Hot Heads, Happy Hearts: Beanies for Rwanda

Huge thank you and a request to slow down

2010-08-23T08:16:00.000-07:00

Hey all Hotheads Knitters,
First off, thank you SO MUCH for all of your amazing contributions. Currently we are more than meeting our goal of putting beanies on the head of every baby born at Butaro Hospital. In fact, the response to this request has been so great, that we are having trouble storing and then shipping all the beanies to Africa!
I can't tell you how much it means to see people band together from thousands of miles away and chip in to take care of our patients. The needs of the communities we serve are enormous on every level, and it is heartwarming and inspiring to see such a tremendous effort come from you all.
That said, at the moment I've been asked to have you slow down the knitting efforts while we catch up - we are running out of space to store them in Boston and Rwanda, and, more problematically, the means to ship them over. As you can imagine, our shipment costs are tremendous. So for the moment let's slow down the knitting. If anyone would like to make contributions toward the shipment costs or toward any number of other important and vital efforts going into building the new hospital in Butaro, please do let us know! As you know, every little bit makes a difference.
Thank you so much for all of your help!
In solidarity,
Emily

A few comments on size

2010-03-14T07:39:00.000-07:00

We get a lot of questions about sizes for the beanies - the short answer is that all sizes are typically helpful. Aiming for large premie sizes or small newborn sizes is probably a good guideline. The nurses in maternity recently gave me these photos as a guide. The pen is there for scale - the hats in the first photo are a bit too small for the average baby, and the pink hat in the second photo is a good estimate for the size of the average newborn at Butaro Hospital. But that's just an estimate for the average - all the sizes we are receiving are being used!

An update

2010-03-14T07:27:00.000-07:00

Hello from Burera! I've been in Rwanda for the past few months, where a parade of warm and happy babies are emerging from the maternity ward! This project is successfully outfitting every newborn at Butaro Hospital with a homemade beanie... over 100 per month! In fact, we've begun sending some of the beanies out to the health centers. With 400,000 inhabitants and 13 health centers, the district of Burera is one of the biggest (and coldest!) in Rwanda. We are right in the thick of the cold and rainy season right now, so your efforts are invaluable in keeping these little guys warm. Here's a few photos of your work in action.

Hothead thank you

2009-12-12T11:05:00.000-08:00

Hi everyone!

Here's a photo of the Cleveland Heights Senior Center Knitting group, busy making beanies for Burera! This group has knit many warm and adorable hats that are now keeping new babies warm in Rwanda. A huge thank you to all of you!

From Boston to Burera..

2009-11-26T14:49:00.001-08:00

Happy Thanksgiving from everyone at my dinner table... sporting beanies ready to be sent to Rwanda!

Much to give thanks for today!

2009-11-26T07:04:00.000-08:00

Happy Thanksgiving HotHeads Knitters! There is much to give thanks for this year in Burera, Rwanda - the new hospital is undergoing quick construction, the staff is working hard to bring quality healthcare to the poor community, and... every single newborn is being outfitted with a warm beanie as they come into the world! (1 day old Alexi is posted above) More than a hundred babies a month are sporting your beanies, and we want you to know that there are many many thankful moms and dads for your hard work! As I write this in Boston, the weather outside is drizzly and cold, reminiscent of the chilly hills in Burera. No indoor heating in Burera though, and your knitting projects have been crucial to keeping these babies warm. We all want to send you a warm and heartfelt thanks this Thanksgiving for your generous and helpful contributions! Below are some of the thankful parents and little ones.

Illuminee, just 4 hours after being born, with her mom Claudine

Baby Isador

How Cute Are We??

2009-10-25T16:16:00.001-07:00

Another warm HotHead

2009-10-12T20:03:00.000-07:00

A few more photos..

2009-10-12T19:52:00.000-07:00

Hi everyone! A few more photos of your hard work - some of the first hats that went to the newborns, and a newborn, warm and healthy. More to come soon!

Address for mailing beanies!

2009-09-28T11:26:00.000-07:00

Hi everyone!

PIH's offices have moved. Please send any beanies, etc from now on to:

Jesse Greenspan - HotHeads
Partners in Health
888 Commonwealth Ave., 3rd floor
Boston, MA 02215

Thank you to everyone for your contributions, ideas, and questions!

Crochet Patterns

2009-09-27T16:46:00.000-07:00

For anyone who prefers to crochet rather than knit, here are a few websites with patterns. Any and all sizes are needed/welcome!

http://www.bevscountrycottage.com/teresa-hat.html

http://www.bevscountrycottage.com/preemieround.html

http://www.touchinglittlelives.org/barbhat.html

QUADRUPLETS!

