Nursing mothers and parents who need a clean, dry place to change their child’s diaper during Festival International de Louisiane can now turn to the First United Methodist Church on Lee Avenue.
The church, at 703 Lee Ave., is converting two of its nurturing rooms into lactation and changing rooms for use Friday, Saturday and Sunday during Festival International. Families in need can access the rooms from the church’s parking lot side entrance and volunteers will be on hand to help manage use of the rooms, Rev. Jessica Lowe said.
The air conditioned rooms include rocking chairs, sinks, trash bins, a children’s bathroom and electrical outlets for mothers who may need to pump or have other supplies that require electricity. The rooms are also stocked with toys, for families who have older children that require entertainment while the parents handle their infant, Lowe said.
Parents will need to bring their own diapers and supplies, but some sanitizing wipes and disposable changing liners will be stocked in the rooms, she said.
The rooms will be open from 6 to 10 p.m. Friday, 9 a.m. to 9 p.m. Saturday and 12:30 to 7 p.m. Sunday, roughly following the musical schedule for the weekend, the pastor said.
Lowe knows firsthand how difficult and frustrating it can be attempting to nurse at a big outdoor event like Festival International.
Last year, at Lowe’s first Festival since moving to Lafayette, she attempted to nurse her newborn son while waiting for a show to begin. She had gone to her home near the church for most feedings and diaper changes during the weekend, but she had family in town and didn’t want to miss out on time with them.
“I tried sitting in some of the bleachers they had there with a cover. My baby was hungry and hot. I was hot. He was crying. People were turning their heads. He ended up not nursing at all because it was just too much — too much noise, too much heat, all of that. We ended up having to miss the show we were planning to watch and go back home with a crying infant so we could get him fed. It was definitely a very stressful experience,” Lowe said.
The idea to host a space for lactating mothers and young children’s care stemmed partly from Lowe’s personal experience.
Lowe, a member of the Downtown Lafayette Unlimited board, spoke with Festival International Executive Director Scott Feehan and others about ways the church could assist during the banner event. After sharing her personal experience and learning about the struggles of staffing a similar Festival-run family space in the past, Lowe and her team realized the church could leverage its property and congregation to fill the need.
The pastor said the act of service falls in line with the church’s overarching interest in finding ways to be a community partner with downtown Lafayette, where the church is housed, rather than acting from a desire to get people in the doors of the church.
“We have recently kind of been reassessing who we are as a church and who we want to be. The thing that’s continued to stick out is that we want to be an intentionally inclusive community for all people…It really kind of blended into that larger mission of trying to become more aware of who the people are who might be struggling to be included in various things and how we can work to make a place for them,” Lowe said.
Even if no families use the service, the pastor said making space for others is important. Initial reaction suggests the space has struck a chord with mothers and families in the community, who cheered the announcement on Facebook, sharing their own struggles of changing their children’s diapers while avoiding getting themselves and their children dirty.
Lowe said making it easier for families and young children to enjoy the food, music and culture of public events like Festival International communicates that they’re a valued part of the community.
“I think what we’re exposed to as children become the things we know as adults and the things that we come to love and see as part of who we are and part of our lived experience that we want to continue. For us to want future adults who are interested in Festival, who support Festival and frequent downtown areas and businesses, we have to make sure that we’re welcoming and inclusive of them at a young age so they become lovers of downtown and of Festival,” she said.
