Jazzy Jewels donate baby clothes and car seats to Women’s Health Services at Beebe

When newborn babies arrive home, they need a seemingly endless amount of supplies. Clothing is at the top of the list, especially since babies grow so quickly and need to be changed so often. Approved car seats also are critical to protect the safety of babies while traveling.

To support moms who may not have the means to buy the necessary supplies, Jazzy Jewels, a Red Hat Society chapter in Sussex County, donated two Alpha Omega Elite car seats and baby clothing for new moms at Beebe Healthcare. The car seats and clothing were purchased with money the group raised.

Jazzy Jewels members presented the items recently to Bridget Buckaloo, MSN, RNC-OB, executive director of Women’s Health Services.

Buckaloo thanked each member individually for her generosity, and told each how important the gifts are to mothers with limited resources.

“It truly takes a village to raise children,” Buckaloo said. “Whether it is the members of a family that love and care for each other, or it is those in the community that give of themselves to help others, we all have to be members of the village so we can support those around us. The women of Jazzy Jewels are members of the village.”

Jazzy Jewels members meet each month for lunch at various locations around Sussex County. Members in the group are from Milton, Georgetown, Lewes, Seaford, Long Neck, Laurel, Millsboro and Rehoboth Beach.

“We know that so many families in Sussex County need help, and we want to provide that help and support when we can,” said member and Queen Mom Pat Sandy, who has supported Beebe Healthcare for many years as a member of the Beebe Auxiliary.

The Labor and Delivery unit at Beebe, which is part of Women’s Health Services, offers attractively decorated maternity suites where mothers can have privacy and share the wonder and excitement of childbirth with their families. These family-centered birthing suites house some of the latest technology to care for newborn babies. The department also includes a team of neonatal nurse practitioners, nurses, lactation specialists and other medical professionals who work closely with the obstetricians, pediatricians and midwives to care for the mothers and their babies.

In 2013, Beebe Healthcare was the first hospital in Delaware to receive designation as a Baby-Friendly Hospital, reflecting its commitment to the optimal level of care for infant feeding and mother-and-infant bonding. The designation was launched as part of the Baby-Friendly Hospital Initiative  in 1991 by the World Health Organization and the United Nations Children’s Fund.