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Preemie
Afghans for
Charity
This charity effort
is sponsored by
Crochet Cabana and Sandra's Backyard |
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In January of 1986, I gave birth to a beautiful 4 lbs. 11 ozs. baby
girl--6 weeks early! Kaitlin was transferred from St. Anne General Hospital, where she was
born, to Ochsner Foundation Hospital where she was placed in their Neonatal Intensive Care
Unit (NICU). The nurses there were wonderful. My husband and I were grateful for their
tender care of our little girl. She only stayed in the intensive care for a short while
but remained in the hospital for about 1 1/2 weeks. All of the pediatric nurses were
great!
We have also been blessed with
a son who was a borderline
preemie, born 3 weeks early. He did not have to spend any time in the NICU,
however. He was just over five and a half pounds at birth.
Now my little preemie daughter is an
adult. She and I share a love of crochet and in August
1997 began making preemie afghans for other babies in area
NICUs. These blankies
(not only crocheted but quilted, knitted and sewn) have been met with much delight.
This effort is very similar to that of
the national organization
Care Wear
which I enthusiastically
support. Care Wear has had much success in helping babies around the world.
Since
blankies are now mailed directly to the hospitals, I have no idea how many
have been received, but it has been in the thousands. Thank you so much to the many
volunteers who have reached out and made this possible.
If you have ever had a sick child, you can appreciate what these parents are going
through. Some of the babies are very, very tiny. Some have special problems. Every day is
a struggle. This means a lot of stress for their parents and families as well. Sometimes
babies are transferred from hospitals which are far away and family members cannot all be
close by to give support because of distance and cost. Knowing that others care and are
thinking of them, going the extra mile, means a lot.
THANK YOU to all the volunteers!
Post Katrina
Note: I believe all the
hospitals are now back in operation after the storm.
Please check
Care-Wear
web site for information about hospitals in other states and others in Louisiana
as well and their specific needs. Care
Wear web site has many wonderful suggestions for
materials and patterns.
Many hospitals also accept preemie hats and stuffed animals as well as
blankies. Some of the pink/blue blankies
may be used in memory boxes for parents of babies who are stillborn or die shortly after
birth. A picture is usually taken of the baby with the items, which are then given to the
parents as a memory of their precious little one. Burial gowns are also needed as preemie
don't fit purchased baby clothes.
Details
WHAT:
Check each hospital listing both here and at
Care-Wear to see what their specific needs are.
These change over time and it is hard to keep up.
YARN WEIGHT: fingering, sport, or worsted weight yarn, as
well as cotton and flannel fabric can all be
used. A flannel blankie with a crocheted edging can make a quick blankie. You
can purchase fabric with prepunched holes at
Hemstitcher if you
like.
YARN TYPE: Clearly label any items that contain wool as some
babies have allergies. Use soft, smooth
yarn, not fuzzy. Sparkly yarn
would not be good because the sparkly part tends to get loose sometimes
and is scratchy. Do not use fabric softener if you
wash the item beforehand.
COLOR: any color is appreciated, but there is a particular need for traditional pink and
blue. One idea is to use white with a trim for the season--red or green for Christmas, red
for Valentine's etc.
PATTERNS: You can use any pattern you like. Many patterns note "use a multiple of x +
y". You can then adjust the size to what you need. Try to use patterns that are more
"closed" (not big holes--granny squares worked with a smallish hook are okay) so
the afghans don't get caught in I.V's and such. Also, I would suggest no fringe.
Check out the
preemie patterns page
at the Cabana and also my links page there and the miscellaneous patterns page
(for hat patterns). Don't forget
the
Care Wear patterns page. Serendipity has several patterns
for crocheted hats and also tiny sweaters. I enjoyed making one of the helmets. Remember
that you can adjust your hook size to get larger or smaller hats.
When complete, you may wash the afghan (washing machine is fine) with a mild detergent
to wash out the “sizing” and place it in a large ziploc bag
(make sure it is dry). Please check for
loose threads etc. before sending them.