2009-09-03T08:48:00.000-07:00

Greetings to all Hotheads Knitters!!

Your project is an ongoing success story, and we're thrilled to bring to you the following story from our doctors at Butaro Hospital in Rwanda:

On Thursday 16th July we were lucky enough to have quadruplets born at Butaro!This caused enormous excitement. It wasn't long before word had spread, the courtyard was filled with people trying to catch a glimpse of the little celebrities and the news had been announced on national radio. Dr Juvenal (pictured below) was the hero of the day, delivering all of the babies with no difficulty or complication.All four babies weighed between 1700g and 1800g. Keeping the babies warm was top priority, both immediately after their arrival into the world and on their transfer to the neonatal unit at CHUK hospital in Kigali. This was a precautionary measure. All four babies and their mother are doing very well indeed.
A huge thank you must go to all those who have helped to knit and transport the hats for these children. In the early hours and days of their lives keeping such babies warm is of vital importance and failure to do so can have grave consequences.Thank you all for your help!!
Mickey Sexton, Butaro hospital

Thanks for the pattern!

2009-08-14T04:09:00.000-07:00

Thanks for the simple pattern for the beanies. I'll get right to it. Margaret

2009-08-12T19:38:00.000-07:00

I heard that quads were born at the clinic. How are they? Are they boys? girls? some of both? Did they go home with hats? Pictures?

E.G., Emily's Granmom

Knit Hats for Newborns: Sizes from Full Term to X-Small Preemie

2009-08-10T17:40:00.000-07:00

Here's something my aunt gave to me she was using if it helps. I'll include a request for patterns on the next group email as well!

Supplies:
• Size # 6 needles
• Baby yarn, Sport weight yarn, or DK yarn

Instructions:
CAST on the number of stitches for the size hat desired (see Size Chart below).

RIB STITCH (Knit 1, Pearl 1) for one inch for all sizes.

STOCKINETTE (Knit a row, Pearl a row) for the number of inches indicated (see Size Chart below).

DRAW yarn through all stitches on needle and pull tightly on top. Knot securely.

WEAVE together seam using yarn.

OPTIONAL: Add a pom pom or bow on top.

Size Chart: # Stitches to Cast*****Stockinette Length

Full Term: 66 ***** 5” to 5 ½”

X-Large Preemie: 58 ***** 4” to 4 ½”

Large Preemie: 50 ***** 3 ½” to 4”

Medium Preemie: 44 ***** 3” to 3 ½”

Small Preemie: 40 ***** 2 ½” to 3”

X-Small Preemie: 36 ***** 2 ½”

Pattern for the Beanies?

2009-08-10T16:08:00.000-07:00

I would like to get started knitting but wondered if anyone had a easy pattern for a beanie for a beginning knitter. Thanks for the help! Margaret

Inaugural Hothead!

2009-07-31T06:27:00.000-07:00

We would like to belatedly introduce newborn Jean Paul, the first recipient of a hothead beanie!

Jean Paul was born in the middle of the night by emergency C-section. His mother had obstructed labor at a health center and was transferred to Butaro Hospital urgently. Dr. Juvenal delivered Jean Paul by C-section around 3am.

This photo was taken the following morning showing the proud mother with her newborn and Dr. Juvenal. Congratulations to them all and a major thank you to all of you for helping keep our newborns warm and safe!

Welcome to HotHeads Knitters!

2009-04-16T10:45:00.001-07:00

Welcome to Burera Hospital, rural Rwanda, HotHeads Knitters, and this exciting and important project! Burera District Hospital opened in April 2008 to serve a population of 400,000 people, and currently about 100 babies are delivered here per month. In this setting, where resources are limited and temperature often drops in the 50s, we struggle to keep sick newborns and premature babies warm enough, and hypothermia can be deadly. Along with great medical care, a simple intervention to help save some of these little ones is to provide each with a beanie to keep them warm.

So we started HotHeads Knitters in an effort to put a warm and stylish beanie cap on every baby born in Burera as soon as they enter the world - as is done in American hospitals. We would love to recruit any and all knitting groups or individuals who are excited about this cause - all styles and colors to keep our beautiful newborns warm are welcome! We will arrange shipping to rural Rwanda and post stories and photos of your work in use.

This blog will help chronicle our mission - with information from personnel at Burera Hospital, input and ideas from our knitting volunteers, and of course stories and photos of the beautiful (and warm) newborns! Please feel free to post any ideas, questions, or comments. If you are new to the site and would like to become involved, please post a comment with contact information and we will respond with more information. Thank you!