WELCOME TO MOTHERS' MILK BANK

Mothers Milk Bank is Making Breast Milk Available to as Many Families as Possible!

About Us

It’s Simple. It’s Safe. It’s the Best for Babies!

Welcome to The Mothers’ Milk Bank of San Jose. We are here to help you:
if you are a mother who wants to donate your extra breast milk to medically vulnerable infants, a parent in need of mothers’ milk for your child, a health practitioner looking to collaborate, if you are grieving the loss of a child, we are here to help you.

The Mothers’ Milk Bank (MMB) is the oldest operating non-profit (501 (c)(3) milk bank in North America. The Milk Bank was founded in October of 1974 as the result of medical need for human milk to feed premature infants. The Mothers’ Milk Bank has been a licensed tissue bank since 1986 in California and subsequently in Maryland in the year 2000.

The Mothers’ Milk Bank is committed to provide quality services in California and other Western states. Milk banks, when affiliated with the Human Milk Banking Association of North America (HMBANA), are safe, certified, and have a legacy of meeting the needs of the most vulnerable populations. They address the issues of equity and social justice for women, babies and families. Mothers’ Milk Bank provides quality services to over 80% percent of California’s NICU’s and serve eleven hospitals in other states in the USA.

Mission: Helping babies thrive by making donated human milk safe and accessible.

Our Vision: Every baby in our region has access to safe human milk to contribute to the best start in life.

Welcome to our community of care, donate milk and save lives, and spread the news of remarkable service in your community!  To DONATE: 1-877-375-6645 Option 3 

Our Oath:​​

  • We promise to stand behind the very real science that breast milk is best for all babies, and to act as advocates for babies in need, or simply in need of breast milk.
  • We know that certified, donated breast milk in compliance with HMBANA is the safest and healthiest for babies.
  • We promise to support all mothers who aim to breastfeed.
  • We promise to support families, fathers, foster, adopted parents who need mothers milk.
  • We promise to be of comfort, support and honor all mothers (and families) grieving the loss of a child.
  • We believe in a planet which thrives utilizing breast milk: plastic free, donated and approved milk the most empowering way for babies to thrive, naturally.
  • We believe in alleviating illness and hunger whenever possible through the collection and distribution of breast milk to hospitals, families and caring communities.
  • We believe that people, society and the planet benefits from breast milk bringing balance on a systemic level.
History

Milk Banks, when affiliated with the Human Milk Banking Association of North America (HMBANA), are safe, certified, and have a legacy of meeting the needs of the most vulnerable addressing the issues of equity and social justice for women, babies and families under or at the poverty line. Mothers’ Milk Bank routinely distributes over 715,000 ounces per year to 107 hospitals, including those located in Arizona, Hawaii, Colorado, Nevada, Texas and Washington.

Mothers’ Milk Bank has been operating since 1974 and is a charter member of the Human Milk Banking Association of North America (HMBANA). Our standards of processing donated breast milk is the gold standard of operation for milk banking organizations. In 2017, The American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) stated in their report “Donor Human Milk for the High-Risk Infant: Preparation, Safety, and Usage Options in the United States” that: “(HMBANA) Donor milk banks represent a safe and effective approach to obtaining, pasteurizing, and dispensing human milk for use in NICUs and other settings

It’s Simple. It’s Safe. It’s the Best for Babies!

Staff
Crystal Ciancutti

Crystal Ciancutti

Interim Executive Director

Cu Ho

Director of Operations

Gerald Astrero

Milk Coordinator

Huy Nguyen

Logistic Lead

Jenny Han

Accounting/Human Resources

Community Outreach and Marketing Manager Angelica Rojas

Angelica Rojas

Community Outreach and Marketing Manager

Mothers Milk Donor Coordinator Rachel Robledo

Rachel Robledo

Donor Coordinator

Mothers Milk Donor Coordinator Maryann Allison

Maryann Allison

Donor Services Supervisor

Lourdes Chicas

Services Lead and Pump Services Coordinator

Lab Technician Byung Cho

Byung Cho

Production Supervisor

Lab Technician Andrew Jang

Andrew Jang

Recipient Coordinator

Lab Technician Chi Cao

Chi Cao

Lab Technician

Pauline Sakamoto

Pauline Sakamoto

Operations and Regulatory Consultant

Yadira Sifuentes

Yadira Sifuentes

Donor Coordinator Lead

Giai Van

Giai Van

Lab Technician

Nhat Nguyen

Nhat Nguyen

Facilities Operations Manager

Ariel Bautista

Ariel Bautista

Donor Coordinator

Kien Nguyen

Kien Nguyen

Shipping Coordinator

Haeran Lee

Haeran Lee

Lab Technician

Cynthia Ptacek

Cynthia Ptacek

Donor Coordinator

Seung Eun Jung

Seung Eun Jung

Lab Technician

Keilin Escobar

Keilin Escobar

Lab Technician

Board Members

Katie Anderson, Chair:

