Our Director
Amanda Julia Rylander
My background, I studied Early Childhood and Elementary Education at Concordia to become an Elementary School Teacher. Previously, I completed a Creative Arts program in College. During my studies, I worked as a nanny for a family with a newborn for almost 2 years. I then had a contract as a night nanny for a newborn, and later worked as a summer nanny for a couple of local families. Additionally, I was an educator at a daycare and tutored children from grades 1 and 2. I also had a few contracts working in administration. Upon graduating from Concordia, I worked as a resource teacher for kindergarten classes and then secured a contract as a pre-kindergarten elementary school teacher.
A brief history of La mère à boire - Moms For Milk, it was founded in 1997 as a non-profit by Naznin Hebert, La mère à boire - Moms For Milk merged with another non-profit temporarily in 2018 upon the retirement of the founder. Four years later in fall 2022, it was time for a change. Wanting to explore more growth and development to offer more to the community, La mère à boire - Moms For Milk became independent once again and relaunched as a non-profit organization in February 2023.
On a personal note, I am a proud mother of two children. I am half Spanish, as my mother immigrated to Montreal in her 20s and had her children with a Canadian. While life was good, being away from her family was a struggle. Fortunately, our mother participated in the community and created her own chosen family, giving us a sense of community and belonging. This experience motivates me to offer the same to the families we welcome at La mère à boire - Moms For Milk.
Shortly after beginning my career, I became pregnant with my first child, which was the happiest news. Pregnancy was a dream, but I struggled with feelings of isolation while on preventative leave and at home in the middle of winter. This experience further motivates me to provide activities for families needing to break isolation. My interests in early childhood expanded to pregnancy and breastfeeding, leading me to La mère à boire - Moms For Milk, where I found my own breastfeeding support mom. I soon became a breastfeeding support mom myself, trained by the founder, Naznin Hebert, and joined the coordinating committee. I later became the Director during the organization's transition to independence. I am beyond grateful to be working with so many amazing families! I look forward to continuing to develop projects and grow La mère à boire - Moms For Milk.