Posts about the national baby formula shortage in a Facebook group for parents in my eastern Massachusetts town caught my attention recently. 

After several moms asked for help finding the formula brands their babies need, a robust team effort developed. Other parents shared pictures of shelves in nearby stores with formula in stock and exchanged tips about how best to order online. Someone provided a link to the Free Formula Exchange, a newly created website set up by a Massachusetts mom in another town to match formula donors and recipients.

The posts reminded me how astonishing community help can be. When my younger daughter was born, we received a parade of meals dropped off at our house for weeks. The meal train was organized by our town’s volunteer-run family network, and many of the stir-fries and soups we devoured were given to us by neighbors we had never met. Their generous community spirit was deeply touching to my husband and me during the bleary-eyed stage of caring for our new infant and her toddler sister. 

The current baby formula shortage won’t end only through parents supporting each other. Across the United States, 43% of the formula supply was out of stock as of May 8. Supply chain woes and the closure since February of a key Michigan factory after a formula product recall continue to pose challenges, although in a sign of progress the Food and Drug Administration yesterday announced an agreement with Abbott Laboratories to reopen the factory in about two weeks. The crisis has raised concerns about shaming of mothers for not breastfeeding and reignited calls for more robust parental support through policies like national paid parental leave. 

Amid these thorny problems, I appreciate the simple moments of unselfishness I’ve been witnessing among parents in my hometown. Neighborliness is always a welcome gift.