An old man was walking on the beach one morning after a storm. In the distance, he could see someone moving like a dancer. As he came closer, he saw that it was a young woman picking up starfish and gently throwing them into the ocean.

“Young lady, why are you throwing starfish into the ocean?” the man asked. “The sun is up, and the tide is going out, and if I do not throw them in they will die,” she said. “But young lay, do you not realize that there are many miles of beach and thousands of starfish? You cannot possibly make a difference.”

The young woman listened politely, then bent down, picked up another starfish and threw it into the sea.

“It made a difference for that one.”

Adapted from the original by Loren Eiseley

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Sr Hettie and Sr Lynda had a dream. Their passion was to help mommies breastfeed, they knew it was their calling. But they realized that South Africa needed more Certified Lactation Consultants to help more mommies in a diverse country.

After a lot of work going to and fro from the drawing board, they developed the course, believing it was not a just good idea, but a God idea. The accreditation with Wits University went smoothly and the course was born.

A few years later Sr Hettie finally wrote the book, Born to Breastfeed, Born to be Breastfed, and her husband decided to surprise her with the story of the starfish as a foreward. Since then the story of the starfish became popular among the students and qualified Lactation Consultants.

It all started with a dream of two women, who knew their passion and calling. With their knowledge they can only do so much for SA, but by sharing this passion and knowledge, more Certified Lactation Consultants can reach more mommies every day.

The idea: Each one reach one.