Katie Anderson has been a member of the Mothers’ Milk Bank Board since 2017. She brings to the MMB experience in operational excellence, strategy, management, and healthcare operations. Katie is an independent consultant and owner of KBJ Anderson Consulting where she works with leaders from diverse industries – including healthcare, manufacturing, biotechnology, construction, and technology – to develop capabilities to more effectively solve problems and deliver value to their customers. Katie has held previous roles at Stanford Children’s Healthcare, Sutter Health, and UCSF. Katie received her B.A from Stanford University and her Master’s in Public Health as a Fulbright Scholar at Sydney University, Australia.

Joslyn Nolasco, Vice Chair:

Joslyn joined the Mother’s Milk Bank Board of Directors in 2021. She is a board certified pediatrician and works serving the community in the Newborn Nursery and Pediatric Primary Clinic at UCSF. She serves as the UCSF Lactation Task Force co-chair, and has helped lead the UCSF hospital through Baby Friendly Designation process. Prior to joining the board she had often recommended and referred patients to Mother’s Milk Bank as well as using donor milk in the intensive care nursery for premature infants. She has also focused on health equity and advocacy in her service and scholarly work at UCSF. She earned her B.A. from Williams College and her M.D. from Columbia University.

Crystal Ciancutti, Secretary and Interim Executive Director:

Crystal’s first interaction with the Mothers’ Milk Bank was when she donated milk while breast feeding her first son. She has spent her career in tech as a senior executive working at Airbnb, iTunes, Netflix, Shutterfly and a smattering of small startups and appreciates the opportunity to lend her product sensibility and business experience to MMB. Crystal received her B.S. from Carnegie Mellon and her MBA from M.I.T.

Kenny Lam, Treasurer:

Kenny joined the Mothers’ Milk Bank Board in 2020. Kenny has a background in accounting from his role as an audit manager at Frank, Rimerman + Co. LLP where he audits and advises several non-profit organizations. Kenny received his B.A. in Economics & Accounting from U.C. Santa Barbara.

Brittany Weldon, Member at Large:

Brittany joined the Mother’s Milk Bank board of directors in 2019. She is a board certified pediatrician and lactation consultant, and brings a decade of experience specializing in newborns. Her first experience with the milk bank was through prescribing its milk to nourish the premature babies under her care in the Packard Intensive Care Nursery. She founded Newborn Transitions, which helps provide peace of mind to new parents by bringing the doctor and lactation consultant to the home for more personalized care. She received her B.A. from Columbia University and her M.D. from Thomas Jefferson University.

Elinor Stetson, Member at Large:

Tony Redmond, Member at Large:

Tony joined The Mothers’ Milk Bank Board in 2017. He has worked in Human Resources in healthcare and biopharma industries for over 20 years. Having worked in academic, private and public healthcare Tony has had an opportunity to see inequities in care delivery and has a focus on equity and DEI in professional and personal life.

Lydia Elle, Member at Large:

Lydia Elle joined the Mother’s Milk Bank Board in 2022. Following a decade in leadership as a federal employee, she is currently a Senior Program Manager at Microsoft. She has multiple degrees to include a BA in Mathematics, an MBA and a BA in Music. Lydia is wholeheartedly dedicated to an integrated life where rest and health are priority and enjoys spending time with family, reading books and eating cheesecake!

Linda Tram, Member at Large:

Linda Tran joined the Mother’s Milk Bank Board in 2022. She is currently a Director with Alvarez & Marsal in the Healthcare Industry Group, where she focuses on operational and process improvement, project management, regulatory and compliance initiatives, and strategic planning. She is a recent milk donor following the birth of her son in 2021. She has a BA in Women and Gender Studies and History UC Davis and Master in Public Policy from Mills College.

Natasha Oiye, Member at Large:

Dr. Susan D. Crowe, Advisory Medical Committee: