talllk mar 13
DESCRIPTION
Latest newsletter for LLL FL/CI LeadersTRANSCRIPT
TaLLLk– March 2013 Look Inside: Leader Development Seminar………………....Pg 2 Leader Dues…….…......Pg 3 Who is Your District Advisor……………..…...Pg 4 Welcome to New Leaders ……………………..……..Pg 5 Finance Department….Pg 5 New Area Council Position Available……….............Pg 6 Join the Area Conference Team …….…………...…Pg 7 Dear Communi-Kate….Pg 8 Challenging Legal Questions ……………...Pg 9
Everything you wanted to know
about Leader dues and more
Page Three
Reflections
Susan Graham, Area Coordinator of Leaders (ACL)
I am excited to announce that Pat Johnston has stepped forward to fill a much needed role within the Area, Membership Database Administrator. I will outline a little history on the subject and explain why this position is sorely needed. Way back when Florida was linked to LLL International (before LLL USA was formed), LLLI used to track members and send New Beginnings and other mailings to them. LLLI no longer does this and there is no Area-wide collection of members. Do you have time to contact your members? Do you thank them for joining? Are renewal reminders being sent? Now instead of leaving it to each Group to enter and track member information, LLL of Florida and CI will provide that service for you. We will also send Area specific newsletters and other things of interest to your Group members. Pat explains more below...
Dear Leaders, Recently, the Area Council created a new position, the Membership Database Administrator (MDA). As MDA, I offer these services to you: I will send an email letter of acknowledgement and thanks to your member, as well as links to New Beginnings and
Breastfeeding Today,
(Continued on page 2)
Announcing the New Database for Florida and CI Memberships
LLL of Florida and CI will provide a service
for contacting members, thanking moms for joining,
and for sending renewal notices.
Wintertime in Florida--I've been here for ten years but I still marvel at the weather. Here in Clearwater the "snowbirds" return and our sleepy town becomes full of tourists and traffic, peaking in March. Like the seasons, LLL of Florida and Caribbean Islands also
has a lot of exciting changes happening. We have welcomed two new members to the Team, Grace Mack, in the Leader Accreditation Department, and Ira Philip, in the Continuing Education Department. We hope to have the Publications Coordinator position filled soon. Wanda Daniels and Laura Williams are new to the Leader Accreditation Department. Welcome to all of the fresh faces and voices within Area Council! It may be the right season in your leadership career to join Area Council now. If you are considering a change or an addition to your LLL life, contact a Team member to explore the matter further. Thank you for all you do as an LLL Leader.
Communication skills made easy
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information about La Leche League events that might interest members, and conference updates in the years we have one. I will also send reminders to members to renew their memberships through their local Group. If you would like me to keep track of these membership details for you, please contact me for the membership form and information at [email protected] Sincerely, Pat Johnston, Area Membership Database Administrator
(Continued from page 1) New database
Now is the perfect time to have a fundraiser for sending your co-Leaders and yourself to the seminar. The Area will waive its assessment and all money raised can go towards your trip. Have a garage sale, an online auction or book sale. Talk to your DA for ideas to make it happen. The Leader Development Seminars are an excellent Leader education opportunity! Registration for the entire weekend at all locations. Rooms: $79
South Carolina: $45 per night for ½ room
Mississippi: $40 per night for ½ room (you will need to bring your own linens)
Pennsylvania: $60 per night for ½ room $40 per night for 1/4 room
Nebraska: Make your own room reservations directly with the hotel
Meal Packages include three meals on Saturday and
breakfast on Sunday (3 and under are free)
South Carolina: 12+ $75, children 4-11 $38
Mississippi: $50
Pennsylvania: $50 everyone 6+
Nebraska: Includes lunch and dinner on Saturday only (breakfast is provided by the hotel for those staying there) $40, children 4-11 $20
Make plans to attend a Leader Development Seminar this summer
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Dear Leaders, As you know, once a year Leaders pay Leader dues to maintain Active status with LLL. Leader dues are renewed each year on your Leader accreditation anniversary. Due to an increase in costs, Leader dues will increase from $30 to $40 on April 1, 2013. This is the first dues increase in more than 10 years! You are welcome to renew early—by March 31—and pay the old rate of $30. When renewing early, your dues will be current until your next accreditation date. If you want to know your accreditation date, go to http://www.lllflorida.com/. Click ―Resources for Leaders‖ and then click on "Leader Directory" at the top of the page. Required password is case specific—user name: llleader; password: funds4LLL. Open the Leader Directory Excel file, find your name, and tab over to discover your accreditation date. Why do we Leaders pay dues? So that we:
Maintain our LLLI liability insurance so that we can continue to lead meetings and help mothers Stay listed in the LLL of FL/CI directory and on the Area Web site Can enjoy the camaraderie on the FL-Leaders Yahoo group, the FL-Leaders Facebook page, and continue to receive our Area Leader publication TaLLLk Continue to benefit from the support of the Area—Leader Department, Area Treasurer, Leader Accreditation Department, Area Secretary, and more
Help keep the Area strong and financially healthy
I will send a reminder for your dues renewal via email 30 days before your accreditation date, and we very much appreciate your prompt payment (within 30 days) to LLL of FL/CI (not LLLI!). All payment options and instructions will be included in your reminder email.
