Elizabeth Jones, Ed.D., MPH, RD, is the founding chair of the tri-national Foundation for the Children of the Californias. The objective of the foundation is to provide a non-profit pediatric medical center to meet the critical needs of children in Northwestern Mexico and Southern California. Children from the border region now have access to quality care at the Hospital Infantil de las Californias in Tijuana where more than 135,000 pediatric consultations have been provided in 42 specialties, 3,000 surgeries performed, and a fund created to help pay for any child in need. Also, a community outreach program has been developed for more than 15,000 children and their families annually who cannot travel to the complex. Throughout Dr. Jones' 28 years of professional volunteering, she has taught medical professionals from more than 45 countries and mentored hundreds of students. She is an adjunct lecturer at San Diego State University, associate clinical professor of pediatrics at University of California, San Diego, and visiting professor at the Graduate School of Medicine, Universidad Autónoma of Baja California. Jones was one of the first professionals to make a major contribution in the resurgence of breastfeeding, including employed mothers. She pioneered lifesaving "re-lactation" at the institutional level. She also implemented "Kangaroo Care" for tiny infants whereby, not only mothers carried their infants "Skin to Skin," but also doctors and nurses became surrogates in a mother's absence, resulting in fewer complications and earlier discharges. She has extensive experience in feeding malnourished infants and those born with cleft lips and palates. Jones co-edited and authored the first nutrition manual for pediatric residents in English, Spanish, and Portuguese and is the author of the bi-national book, "Good Nutrition for Your Baby." Her work has impacted millions of children. For more information, please visit www.usfcc.org.

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