One of the ways we are beginning to reach families while in the NICU is through our isolette cover project, “Wrap Them in Roses”. We had committed to providing 300 isolette covers for Northside Hospital’s Level 3 NICU for 2010 and thanks to all our volunteers who helped us exceed our goal. Through your efforts we have donated over 350 quilts to date! Northside has instituted strict infection control guidelines regarding isolette covers. As such, isolette covers may no longer be washed and re-used for other babies. The covers must now go with the babies when they no longer require an isolette. The isolette covers that were previously provided were very basic in nature, using pre-quilted fabric that was simply hemmed. Our covers are lovingly sewn by volunteers, using beautiful fabrics and varying quilt patterns. These covers now become a treasured keepsake for the parents as the babies grow out of the isolettes and can then use the covers as a baby blanket. Sadly, in some cases if a baby or babies do not survive, these covers will be one of the very few mementos the parents will have to take with them.

Our “Wrap Them in Roses” isolette quilt project addresses the practical and emotional needs of NICU parents and babies on many different levels. First, the quilts serve a practical purpose, as all micropreemies that require an isolette, need a suitable cover to recreate the womb experience by muffling outside noise and blocking out light. Providing something beautiful, that is lovingly and skillfully crafted, adds a sense of beauty to a very sterile, very dim, and very stressful NICU environment. Second, having something to define a baby’s bed-space (as opposed to a standard hospital issue cover) helps parents feel as though they have a personal area in an impersonal hospital unit. We are feeding the emotional needs of the parents by providing them with a special keepsake that commemorates the triumphs and challenges their babies face throughout the NICU journey. Third, in many cases, babies born this early do not survive. No matter how short their time in the NICU may be, these covers will be given as mementos to the parents. As a bereaved parent myself, I know how every item used by, or for, your baby takes on new meaning when you no longer have your child with you. In addition to serving the practical and emotional needs of NICU parents and babies, we are also serving as an outlet for our volunteers, many of whom are parents and grandparents of preemies and micropreemies themselves. This project provides them with an opportunity to “give back” and to do something tangible for other parents who are experiencing what they themselves have endured.

We will continue this program to extend to other Atlanta NICUs and those in the Jackson, MS area as well. If you know how to sew, you can make one of these quilts and we invite you to do so! Send an email to info@zoerose.org and we will set you up with your first quilt kit! All you have to do is sew it and send it back! Thanks to Patchwork Cottage in Lawrenceville, GA we are able to provide all of the materials and the pattern.