Family in dire need of long-term breast milk donor for 6-month-old daughter

A family in Snohomish County is in dire need of a long-term breast milk donor, an impact of the nationwide baby formula shortage. 

Shayla Pruett and her fiancé Preston Flaybauth are parents to Starlynn, who will soon be 6 months old. 

The family said they are two or three days away from using up their donated breast milk supply.

"We have just been struggling to find breast milk for her. We are down to our last two bricks, which will last her about two to three days, maybe. We have tried formula and she will absolutely not take it. We have gotten her to where she’ll take a quarter of the bottle formula mixed with three-quarters of breast milk," said Pruett.

Pruett also believes the ongoing formula shortage is driving more people to seek out alternative options, which could be driving up demand for breast milk.

"It seems harder than it used to be because a lot of parents are struggling with their babies taking formula, and so they’ve been searching for breast milk as well," said Pruett.

The family is now praying for a long-term donor and said they’re willing to drive the distance from their home in Darrington.

"We do need some breast milk, so if it’s possible, it’d be highly appreciated. We’ve gone through quite a bit already, and with it being in such high demand, kind of hard to keep getting as much as we need. It’s a struggle," said Flaybauth.

"If anyone wants to be a donor or has some breast milk to donate, we would gladly take it," said Pruett. "We are willing to travel anywhere in Washington at this point just to be able to feed our daughter. It’s been very hard, and we appreciate anything."

The family said they’ve been posting on the Facebook group called "Washington Human Milk for Babies" and said they’ll continue to search for a potential donor.

If you’d like to get in touch with the family, you can reach them by email at shaylamarie001@icloud.com.