When your Leader dues remain current, you can continue doing what Leaders do best—helping mothers and babies. Thank you very much for your service to LLL of Florida and Caribbean Islands. SincereLLLy, Ellen Simpson Area Secretary and Area Database Administrator P.S. — A post script from Susan Graham, Area Coordinator of Leaders If the problem is not organizational...If you are having trouble finding the money to pay your dues.... Payment of Leader Dues is essential to the financial well-being of the Area, the Area Network, and beyond. Leader dues are a legitimate Group expense so best-case scenario would be that your Group has the
funds available to pay each Leader's dues. But what if the Group doesn't have the funds needed to cover everyone's full dues, or what if the Leader in question is not active with a Group? Partial payment from the Group is one option with the Leader herself paying the rest. A Group can hold a fundraiser, earmarking the funds raised to cover Leader dues. A Leader can also contact Robin Stanford, the Area Finance Coordinator, for assistance in case the Group is unable to pay or a Leader is not affiliated with a Group. A payment plan can be arranged so that dues are paid, but in a way that is more manageable for a Leader in a financial bind. It is also possible to barter service to the Area, either through Area Council or a special project, in exchange for getting the Leader dues waived. The final and least appealing option would be for a Leader to retire. Leaders are our most precious resource. We want to help you meet your financial responsibilities to La Leche League. If you would like to discuss this further, please contact either your Leader Department support person (your District Advisor); Susan Graham, the Area Coordinator of Leaders ([email protected]); or Robin Stanford, the Area Finance Coordinator ([email protected]).
Leader Dues, Ellen Simpson, Area Secretary and Area Database Administrator
Payment of Leader Dues is essential to the
financial well-being of the Area, the Area
Network, and beyond.
We would like to find out what you think about TaLLLk, our Area publication designed to keep Leaders updated and informed. TaLLLk is currently produced about three times a year, and we’d like to know if there are ways we can improve this newsletter. If you have not already done so, we are asking you to take a moment to respond to a very short, anonymous survey that will let us know if you read TaLLLk, what you like or do not like about it, and how we can make it more appealing and relevant.
We thank you in advance for taking time to respond and look forward to learning how we can improve our Area Newsletter.
Click here to fill out the survey: http://www.surveymonkey.com/s/LHCHN95
Fill out the TaLLLk Survey and Help Us Improve this Newsletter
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Who is Your District Advisor?
Perhaps you are a newer Leader, or maybe you misplaced your Area Directory or haven’t checked it on the Area Web site recently, and don’t know whom to contact about Group questions. Here is an update on the current Leader Department Support Leaders. Now that you know your District Advisor (DA) or District Coordinator (DC) and have her email, why don’t you make her day by sending her a note or a meeting report form about your last meeting? She will be delighted to hear from you!
