Breastfeeding Center for Greater Washington

As a leader in lactation education and promotion, our mission is to advance breastfeeding and successful parenting throughout the DC metro area by providing free and low cost professional instruction to families in a supportive community space. We strive to fulfill our mission by providing expert-led free and low-cost classes, and private consultations with Board Certified Lactation Consultants. We also offer a variety of other services including a breastfeeding boutique, off-site classes for low income populations, a nursing lounge and a milk depot. 

A message from our founder: This supportive, growing, thriving community is exactly what I dreamt of when I opened the Breastfeeding Center almost 20 years ago, out of what many would describe as a closet at Columbia Hospital for Women. When the hospital closed I knew we couldn't just stop offering this service, so I took a leap of faith and rented our very own space in downtown DC. We added free classes and breastfeeding supplies in addition to offering home and office lactation consultations. We grew and grew and more women recommended our services to their friends and then before I knew it, we were tight on space! So with lots of help from our community, we rented another suite to give our clients a more comfortable, welcoming space. And now, less than 5 years after that expansion, we were able to move into the space of our dreams on 19th St.

Our vision is to continue to grow all the programs we've been offering for years, but also to add more partnerships in order to offer our services to families who traditionally haven't been able to get downtown to our Center. We need your help to make this a reality though! 

If you can, please consider supporting the continued growth of The Center by making a contribution to our Building a Better Nest campaign. Just like each and every step along the way contributed to what The Center has become, each and every donation will contribute to what more The Breastfeeding Center can do for our babies, our families and our community in the years to come.

Big thanks to you all, 


Pat Shelly, Founder, Breastfeeding Center for Greater Washington