Lucy Love Project 2014

We did it guys, we did it! The Lucy Love Project was a success, and I owe it to all of you!

When we started the Lucy Love Project two years ago I had no idea what it would turn into as time went on. I was worried I wouldn't be able to keep it up. Time is so precious, and spare minutes are few and far between. Yet, I often think about how life would be a whole lot more crazy with Lucy here. I'd surely have even fewer spare minutes. My heart longs to provide for her and to express my love for her, therefore directing some of the extra time I have toward this project is quite meaningful to me.

To our families and friends -- YOU ARE AWESOME. The way you step forward to be a part of this movement is amazing. 

To friends of friends -- people I never knew before this -- thank you for sharing your stories of your NICU babies. Babies that have survived, and are ROCKING it. These stories make me happy, because I know it wasn't an easy journey. Thank you for joining this as a tribute to the care you received in the NICU. 

As always, I must also thank my amazing community of other loss moms. The women I know that have experienced pregnancy and infant loss seem to know my heart like NO other. To have their support in this is a beautiful thing.

After collecting an impressive amount of donations... OVER $2000!... We decided that the need for blankets was greatest, and we went from doing 200 blankets last year to 300 this year! The second need was for clothing, so we were able to order an additional 200 screen-printed onesies.

Two years ago, my friend and past co-worker Lindsay created a logo and t-shirt design to be used for this project. I am forever grateful. This year she helped me design little tags to wrap around the blankets. Aren't they cute?

My dad's company, United Sport Apparel, helps us to get the blankets at low costs --- so we can get higher quantities of the product. We added the sweet little embroidered hearts again this year.

One evening friends came over to help me roll blankets and tie tags. They're seriously the best. Avery also was eager to help, so she assisted in the "production" line as well. In my last batch, she did a really wonderful job tying the ribbons.

We delivered the blankets to the NICU at Levine Children's Hospital on October 18th. Seeing our handwritten notes and boxes stacked up high, my heart surged with joy, but I'm not gonna lie...  saying "goodbye" was hard. I prayed over those boxes and over the blankets --- that they may find their way into the arms of those who need them most.

Avery drew a picture of Lucy with angel wings for the nurses. Inside the card read "THANK YOU." Just seeing it left me teary-eyed. This project really means something to her now so I didn't know what to say to her when she begged to see the babies at the hospital... which were not able to do. (Although, much to her delight, when we entered the Levine Children's Hospital they had a huge life-size cardboard cutout of Elsa from Disney's Frozen - it served as a wonderful distraction).

I am humbled and appreciative of the love and support that was put in to this project. Thank you to everyone who donated time, money and energy to help with this. 

I must thank my daughter Lucy, who ignited a spark, and sprung us into action. We have a choice - to live in darkness or embrace the light. God has not let me down. He renews my hope daily, even on the hard days. I have a passion to share the light that I have found in this role as a loss mom and encourage others to do the same.

Pass It On is a song I sang at church camp when I was younger. The words ring so true:

It only takes a spark to get a fire going
And soon all those around can warm up in the glowing
That's how it is with God's love one you experience it
You'll spread His love to everyone
You want to pass it on.

Hope Floats 2013 / Ducks For Lucy

Once again it's time for Kindermourn's annual Hope Floats duck race! Our family has created a team in memory of our daughter Lucy, and we'd love for you to adopt a duck in her honor and support this great organization that offers support to grieving families.

Over the last year and a half Jeff and I have attended several panel discussions on grief and I took a grief-related writing workshop at Kindermourn. Next week, I am meeting with a group of moms who have lost babies and are now pregnant again. Kindermourn is a place to connect with other parents that have been through the loss of a child and understand what we are going through. It's a "safe place" where we have found healing.

"Hope Floats" take place at the US National Whitewater Center on April 21st. 

Here is how you adopt a duck and get your name in the hat to win the big grand prize!:

1. Visit the Hope Floats Duck Race Page HERE

2. Click on "Adopt a Duck"

3. Click on the duckie to the right (he says "Adopt a Duck by selecting your Favorite Team")

4. Scroll down to the Team named "Ducks for Lucy" and click on it

5. Find my name ("Kate White," duh) and click

6. Click on "Adopt under this team member"

7. Follow Instructions to purchase your ducks

Thank you all for your support! Oh, and anyone in Charlotte, please, please, PLEASE come out on April 21st and join us! We will wear pink ribbons in honor of Lucy and have some fun watching the ducks swim down the channel. Let me know you are coming so I can bring plenty of ribbons!

Feel free to check our last year's post with some pictures HERE.

Lucy Love Project: Donations and Delivery!