Susan Graham, Leader Department Coordinator [email protected] 727-467-9559 Jasmine
Central Panhandle Gainesville Northeast Tallahassee Pensacola Tallahassee Evening
Susan Graham Temporary DA Blazing Star
Ft. Meyers Lakeland Live Oak Marion County Orange Park/West Jax
Jennifer Zonts District Coordinator [email protected] 407-542-5393 Azalea
Brandon Flagler/Palm Coast Halifax and W. Volusia Jupiter Lake Worth/Boynton Beach New Smyrna Beach New Tampa Space Coast Wellington West Palm Beach
Susan Graham Temporary DA Hibiscus
Pinellas County SE Broward SW Broward
Susan Graham Temporary DA Cypress
Boca Raton Ft Lauderdale Greater Orlando
Lena Ostroff District Coordinator [email protected] 441-236-1120 Palms
Barbados Guam Jacksonville Key West Port-au-Prince St. Barts St. Thomas
Cristina Giammarinaro District Advisor [email protected] 321-610-3406 Sea Star
Bermuda Highlands/South Polk Lake Wales Sarasota Titusville
Kathy Wallace District Advisor [email protected] 239-834-8390 Leaders with No Group Affiliation (NGA)
You can also view this online Username: llleader Password: funds4LLL
Planning has begun for the 2014 Area Conference and a few questions are pressing . . .
WHERE will this conference be held? WHAT types of events are important to you and your family? WHAT will encourage you and your family to be there?
Please share your opinions by answering this quick and easy ten question survey. Your opinion is important, and we want to hear from you! Please forward to your Group mothers as well because the more input we receive, the better. Remember—this conference is FOR YOU, so tell us what you think! http://www.surveymonkey.com/s/MHJN9JD
Take the Area Conference Survey and Help us Plan Effectively
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Effective April 1, 2013, Group dues are $55.00 per year with an added late fee of $5.00 if paid after May 1
st.
Effective April 1
st, 2013 Leader dues are $40.00 per year
due at a Leader’s accreditation date. Distinguished Leaders of 25+ years can either pay $40.00 Leader dues or take the Distinguished Leader discount of $20.00 per year due at their accreditation date. The Area Secretary sends a dues notice to Leaders a month before the due date. If the dues are not paid, a second notice is sent and if there is no reply after 30 days, the Area Secretary will send the Leader a letter stating that her dues have expired. The ACL receives that information and will act accordingly. If the Leader is retired she will be removed from both the LLLI database and the Area Directory.
If the Leader was just delinquent in paying her dues and informs the ACL and pays the dues, she can be reinstated. Leaders need to return the Leader dues form to make sure the information in the Area directory and in the LLLI database RSM is current and correct. Forms are available on the Area Web site. The cost-sharing due to LLL USA for 2012-13 was $58.00 per Leader. The assessment due to LLL Alliance Area Network was $8.50 per Leader. This came to $8711.50. This year the Leader count is the same 131 Leaders. We expect the amount due will remain about the same as last year but haven’t received a statement yet. Leader and Group dues did not cover the amount paid. The Area is counting on receiving memberships sold by Groups to help meet our expenses. We are also looking for ways to raise funds so there will not be an increase in dues.
The Finance Department has suggestions to help improve membership sales and also fundraising ideas. If your Group has had a successful fundraiser, please share that with other Groups by using the Leader list or writing an article for TaLLLk. Recently, the Area Council created a new position, the Membership Database Administrator (MDA). As MDA, Pat Johnston will keep track of membership details for any interested Group. She will be sending an email letter of acknowledgement and thanks to members, links to New Beginnings and Breastfeeding Today, information on events that might be of interest to members and conference updates in the years we have one. She will also send reminders to members to renew their memberships through their local Group. If you would like Pat Johnston to keep track of these membership details for you, contact her at [email protected] about sending you the membership information form. Pat recently assumed the position of Area World Breastfeeding Week Celebrations Coordinator. We would love to know if your Group is hosting a World Breastfeeding Week Celebration or a Big Latch On event this year, and support you in any way we can as you plan these events. Pat is excited to support you in these new roles! Put her to work, Leaders, and let her know how she can help you!
Reminders Annual Group Financial Reports are due as of April 1
st.
Annual Group Dues of $55.00 are due as of April 1
st.
Finance Department, Robin Stanford, Area Financial Coordinator
The Area is counting on receiving memberships sold by Groups to
help meet our expenses.
