A Filipino cabin crew member has been labelled a hero after taking an unusual step to assist a passenger in need.
Patrisha Organo was crewing a domestic PAL Express flight on Wednesday, when she noticed a baby was crying loudly mid-flight. This was already a special flight for Ms. Organo, as it was her final flight to be qualified as a Cabin Crew Evaluator.
She asked the mother of the baby if there was anything she could do to assist, and the mother admitted the baby was hungry but she had run out of baby formula, as she had been waiting at the airport since 9pm the previous night.
There was no formula on board to provide the hungry baby.
Ms. Organo, who had a nine month old herself (who she was breastfeeding) was sympathetic to the difficult situation the fellow mother was going through, and offered to breastfeed the child herself. She checked this with her superior who was evaluating her for this flight, who instantly agreed and supported her idea.
The mother gratefully accepted, so Ms. Organo took the baby into the galley to feed it.
Ms. Organo said of the experience:
You know the difference between a cry of hunger, a cry of sleepiness, or a cry of something else. The helplessness you feel when you cannot feed your hungry child is horrible, so I had to step in.
As soon as the baby started feeding from me, I saw the relief on the mother’s eyes and eventually her daughter fell asleep. I could only imagine the chaos of those feelings, but as a mother myself I knew the stress she would’ve been going through.
I wish to normalize breastfeeding because how could you breastfeed the child in the CR (restroom)? Do you guys eat in the CR (restroom)? It’s an unnatural way to feed a baby.
The baby’s mother accompanied Ms. Organo and the baby to the galley to observe/supervise, and was understandably very grateful afterwards.
Her story has gone viral, attracting thousands of supporters.
Bottom line
This is an unusual yet amazing act of generosity and assistance from one mother to another.
I have never heard of a flight attendant offering to do this for another passenger, but it shows an incredible dedication to her passengers, and I agree she should be applauded for going above and beyond like this.
What do you make of this act of generosity? Please keep comments civil!
"It's more fun in the Philippines" now has a whole new meaning.
PAL service is quite incredible as it is - but this is just beyond. Kudos to her.
If the crying baby's mother gave consent for a stranger to do the breastfeeding, I don't see the problem. Maybe in other cultures this is horrifying (health or whatnot) but as the attendant was a breastfeeding mom herself you'd think she's fit to be offering to give milk what she normally gives her own baby.
Really, the reactions people give on this site. I say cheers to the kind lady.
Most refreshing and gives me faith in helping others. A ++
@chrisC
You are not supposed to give infants <6 mo. old water at all, it can be very dangerous.
You obviously have no medical background chrisC. Bloodborne pathogens are completely different from those transported via breast milk delivery. The risks are incredibly low.
Icarus et al do crew medical checks include things like being a hepatitis carrier or HIV or any of the many other diseases that can be in breast milk?
This risks might be low but that does not mean non existant.
How many of you would accept a blood donation that hadn’t been screened? Well this is the same.
The child should have been given plain water to keep it hydrated until the mother could feed it herself or get formula when they landed.
This is a unique story. I'll even say unusual. But the point is clear; kindness and compassion still exist in the world today.
You people criticizing this flight attendant are true morons. The possibility of this Filipina flight attendant transferring a disease or other malady to the baby are extremely low. Get over your selves and leave the negativity for another forum.
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Oh come on, the story is kind of weird/creepy....
@DenB
As you mentioned a great example how too ma y lawyers can screw the country.
I'm not surprised this story came out of the Philippines. I traveled there frequently for 30 years and love the warm, giving people of that country.
@chrisC there is always one.. unlikely ...and as crew she would have had medical checks
Good god this is awful and has exposed the poor baby to all sorts of risks of infection.
Send the flight attendent to Washington. Maybe they can learn something from her. Let her be the United States Goodwill Amdassador to the world. She brought tears to my eyes.
Beautiful and heartwarming, but I certainly would not allow a total stranger breastfeed my child. Certain diseases can be transmitted through breastmilk. For this reason donor breastmilk get screened.
