Meet Jada Metcalf of The Milk + Honey Company

Today we’d like to introduce you to Jada Metcalf.

Thanks for sharing your story with us Jada. So, let’s start at the beginning and we can move on from there.
I began this journey as a virtual assistant to local businesses and individuals in the community providing administrative assistance, social media management and more. A client referred me to their bed ridden pregnant relative and the rest is history. I enjoyed helping her so much it piqued my interest into becoming a maternal wellness advocate in my community. I attended a doula training orientation at Sister Song located in Atlanta and after watching a documentary on Black maternal mortality rates I immediately knew that my calling and service was needed as a postpartum doula. As a postpartum doula, I help to soften the transition into motherhood while educating families on the warning signs that are often missed or dismissed with Black women and their postpartum recovery.

Many of the mothers that I serviced were frequently struggling to breastfeed their children. I myself breastfed two boys for two months and 13 months. The difference between the two was my increase in maternal confidence and support I found in the community. I wasn’t sure how my experience would help other mothers until I was introduced to R.O.S.E. (Reaching Our Sisters Everywhere), a nationwide non-profit organization dedicated to creating awareness and elimination of low Black breastfeeding rates in the United States.

I attended a training to become a R.O.S.E. Community Transformer to host local breastfeeding support groups and mommy and me events for Black mothers in underrepresented communities that encouraged mothers to breastfeed and support them through their breastfeeding duration. I held safe spaces for Black mothers at a local library for over a year and was able to support close to 50 women. In addition to the training I received, I also was granted a full scholarship from ROSE and Lactation Education Resources to become a Certified Breastfeeding Specialist. With this gracious gift it enabled me to also begin my training to become a licensed certified lactation consultant (IBCLC).

I used my training and obtained a job as a WIC Breastfeeding Peer counselor to support mothers that are receiving WIC. It was here that I experienced the barriers Black women face breastfeeding the more I worked with mothers the more it fueled me to pursue this career fully so I began training at a local breastfeeding clinic to begin to fulfill the requirements to become an IBCLC. With this new found career aspiration I begin to see the lack of color and Black women in this field and the challenges of finding other women such as myself. This led me to begin a community Facebook group called the Future IBCLCs of Color in 2019 and it has amassed 800+ members to date. The group encourages more people of color to begin careers as breastfeeding peer counselors, certified lactation counselors and eventually becoming a licensed lactation consultant.

I was awarded the 2020 Cultural Changemaker Award from the United States Breastfeeding Committee

We’re always bombarded by how great it is to pursue your passion, etc – but we’ve spoken with enough people to know that it’s not always easy. Overall, would you say things have been easy for you?
No, it has not been a smooth road professionally. I run into many obstacles trying to fully encourage and support breastfeeding mothers. Many of the barriers Black women face while breastfeeding such as inadequate health care, access to culturally competent support and mothers returning to work can be alleviated by giving families the resources needed and increasing the push to change legislation for paid maternity leave for mothers and their families.

Black mothers are 9x times more likely to be given formula when they run into uncomplicated breastfeeding challenges in the hospital before they are even discharged leaving mothers with feelings of inadequacy when it comes to feeding her baby from the breast. Most LC’s are located in big cities such as Atlanta which leaves rural areas without the needed support to continue breastfeeding. Many mothers don’t know the profession exists or if they do have assumptions that LC’s are only pro-breastfeeding and anti-formula and villainize mothers that choose to supplement with formula for whatever reason.

The most common barrier for the profession that many aspiring IBCLCs of face is access to clinical training. This field is mostly dominated by registered nurses that have access to work with the mother baby dyads. Again, the air of racism always looms in this field as well. Only 141 LC’s are licensed in the state of GA with a total of 1100 lactation professionals and very few of those are IBCLC’s of color.

Please tell us about the company.
The Milk + Honey Company, LLC was established in 2017 on the south side of Atlanta in Jonesboro, GA. We are a Maternity Boobtik providing concierge services like private or virtual prenatal education, breast/chest feeding support, bed rest and postpartum support and just recently we’ve added business support services for birth workers.

I am the owner of the company and I am a one woman show working as the CEO but my most important role is working as a postpartum doula and certified breastfeeding specialist providing services such as belly casting, breast/chest feeding support, newborn care, sibling care, light housework, laundry/diaper service, meal planning and prep, errand running, overnight care, light touch massage and sitz baths. We are known for providing evidence-based information to families so that they are able to make informed decisions for their families and lifestyles. Our prenatal education classes are free to teenage families ages 14-19.

Our product catalog includes clothing apparel and accessories in the form of breastfeeding affirmation TIT-Tees that create the conversation around the normalization of breastfeeding publicly and products such as stickers, leggings and coffee mugs. We also provide postpartum and breastfeeding starter kits for new and expectant mothers to begin their postpartum journey.

We are different from most maternal services in that we are mothers first. We provide wombmate to roommate resources with a continuous relationship with our families through the adolescent years providing resources such as extended nursing, introduction to baby foods, tummy time, natural parenting resources, education and more. I am most proud of the connections with mothers and businesses that the company has formed, We have been blessed through donations and supplies from the very same families that we have supported through our mission to mothers that may not be able to afford doula or lactation services, referrals to new families and most importantly the ties that we are creating in the community with other businesses as well.

So, what’s next? Any big plans?
I have big plans for Atlanta. I hope that the The Milk + Honey Company will become an oasis of prenatal and antenatal information and support for families in underrepresented communities. I am still in the mode of obtaining my license as an IBCLC to fully support families, create legislative change through policy making and to encourage and educate local citizens to enter the field of lactation while providing clinical training and employment opportunities to those same individuals.

I look forward to expanding my services by partnering with local birth working businesses. I am currently working on projects with Double the Love Lactation Services and the Mama Soko Collective to support new and expectant families as well. My biggest goal for the year during COVID19 where connection has limited the ability to support mothers face to face, is for the Future IBCLCs of Color collective is to become a non-profit organization focused on providing detailed education and clinical opportunities to those interested in the field. The collective will increase breastfeeding awareness, education and support nationwide by employing certified lactation professionals through a 24-hour support line providing evidence-based information to breastfeeding mothers by phone or email.

Pricing:

• Virtual Prenatal Education Classes – $49
• Virtual Lactation Consult – $39
• Bed Rest/Postpartum Care 3 hrs – $100+
• Private In Home Prenatal Education Class – $85
• Private In Home Lactation Consult – $85
• Milkshake Bundle – $99

Contact Info:

• Website: www.milkandhoneycoatl.com
• Phone: 404-890-0497
• Email: [email protected]

Image Credit:
me and Jada Metcalf

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