Welcome to New Leaders in Florida and Caribbean Islands
Maighen Price and daughter LLL of Bermuda
Jess Ferguson and son Previously from LLL of Bermuda
Elisabeth Soileau and family
LLL of Pensacola
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Ever thought about becoming more involved with the Area? Would you like to take a more active role in supporting Leaders in Florida and Caribbean Islands? If so, consider becoming an Associate District Advisor (ADA), a new position, slated to last six months. The ADA will work closely for six months with a District Coordinator while training for the position of District Advisor (DA). An evaluation will be made within the six months to determine if the role of DA is a good fit for all involved. Once the decision is made to continue, an ADA can be moved to being a DA, a position that requires communicating regularly with the Leaders in her District just as an Associate District Advisor does, but without the review process. DAs serve as the first support person a Leader turns to in most situations, including when help is needed for Group problems. DAs are also cheerleaders when Group work is going well. Being in contact with the Area is a requirement for all Leaders, and the DA is a Leader’s link to the Area. The DA is also the person to whom Leader’s report Group statistics, meeting activity and Leader activity. ADAs and DAs need to be effective and timely communicators, proficient and comfortable with email and experience a love for and a firm grasp on Group work. They must understand where to find the answers to Leaders’ questions, be willing to seek those answers when needed and have a friendly demeanor.
The position of ADA requires a minimum of four emails sent to each Group in the District you are serving, with timely follow-up on the replies you receive. If you speak to your Leaders by telephone, a log of telephone calls will be considered acceptable to meet your communication requirement.
ADAs also need to be willing to communicate with the Leader Department by joining in on monthly
conference calls and have an interest and willingness to continue to support Area Leaders. This is a very rewarding position– just as
Leaders provide support to mothers who may face challenges with nursing, ADAs and DAs
provide support to new Leaders who have concerns and questions. If you love LLL, love communicating, love supporting others and are looking to share your LLL wisdom with others, consider becoming an ADA. For more information, please contact Susan Graham at [email protected] or at 727-678-8046.
New Area Council Position Available : Assistant District Advisor
If you are looking to share your LLL wisdom with others, consider
becoming an ADA.
Grace Mack joined the Leader Accreditation Department (LAD) as an Associate Coordinator of Leader Applicants a few years ago. Some of you may know her as your LAD representative during your application or the LAD representative who worked with your new co-Leader. Now you all have the pleasure of getting to know her as the new Coordinator of Leader Accreditation(CLA). Grace has brought vibrant energy and interesting ideas to the department and we are excited that she will now have an opportunity to share her enthusiasm with all the Area’s Leaders.
Assisting in the process of accrediting new Leaders is so important to our continuing success. LLL thrives because of you, the Leader, who holds an interested mothers' meeting, or recommends an Applicant, or better yet,
mentors one. This goes hand in hand with the work done by the LAD. They are there to help you sift through the Applicant information, explore areas of dialogue, review requirements for leadership and more. The Area is grateful to have all of you working toward the goal of making new Leaders. We are pleased Grace is heading the department to ensure that applications continue to be sound, expedient, and plentiful.
Welcome to Grace Mack as our new Coordinator of Leader Applicants
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Planning is indeed underway for the LLL of FL/CI Area Conference! Although Fall 2014 may seem like it is a long time from now, we have much work to do and much fun to have doing it. First items on our agenda . . . Location! Where will we hold this Area Conference? Have you answered our survey and shared your opinion? Please share the survey with your Group mothers, too. http://www.surveymonkey.com/s/MHJN9JD Keynote Speaker! Who will he or she be? We are considering inviting an exciting speaker who will energize us all with a keynote address as well as offer additional sessions during the weekend. Have an idea for a great keynote speaker? Let us know by emailing Ira at [email protected]. Team Positions! Let’s get started on this right away. . . WANTED! Motivated volunteers to head up these key conference team positions! You will be working with the Area Conference Coordinator (ACC) and conference team—support will be at your fingertips. You may even consider working with a friend as a small team. No one works alone. Remember that LLL ―jobs‖ are mother-sized. Prior experience is not necessary, so please consider taking that leap and volunteering to help! We will have fun! Listed below are the positions we are looking to fill at this time. Next to the position name, you will see a description
of the responsibilities as well as a list of traits and skills that a person who may enjoy this position might possess. This is a partial list of open and positions that we need to fill now! More open positions will be posted soon, or they are available by request. Coordinator for Speakers and Programming: Are you an ―information junkie‖? Lots of us are! Information sharing is the primary reason we have an Area Conference. Our programming and speakers are one of the keys to the conference success.
