Babies Welcome at Historic Sherbrooke Village
Families with children can rest easy at historic Sherbrooke Village thanks to a baby-friendly rest station, which opened today, Oct. 2. The opening coincided with National Breastfeeding Awareness Week, Oct. 1-7.
The rest station, located in the Sherbrooke Courthouse, was opened by Michelle Hirschfield and Tonya Pearo, two members of the project's community advisory group. The station contains a comfortable rocking chair for nursing mothers, a change table, washroom and diaper disposal. It will feature information pamphlets of interest to families. The facility is the first of its kind in eastern mainland Nova Scotia, and is a new addition to Sherbrooke Village's visitor services.
"In a large site such as ours, families may well spend a half-day or more taking in all there is to see and do," said Craig MacDonald, director of Sherbrooke Village. "In the past, this may have meant that some nursing mothers might have felt the need to curtail their visits, or even not visit Sherbrooke at all.
"We've always tried to provide nursing mothers with quiet, secure areas for breastfeeding, but we know that creating this special spot where mothers and families can go is the next proactive step," said Mr. MacDonald. "As Sherbrooke opens this breastfeeding facility to better serve the travelling public, we hope other public spaces and tourist destinations will be encouraged to do the same."
Lynette Newell, co-ordinator of the Guysborough County Pre-Natal Nutrition Program and a board member of the Strait Regional Breastfeeding Network, said that the establishment of these types of facilities in this area of the province is important and needs the support of communities.
"Sherbrooke Village and its community partners should be applauded for the initiative they have shown in working together to achieve a common goal. We hope this will inspire groups in other communities to establish more baby-friendly rest stations in eastern Nova Scotia."
The idea for the rest station, which will give nursing mothers and caregivers a private comfortable and sanitary place to feed and change their small children, was brought to the village by Jane Moseley, a former public health nurse in the Sherbrooke area. Ms. Moseley and Jeannette MacDonald, current public health nurse, worked closely with nursing mothers in the community, the Guysborough County Kids First Resource Program and the Strait Regional Breastfeeding Network to help Sherbrooke Village plan and create the rest station.
Financial donations to the project were received from the Municipality of the District of St. Mary's and the Port Hilford Women's Institute. Sherbrooke Shoppers Drug Mart provided some supplies for the rest station.
Plans are underway to expand services to offer emergency changing supplies, and provide reading material and other amenities for family use.