From one mother’s NICU experience to a community-wide movement for equitable access to donor human milk, Raíces y Cariño is helping families in California’s Central Coast get the support they deserve.
When Nora Yerena’s daughter was born prematurely 15 years ago, she found herself navigating the challenges of having a baby in the neonatal intensive care unit (NICU). Living in Castroville, California, she faced a long commute to the hospital in Santa Cruz where her daughter was being cared for, all while pumping breast milk at home to nourish her.
One morning, Nora couldn’t make it to the hospital in time to deliver her expressed milk for the day ahead. Thankfully, her daughter was able to receive pasteurized donor human milk. It was a moment of relief, but it also opened Nora’s eyes to a troubling disparity: While donor human milk was available at the hospital caring for her daughter, families delivering at hospitals closer to her home didn’t necessarily have the same access.
In the agricultural communities of California’s Central Coast, where many families already face barriers to healthcare, this inequity was particularly concerning.
For Nora, the experience sparked a commitment that would shape the next 15 years of her life: ensuring that more families, regardless of where they live or deliver their babies, have access to the resources and support they need. That idea later became Raíces y Cariño (Roots and Love), a nonprofit organization that strives to be an equitable, inclusive, and safe space for the community to gather and raise their children together. It is a physical hub in Watsonville, CA that connects families, educators, and organizations to create cross-cultural connections and wellbeing for the whole family.
“Everything I do comes back to wanting families to feel supported, connected, and valued,” Nora shared. “Whether we are gathering around a ceramics table, supporting a new parent, or advocating for birth care close to home, we are caring for the same families. Our families deserve places to find joy and belonging, and they deserve safe, compassionate care from the very beginning. I want that to be possible for every family in our region.”
Today, Mothers’ Milk Bank California is delighted to welcome Nora, founder of Raíces y Cariño, as one of the newest members of our Champion Circle. Nora’s passion for supporting mothers and babies, her dedication to bringing people together, and her belief in the power of community make her a wonderful example of what our Champion Circle is all about. Through her leadership and the meaningful connections she creates, Nora is helping more mothers discover the opportunity to share the gift of donor human milk and make a lasting difference for babies and families.
Building a community where every family belongs
A professional educator and certified doula, Nora understood that access to donor human milk was just one piece of a much larger puzzle. Families across the region were struggling to navigate a fragmented system of services. Geographic boundaries and eligibility requirements often determined who could receive support, even when families lived just minutes apart.
For example, families living in Castroville, in Monterey County, might travel to nearby Watsonville, in Santa Cruz County, for services, only to discover they didn’t qualify for certain programs because of where they lived.
Nora envisioned something different: a welcoming community hub where parents could find connection, education, and support without falling through the cracks.
What began with private funding and a largely volunteer-driven effort has grown into a vital community resource, now supported by grants and dedicated community partners.
Today, Raíces y Cariño serves approximately 600 families each year, offering programming and resources that meet parents wherever they are in their journeys. Many families participate in weekly activities, including maternal mental health support groups, lactation education, and opportunities to build community with other parents. Raíces y Cariño is a place where families feel seen, supported, and empowered.
Bringing donor milk closer to home
For years, Nora has worked to expand breastfeeding support and access to donor human milk in her community, advocating for more family-centered hospital practices and stronger partnerships with organizations like Mothers’ Milk Bank California.
Her persistence helped pave the way for important milestones. Raíces y Cariño became the first Mothers’ Milk Bank California collection site in the region, making it easier for local lactating parents to donate their extra breast milk and help vulnerable infants. And in 2025, Watsonville Community Hospital established a partnership with Mothers’ Milk Bank California, further expanding the local infrastructure for human milk donation. These developments represent meaningful progress for a community where access to donor human milk has historically been limited.
One of the most powerful aspects of Raíces y Cariño’s work is its commitment to supporting parents through the full range of experiences that can accompany pregnancy, birth, and postpartum life. That includes families navigating grief and the devastating loss of a baby.
Nora recalls one mother who, after losing her baby, realized she could donate her breast milk because she had seen a Mothers’ Milk Bank California flyer at Raíces y Cariño. Through that simple connection, the mother discovered an opportunity to honor her baby and help other families at the same time.
By connecting families with milk donation opportunities alongside mental health and grief support, Raíces y Cariño helps ensure that parents receive compassionate care during some of life’s most difficult moments.
A partnership rooted in community
Mothers’ Milk Bank California has long served families and hospitals in Santa Cruz County, and its partnership with Raíces y Cariño has helped deepen connections throughout the region.
Together, the two organizations share a commitment to making human milk banking more accessible and better understood. Our collaboration reflects a simple but powerful belief that every family deserves access to support, and every baby deserves the best possible start in life.
Congratulations to Nora Yerena and the entire Raíces y Cariño community on this well-deserved Champions Circle recognition. Thank you for turning personal experience into lasting change, and for helping more families experience the life-changing power of milk donation.