An impressive, intriguing, and varied speaker list is a big draw to potential attendees. This coordinator works closely with the ACC to create a dynamic speaker line up including an exciting keynote speaker, as well as other speakers—Area administrators, Leaders, and others—who will inspire our attendees. Volunteers for this position may be freethinkers, possess creativity, and desire to create inspiring and informative conference programming. Other important traits: persistence, research abilities, organization, strong communication skills, and the ability to work on a timetable. Coordinator(s) of Grant Writing and Conference Underwriting: New position or positions! Are you a visionary? Do you have writing skills? Do you have a keen interest in researching and locating potential sources for financial support to help our Area bring a dynamic speaker line-up to our conference? Working alongside the ACC, this grant writing/underwriting team will collaborate to locate potential conference underwriters and/or grant opportunities to financially support our conference event. This team has the potential to make a huge impact on our programming options! The possibilities are endless! Volunteers for this position would have the ability to think and dream BIG! Other important traits: great writing abilities, research skills, creativity, organization, the ability to work on a timetable, and the ability to work well as a team. Grant writing experience is a bonus!
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WANTED! You . . . to join us on the Area Conference Team!
LLL “jobs” are mother-sized. Prior experience is not necessary,
so please consider taking that leap and volunteering to help!
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Entertainment Coordinator: New position! Are you all about the fun? This position may be for you! The Entertainment Coordinator will lead a team of four to six volunteers who will plan and execute the Family Room, Rock and Rest Room, Family Fun Night/Group Activity, and Opening/Closing Ceremonies. Each of these positions is also open! You might consider creating your own team. Perhaps you have some awesome and creative Leaders in mind with whom you would like to work? Or, just say, ―I’ll do it!‖ and we will help create a team to help you plan the different events. Volunteers for this position should be excited to create amazing and exciting entertainment programming for our conference attendees! Other important traits: creativity, ability to work on a timetable and within a budget, communication skills, organization, and an ability to think outside the box. An added bonus would be your having personal connections with entertainment entities that would perform on a budget.
The success of our Area Conference really does depend on you—the dynamic, passionate, able, and generous Leaders of our Area. If you have worked on the conference team in the past, thank you! We hope you will please consider volunteering again.
If you have enjoyed conferences in the past as an attendee, we hope you will get involved with planning this go-round! If you have never been to a conference, joining the team is a great way to become invested in LLL with the added benefit of working alongside your sister Leaders. You and your enthusiasm are truly needed, and we can’t wait to hear from you! If you would like to talk about one or more of these
positions, please contact Ira Philip ACC at [email protected] or by text at 407-620-6903. Submitted by Jen Zonts, Associate Area Conference Coordinator for Publicity and Publications for Ira S. Philip, Area Conference Coordinator
(Continued from page 7) Join the Area Conference Team
Dear Communi-Kate- Your Communication Skills questions asked and answered! By Ellen Rubin and Kate Bunton, Communication Skills Instructors
Dear Communi-Kate, A regular participant at our Series Meeting is concerned with her toddler’s weight gain and brings it up frequently. When expressing her worries or responding to other participants’ input, she focuses on past situations, such as feeling “pressure to start solids late” or being “misguided in offering sweet fruits before vegetables.” It’s difficult to know whether those events influenced her toddler’s current eating habits, but in any case there is no going back to change them. I worry that if Mom doesn’t move on she will not be able to focus on the current issue that is more important. Gwen Backagen
Dear Gwen, You’re concerned that this mom may have trouble dealing with present problems because she’s so focused on the past. How perceptive of you to recognize that the tug of past emotions can sometimes seem more manageable than current fears. The key is to listen to what feeling you
