Wee Care Program
Members sew, smock, and/or use a variety of other needle art techniques to create gowns, bonnets, caps, bereavement envelopes, blankets, etc. and donate them to local hospitals to clothe babies who die at birth or shortly thereafter.
The idea for the SAGA Wee Care gowns came about in 1986, from the Rose Trellis Smockers chapter in Portland, Oregon. Members Chris Owings and Nancy Newell were looking for a distinctive public service project for chapter members that could be made quickly, would require inexpensive materials, and would teach beginners new techniques, yet be worth the time of more experienced members. Owings, a registered nurse and childbirth educator, and Newell, a pattern designer, seemed chosen to discover the need for these gowns and determine a way to fill that need. The Wee Care project members sewed and smocked these gowns, bonnets, and embroidered blankets, and created beautiful garments to donate to local hospitals to clothe babies who die at birth or shortly after.
The Wee Care projects seem to have opened many unexpected channels for communication and emotional healing, as women have noted that stitching the tiny gowns helps them to talk about their own losses.
The project is a gratifying experience for many chapter members to participate in, especially when letters like the following are received: "This note is to say thank you to the individual who donated their time to smock a small gown for our local hospital. My grandson was born on February 3rd. How excited we were until about four hours later when he became critically ill with a genetic disorder. We said good-by to him on February 5th. He was dressed in a white gown with blue smocking at the neckline and on the sleeves. We were grateful for the donation of this gown as we did not have knowledge that our time was to be so short with him. His parents have the gown as one of the few things actually used by their son. Again, we thank you for this gift of love."
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