‘Big Latch On’ Gets Local Moms Pumped

On Aug. 1-2, groups of breastfeeding women will come together at registered locations around the world to take part in The Big Latch On. It’s an event held every August to celebrate World Breastfeeding Week. The purpose is to support  communities to identify and grow opportunities to provide ongoing breastfeeding support and promotion.

The Kosciusko County Big Latch On will be held at 10:30 a.m. both Friday and Saturday, Aug. 1 and 2, at Latte Lounge (formerly Courthouse Coffee), 108 N. Buffalo St., Warsaw.

During the Big Latch On, all breastfeeding women and their children are latched on for one minute at the set time and are counted by witnesses. The numbers are then added up to see if the previous record can be surpassed. The current record is 14,536 children breastfeeding across 845 locations, in 28 countries.

Chelsea McIntire is part of the organizing group that is bringing the worldwide event to Warsaw. She says the purpose is to help communities positively support breastfeeding in public places, make it a normal part of day-to-day life at the community level, raise awareness of breastfeeding and increase support for women who breastfeed.

McIntire said if the number of women and children who come to participate in the event is too large to be accommodated in the Latte Lounge, the event will move to the lawn outside the courthouse.

For more information, visit the Kosciusko County Big Latch On Facebook page.