hear this mom expressing right NOW. Consider how her statement of being ―pressured‖ and ―misguided‖ may have morphed into a current feeling of ―regret‖ that she was not better informed or ―guilt‖ that she did not consider the implications of solid food introduction. Acknowledging her current emotion will give her the opportunity to respond in terms of today rather than dwelling in the past. Responding with additional insight may also provide some forward movement. For example, ―You feel regret that you did not
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give more thought to the introduction of solids and the possibility that future choices will lead to unforeseen outcomes leaves you indecisive as to how to proceed. Let’s ask the group was strategies they would try to help your daughter develop good eating habits.‖ Hopefully, this process will help mom move down the buffet line from stale leftovers to a fresh perspective. Dear Communi-Kate, I’ve been speaking with a family who, despite evidence otherwise, are certain that mom’s milk supply will not be sufficient unless she pumps regularly. The baby is exclusively breastfed, has plenty of diapers and is growing well. Mom is pumping excessively, due to a story told by her sister-in-law whose milk supply “dried up overnight” for no apparent reason. As a result, the baby is fussy at the breast with mom’s very strong let down. Mom is frequently uncomfortably engorged. How can I share the appropriate information without belittling the family’s fears or insulting her sister-in-law? Cara Sell Dear Cara, You feel like you are on a merry-go-round with no chance to get off. It seems to you that mom’s frequent pumping is leading to the baby’s struggles at the breast which she
sees as evidence that she needs to keep pumping. It’s enough to make you dizzy! When clarifying mom’s concern, take care not to reinforce her perception that baby’s fussiness should be addressed with further pumping. ―You are anxious about your baby’s fussiness and it seems that pumping may be helpful.‖ Follow this with a more general statement to avoid the appearance of judgment. ―Many moms are dismayed when they do not know the source of their children’s fussiness.‖ From this point on, you could offer a suggestion to ―follow your baby’s lead‖ and to ―let the baby take control of the milk supply.‖ If she responds with her sister-in-law’s claim of a sudden loss of milk supply, returning to a general response can again steer her towards the more likely norm without a negative twist. ―Women have different experiences with milk supply. It is very rare for it to decrease suddenly.‖ If she is receptive, working on a plan together may help bring this ride to a satisfying conclusion. If you need help responding to a difficult situation or you have a general Communication Skills question, please email Dear Communi-Kate at [email protected]. Your question may appear in the next issue of TaLLLk. Bring a Communication Skills Workshop to your location! Great for Leaders, Leader Applicants, and anyone else interested in active, empathetic communication. Contact Maggie Geraci, Communication Skills Instructor, [email protected], for more information.
(LLLovingly Lifted from LLLighthouse, LLLI Alliance Communications Skills Department, December 2012)
(Continued from page 8) Dear Communi-Kate
As Leaders, we sometimes get questions that focus on breastfeeding rights and legal issues. Generally, these fall into a couple of categories, either divorce/custody or work place rights. Unfortunately, there is no longer a LLL Legal Advisory Council to provide assistance with these types of questions and LLLI does not have any attorneys on staff who can help with legal issues. As Leaders, our role is to provide peer support and information for breastfeeding, and these types of questions are generally outside of any Leader's scope of expertise. However, as Leaders, we can provide important and much needed guidance and support. We should not underestimate the importance of the support that we provide to mothers. Breastfeeding support is important, and while it may not help her legal situation, it can help her maintain the breastfeeding relationship, which is important to both her and her child. For example, we can provide information on how to maintain her milk supply during separation, the role of stress in inhibiting milk ejection and expressing and storing her milk. We can also encourage the mother to seek support from family, friends and the other mothers in her local group. At meetings, she may find other mothers who have gone through her situation and can provide insight into how they coped in similar situations. At the
very least, they can listen and acknowledge what she is going through. Some comparisons can be made between medical and legal areas and how we as Leaders address these types of questions. First, as we are not medical professionals and do not give medical advice, we are not attorneys and are not qualified to give legal advice. We do encourage mothers to obtain the services of a qualified attorney, preferably one with knowledge of the importance of breastfeeding.