Important: When changing colors or ending a
piece, please leave a long piece to sew in. Don’t knot and cut close to the knot. The
reason I ask this is because it leaves a hard stubby knot with a piece of yarn sticking
up. This is uncomfortable for sensitive baby skin (or any
skin really) and also, over time it could unravel. Be sure to sew the
strands in at least a couple of inches.
Some of the parents have
expressed a hope that their baby can keep these blankies for many years and I’d love
to see that too! Thanks for taking this extra care for these wonderful babies.
Where to Send
Note that
personnel may change over time so it's a good idea to call, write, or e-mail
ahead if you intend to send to a specific person.
Send blankies for West Jefferson Medical Center to:
West Jefferson Medical Center,
NICU
Attn: Clinical Coordinator
1101 Medical Center Blvd.
Marrero, LA 70072
504-349-1612
Contact Melissa Umbach
e-mail
Needs: Blankets for infants, incubator
covers, burial gowns, diaper shirts, preemie & full-term hats.
Send blankies for Columbia Lakeside Hospital to:
Columbia Lakeside Hospital
Attn: Social Services
4700 I-10 Service Rd.
Metairie, LA 70001
Needs: Lakeside accepts both the 15" size and isolette covers 36" x 54"
which are draped over the isolettes to keep out the lights and mute sounds in the evening
so the babies can rest better. Cotton or flannel blankies, as well as the pre-quilted
materials would work up quickly for this project.
Send blankies for Children’s Hospital to:
Children's Hospital
Director of Development
200 Henry Clay Ave.
New Orleans, LA 70118
504-896-9375
Contact Roger Gorman Fax 504-896-3964
or
e-mail
Needs: P/FT hats, kimonos w/velcro,
blankets, small cloth toys, bed socks, diaper shirts, burp cloths, receiving
blankets. Infants to age 21.
Christus St. Frances
Cabrini Hospital
Attn: NICU
3300 Masonci Dr.
Alexandria, LA 71301
Contact Theresa Slater (Public
Relations Dir.)
Needs: Hats for
all sizes including cancer patients.
Send blankies for Ochsner to:
Ochsner Foundation Hospital
Attn: NICU
1516 Jefferson Hwy.
New Orleans, LA 70121
Needs:
white cotton burial gowns (can
have small amount of embroidery), open in the front with sleeves that are
generous. Newborn sizes are needed as well. The soft stretchy fabric makes
great hats. Socks with embroidery make great covers for feet as well as tiny
hands. Soft yarn with limited fuzz can be used to knit warm items. Preemies have
delicate skin prone to irritation so many yarns are uncomfortable for them.
Updated 12-05
We are always in need of blankets either fleece or
knitted. Variety of sizes are best. The fleece
is used to lay the babies on so think about a placemat
size for the preemies and about a pillow case or larger for the older babies.
Knit or crochet blankets are used as the outer wrap when babies are in open
cribs. We suggest the soft yarn as babies have very delicate skin.
Please note: I cannot verify that the hospitals have rec'd your
blankets. If you have questions, please contact the hospitals directly. I believe they
acknowledge each shipment rec'd but do allow more time than
normal as mail since Katrina is a little slower. Your
package will arrive - don't worry about that. It just may take a few extra days.
THANK YOU SO MUCH for participating in this worthy project!
I’d like to take a little space to thank the nurses who originally worked on the
preemie afghans. They worked from their love of the babies and families they saw every
day. They received no extra compensation but for the smiles on the faces of the
recipients. Thank you, Dawn Egdorf and Gerry Matranga for the special way you
ministered to these babies.
Please note that availability of blankies will be determined by how many are received
from volunteers. The hospitals have no control over this
and cannot guarantee you will receive a preemie afghan if your baby is in the
NICU.
You may include your name and address so your gift can be
acknowledged. I like to make little business cards using
Creatacard with “Crocheted
by...” and my name and address, to include with my own blankies. Not all of the
hospitals give volunteer information to the recipients so you may not hear from the family
who received your blankie.
Many blessings for caring about God's littlest
ones!
This page was last modified
05/27/2007.
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