Really nice story... Nahigugma :)
Great Story.
@Mike wins the interwebs today.
@Mike - G.O.L.D
We all whine whenever there’s a delay that impacts our busy lives but this reminds all of us that delays often impact others to a much greater extent than just a loss of time. Ms Organo exemplifies the best in her profession. It’s nice to hear of this gesture of humanity in an era of often incivility in air travel.
This is a great story and awesome story from the Philippines ! Ms. Organo really went beyond what is required of her to help a baby. Kudos to her.
What a great story, it's always good to hear that kindness exists.
I really feel badly for parents traveling with young children who experience delays. I worked for Worldspan in 2000, my wife and I didn't expect good availability on a flight we wanted to fly nonrev but we decided to hit the airport to try anyway. The gate was a zoo, the plane was over-full. We noticed a frazzled mom off to the side...
What a great story, it's always good to hear that kindness exists.
I really feel badly for parents traveling with young children who experience delays. I worked for Worldspan in 2000, my wife and I didn't expect good availability on a flight we wanted to fly nonrev but we decided to hit the airport to try anyway. The gate was a zoo, the plane was over-full. We noticed a frazzled mom off to the side and we went up to her to see if she needed anything. We didn't have children at the time and yet we still felt really badly for her. She had been stuck at ATL all day and still had no hope of getting on a flight. She was out of formula and diapers and was at her breaking point. We got the info on the goods she needed and left to find a grocery store...middle of the night in a sketchy Lakewood neighborhood but we were able to help her.
Good for this sweet, caring flight attendant!
Let's not call it heroism, let's call it humanity. Most people, most of the time, will do kind, good, courteous things for others. This flight attendant is an excellent example of humanity at its ordinary best. We're right to celebrate it because it keeps the message alive: this is what's expected of us all. She rose to the occasion.
Philippines is not a litigious society. An American flight attendant might feel the same compassion. But...
Let's not call it heroism, let's call it humanity. Most people, most of the time, will do kind, good, courteous things for others. This flight attendant is an excellent example of humanity at its ordinary best. We're right to celebrate it because it keeps the message alive: this is what's expected of us all. She rose to the occasion.
Philippines is not a litigious society. An American flight attendant might feel the same compassion. But an American flight attendant would almost certainly not take the same action.
On a trip involving JL and AA, the Japanese happily stored my "refigeration required" drugs in the galley fridge, labelled the compartment, gave me a claim check (which doubled as a galley pass) and showed me how to access my item myself in the galley. When I boarded the AA flight and asked for refrigeration, I was refused, because "we can't accept responsibility, but I can give you some ice if ya want".
"Can't take responsibility." What if we got sued? What if the drugs got stolen? What if it's a trick by the passenger? What if the baby's diseased? What if the mother's diseased? What if the mother blames me if the baby gets sick later? What if my manager blasts me for helping and my Union doesn't back me?
Ms. Organo saw a hungry child and took action. With so many reasons not to, maybe it was heroic after all.
Wonderful review. I am mother of 2 young kids. I flown with my 3 years old and 3 months old when they were both only 5 weeks old. Both time from Washington DC to LHR.
I know exactly how truly breastfeeding your child during a trip and having enough breastmilk and extra formula milk pack can make a huge difference and make the experience less stressful.
I always breastfeed them during take off...
Wonderful review. I am mother of 2 young kids. I flown with my 3 years old and 3 months old when they were both only 5 weeks old. Both time from Washington DC to LHR.
I know exactly how truly breastfeeding your child during a trip and having enough breastmilk and extra formula milk pack can make a huge difference and make the experience less stressful.
I always breastfeed them during take off and during the flight. Ms Organo is a true angel!!! Absolutely wonderful gesture
Breast news I've seen today
lovely story. I'm sure she's a wonderful mother.
Humanity is alive and well!!!
I'm so proud of Ms. Organo! More blessings to you and your family! What you did was truly above and beyond.
Filipinos are amongst the friendliest and most hospitable people in the world!
One reason I love the Philippines very much.