Second, as we do not provide referrals to breastfeeding friendly physicians, we do not provide a list of ―approved‖ attorneys. This would imply that LLL has somehow vetted and approved
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Challenging Legal Questions, Michelle Angeletti, Area Professional Liaison
We are not attorneys and are not qualified to give legal advice nor
do we provide a list of “approved” attorneys.
the attorneys, and we do not have these types of resources. We can share with mothers the names of attorneys that are thought to be breastfeeding friendly and encourage her to interview them and select the one that is best for her needs. La Leche League can provide information on the importance of breastfeeding for both the health of the child and the maternal relationship, as well as relevant laws in the state of Florida related to breastfeeding. In any type of legal issue, I would encourage you to share the latest information published by the American Academy of Pediatrics, Breastfeeding and the Use of Human Milk. The entire article can be found online at: http://pediatrics.aappublications.org/content/early/2012/02/22/peds.2011-3552 Divorce and Custody: In issues dealing with divorce and custody, there are a couple of important resources for Leaders who have legal questions. The first is Melissa Vickers' article from the Eastern Union, "When a Mother Calls With A Legal Question." It can be found online at: http://www.llleus.org/EU/EU20103.pdf (username: usallleader and password : access4ALLL). The second resource is an article which is largely the work of Jake Marcus, former PL Legal Resource for EUS/Alliance. This article, "Custody and Visitation Issues Impacting A Breastfeeding Child" also appeared in Eastern Union and can be accessed online at: http://www.llleus.org/EU/EU20102.pdf (username: usallleader and password : access4ALLL). This article is intended to assist Leaders in understanding the legal issues involved in custody issues. It should be used as a reference for Leaders but not shared directly with mothers. The third resource is an article by LLL Leader Kori Martin, JD from Clinical Lactation on Breastfeeding and Divorce, ―Parenting Plans and the Breastfed Child.‖ You may share this with the mother and her attorney. http://media.clinicallactation.org/2-3/CL2-3martin.pdf Work Place Rights: Probably the most significant workplace rights regarding breastfeeding in the USA are the legal rights provided under the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act. Under this new law, which modifies the Fair Labor Standard Act (FLSA), employers are required to provide ―reasonable break time for an employee to express breast milk for her nursing child for one year after the child’s birth each time such employee has need to express the milk.‖ Employers are also required to provide ―a place, other than a bathroom, that is shielded from view and free from intrusion from coworkers and the public, which may be used by an employee to express breast milk.‖ The Wage and Hour Division (WHD) of the U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) administers and enforces this provision of the FLSA. The WHD and information on the laws it enforces can be found online at: http://www.dol.gov/whd/nursingmothers/. If mothers have specific questions, they may call the WHD helpline at 1-866-4USWAGE (1-866-487-9243). Also, the U.S. Breastfeeding Committee has a FAQ website
about working and breastfeeding which includes links to legislation and other resources. You can access it at: http://www.usbreastfeeding.org/Employment/WorkplaceSupport/WorkplaceSupportinFederalLaw/tabid/175/Default.aspx Florida Breastfeeding Legislation:
Also, you may already have this information, but below is a list of breastfeeding legislation in the state of Florida:
Fla. Stat. § 383.015: The breastfeeding of a baby is an important and basic act of nurture which must be encouraged in the interests of maternal and child health and family values, and in furtherance of this goal:
(1) A mother may breastfeed her baby in any location, public or private, where the mother is otherwise authorized to be, irrespective of whether the nipple of the mother’s breast is uncovered during or incidental to the breastfeeding. (2) A facility lawfully providing maternity services or newborn infant care may use the designation ―baby-friendly‖ if it establishes a breastfeeding policy in accordance with s. 383.016. Fla. Stat. § 800.02: A person who commits any unnatural and lascivious act with another person commits a misdemeanor of the second degree, punishable as provided in s. 775.082 or s.
775.083. A mother’s breastfeeding of her baby does not under any circumstance violate this section. Fla. Stat. § 847.0135 (5) (d) (2008) excludes a mother breastfeeding her baby from the offense of lewd or lascivious exhibition using a computer. Conclusion As Leaders, we have a unique opportunity to support mothers who are having difficult legal problems. We can help these mothers identify challenges and develop creative plans to avoid them. If you have any breastfeeding questions that are medical or legal, please contact Michelle Angeletti, Area Professional Liaison (APL), [email protected], 239-498-3095. It is also important to remember to contact the PL Department yourself and then relay the information back to the mother. This procedure allows the mother to stay connected to you, her local Leader, and allows you to gain new knowledge and skills.
(Continued from page 9) Challenging Legal Questions
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