quake orphans

[The Dragon]

What a logical and totally natural thing to do.
Babies are starving and she has milk.
The more they drink, the more she produces.
Kudos to her for doing the right thing.

 

[B_jacknapier]

hey! i have an idea! let's take over this thread by debating semantics

Not like anyone has much more to offer on the topic of the hero wet nurse. I don't think anyone's likely to condemn her. We're all pretty much in consensus that she's great.

 

[B_jacknapier]

My mistake. :biggrin1:

You're confused- that's Scientology.

 

[Mr. Snakey]

Officer breast-feeds quake orphans

From Hugh Riminton
CNN International


JIANGYOU, China (CNN) -- A Chinese policewoman is being hailed as a hero after taking it upon herself to breast-feed several infants who were separated from their mothers or orphaned by China's devastating earthquake.

Officer Jiang Xiaojuan, 29, the mother of a 6-month-old boy, responded to the call of duty and the instincts of motherhood when the magnitude 7.9 quake struck on May 12.

"I am breast-feeding, so I can feed babies. I didn't think of it much," she said. "It is a mother's reaction, and a basic duty as a police officer to help."

The death toll in the earthquake jumped Thursday to more than 51,000, and more than 29,000 are missing, according to government figures. Thousands of children have been orphaned; many others have mothers who simply can't feed them.

At one point, Jiang was feeding nine babies.

"Some of the moms were injured, their fathers were dead ... five of them were orphans. They've gone away to an orphanage now," she said. http://i.l.cnn.net/cnn/.element/img/2.0/mosaic/tabs/video.gifWatch the officer care for babies »

She still feeds two babies, including Zhao Lyuyang, son of a woman who survived the quake but whose breast milk stopped flowing because of the traumatic conditions. "We walked out of the mountains for a long time. I hadn't eaten in days when I got here and my milk was not enough," said that mother, Zhao Zong Jun. "She saved my baby. I thank her so much, I can't express how I feel."

Liu Rong, another mother whose breast milk stopped in the trauma, was awed by Jiang's kindness.

"I am so touched because she has her own baby, but she fed the disaster babies first," Liu said. "If she hadn't fed my son he wouldn't have had enough to eat." Jiang has became a celebrity, followed by local media and proclaimed on a newspaper front page as "China's Mother No. 1."

She's embarrassed by the fuss.

"I think what I did was normal," she said. "In a quake zone, many people do things for others. This was a small thing, not worth mentioning." http://i.l.cnn.net/cnn/.element/img/2.0/mosaic/tabs/map.gifSee the quake zone »

There has been a huge outpouring of support from families who want to adopt babies orphaned by the quake. But that process takes time and there are mouths to feed. Jiang misses her own son, who's being cared for through the emergency by in-laws in another town, but she is aware of the new connections she's made.

"I feel about these kids I fed just like my own. I have a special feeling for them. They are babies in a disaster."

A real nice story.

 

[Ms.Teacher]

Actually that surprises me. I knew wet nurses were popular during the middle ages. I've not heard of them being used during the 20th century.

My grandmother never was one or never needed one, but I do remember her talking about them and what a wonderful "service" they provided.

Occasionally, I'll see a newscast about an orphaned baby animal, and how another animal will nurse it. I saw a cat one time feeding a baby squirrel, a dog feeding a kitten, and a cat feeding a puppy. It's amazing how they'll just place the baby animal there, and the mother will take it in like it's her own; so cute and loving.

 

[B_KOKOBWARE]

any pics of this female officer?