I've created a little blog specifically for the Lucy Love Project and have posted some photos of this July's donation. Mosey on over there by going to www.lucyloveproject.blogspot.com and be sure to leave us a comment and let us know what you think about the blankets and onesies we donated!

We're honored to have some wonderful friends and family in our lives that helped us with this amazing project. Thank you, thank you, thank you! You've made the anniversaries of Lucy's birth, life and death much easier to bear for us, and provided glimmers of hope and love to others.

Last day to donate!

Today is the last day to donate to the Lucy Love Project!

To give, please visit our donation site at ChipIn:

http://lucyloveproject.chipin.com/lucy-love-blankets

Thank you for your support!

Lucy Love Project : update

So, um, yeah... I am incredibly blown away. Our goal for 200 blankets was reached in TWO DAYS! I repeat - TWO DAYS. This is incredibly awesome and my heart is truly filled to the brim.

And I must apologize, for I guess I under estimated everyone. I feel like I should reprimand some of you for donating far more than the $5 I suggested (I kid, I kid). Yet, how cool is it that people have donated in honor of their children... and losses of their own... and out of the love and care for our family. Lucy only met a handful of people in her life, and unfortunately most of them were doctors and nurses. I wish she could have met all of the awesome people that love her!

I want to say thank you to those of you who have donated to the Lucy Love Project so far. What a testament to how many lives our daughter has touched. We feel so very blessed!

Since we have reached our goal for 200 baby blankets I did go ahead and bump up our goal so that people who have said they still want to donate do not get discouraged. We will do more for the hospital in Lucy's honor as long as the funds are available. We will be using additional money toward clothing (we are working on something special) for the babies in the Neonatal Intensive Care Nursery. We also have a generous donation that will support getting little hearts embroidered on the blankets! I'll share more when I have the details, but I am so excited for the blankets to have a personal touch. :)

Life is just too short to love small.

Thank you for loving BIG with us. Thank you for your generosity and support.

Lucy Love Project

In honor of what would be our daughter Lucy's first birthday on July 19th (one month from today!), we are hosting a fundraiser that will provide blankets to babies in the Neonatal Intensive Care Nursery where Lucy spent most of her short life.

The blanket that we brought home from the hospital is dear to us. We are thankful to have it to hold on to --- not only as a precious memento, but also as a reminder of our time with Lucy. We have specific memories that are tied to our daughter when we see and touch this blanket. Recently I asked one of the coordinators at the Levine Children's Hospital what they were in need of and she said "if you showed up with 200 blankets we would be so very thankful." Since they ideally want new blankets, that is what we intend to provide - soft, new blankets for the babies and their families. You just never know how much something very simple can change someone's life.

If you'd like to support us in our mission, please visit our fundraiser page by clicking below to go to our chip in site:

http://lucyloveproject.chipin.com/lucy-love-blankets
(update: i believe you need flash to view & donate)

Any amount you may be able to contribute is greatly appreciated, but simply $5 will buy one blanket. (In other words, we are not really asking for large single donations, just a lot of little $5 gifts!)

For the first 200 blankets donated, our family will be giving $1 per blanket.

We will wrap up donations on July 5th so that we may place our order in time to have the blankets by Lucy's birthday on July 19th. We are planning to deliver the blankets that week. Feel free to pass this along to friends or family.

The "Lucy Love Project" blankets will be donated
in memory of our little girl

Lucy Isadore
7/19/2011 ~7/25/2011

Thank you.

Ducks for Lucy

Today was the 8th annual Hope Floats Duck Race benefitting KinderMourn.

Our team "Ducks for Lucy" adopted 312 ducks altogether! Way to go team! The money goes toward supporting other families through their grief process, and the organization not only supports these individuals but the community as a whole. A year ago I would have never really understood the meaning behind something like this.

It was a cloudy, gray and rainy day,.. but shortly after we got there, the sun came out. 

We hardly felt a drop of rain once we got there!

It had been ages since we had been out to the U.S. National Whitewater Center. We enjoyed watching some of the rafters and kayakers before the race started.

Lyss, Elise, Avery, me and Hill:

Tony and William:

Avery was very impressed with her duck whistle - quack, quack!

Avery and her buddy Will watching for duckies:

Hillary and Brian:

Elise, Jackson & Jason:

Can you spot any duckies out there?

William (16 months), Avery (2 1/2 years), Jackson (9 months):

It was wonderful to be surrounded by friends today. I wasn't sure how I was going to feel through the event, but everything went great. I even met a new friend, and ran into an old friend I hadn't seen in many, many years.

Thank you to those of you who were able to donate toward our "Ducks for Lucy" team, to those of you who were thinking of our family today, and to those who were able to come out and support. We are hoping to make this an annual fundraising opportunity for our family.