Argentine Woman Who Breastfed Abandoned 7-Month Old Child Gets Promoted 

Area woman with beating heart reminds us all what compassion looks like.

On August 14, six malnourished children who had been separated from their parents for undisclosed reasons arrived at Buenos Aires children’s hospital. Celeste Jaqueline Ayala, a 27-year-old officer who was making rounds at the facility, noticed that the youngest of the group was especially distraught. Being a mother of two, including a baby of 16 months, Ayala recognized the hunger cry and offered to breastfeed him. Ayala’s male colleague, Marcos Heredia, was shocked at the kind gesture, and posted the image above to Facebook. Praise-filled comments ensued, the post made the rounds on social media, and now things are changing for the hardworking officer.

Ayala has been a police officer for three years, and says she often works extra hours to get by (in a recent conversation with Cronica, she divulged her salary: 20,000 pesos, or about $1,060). The New York Times reports that after her good deed, Ayala was promoted from officer to sergeant.

Ayala said she was just doing what she knew was right. She told Cronica, “I didn’t doubt it for a second. I gave him my breast and he calmed down.”