Christmas Eve Blankets For Primary Childrens

(This is Tom posting)
At my work, each branch office got together and had “blanket parties”, where we brought together purchased fleece, cut it out, tied it, and made blankets. Last year we took these blankets to Shriners, Primary Children’s, & the Ronald McDonald house.

This year, I asked if I could take my branches blankets to Primary Children’s and deliver them to the PICU. I also ended up with being able to also take our Corporate office’s blankets & deliver them as well. I ended up with four huge bags of blankets, with probably 80 plus blankets in them.

I really wanted Max to be a part of this, so he came with me and helped me carry the blankets down from the offices to my truck. The bags were heavy. Really heavy for a ten year old, but he carried them without complaint. My plan was that I would try and personally deliver to the PICU two bags of blankets, then would take the remaining two bags to Shriners and the Ronald McDonald house.

When we arrived at Primary’s, I parked in a parking space versus stopping in their quick-pick up and drop off area just in case they let me go upstairs. On the way into the hospital, we met a mom and grandmother from Montana who were heading back inside. We asked if we could give them a blanket for their little boy. They were very grateful, got tears in there eyes, and thanked us. This was a great experience for us, and I got the idea that I hoped they might let us actually deliver these blankets to the patients and their families.

The security guards stopped us inside and asked if they could help us. We explained we wanted to deliver some blankets my work had made up to the PICU unit. The guard said they would be happy and grateful to accept the delivery themselves because they weren’t letting people into the unit. I said that was perfectly fine and would great, but asked if they wouldn’t mind just a quick phone call upstairs explaining that Gracie Gledhill’s brother and dad were here with some blankets and wanted to say hi and personally deliver the blankets to them. If it was a problem, then we’d be really happy to leave it with the guards. So they called, and the PICU said to send us up.

I was really glad I had not parked in the loading zone, both for the chance to meet our new friends from Montana, and for the fact they let us upstairs into the unit. We went and picked up a wagon and loaded two bags into the wagon and went up to the PICU unit. They let us in and I didn’t know anyone at the front desk. But explained who we were and they knew who Gracie was. I asked if there was any chance I could go around and hand deliver the blankets to everyone in the unit. Her response was so great, she said, “well, just do it until someone gets mad and kicks you out”. That was all the prompting we needed.

Spending a few moments in that special place with those amazing doctors and nurses was actually very emotional for me. The weight of the PICU unit and spirit that is there came rushing at me, and I got a little teary as we stopped in each room and gave out blankets. A special highlight for me was when we saw Michael, who is one of the people in charge of ECMO, and who cared for Gracie many times. Another highlight was running into Doctor Statler, who is the doctor who was with Gracie when she flat-lined, and personally administered CPR to Gracie’s open heart while they hooked up the ECMO machine (heart and lung bypass machine), until the surgeons came and took over for her. She is one of the reasons Gracie is alive today. I was able to give her a hug and thank her for all she did.

Delivering these blankets was so special for Max and I. I had about 8 blankets left over and knew that they would go to good use, and left them there for those parents and patients who undoubtedly would be entering the doors that day.

We headed downstairs to get in our truck when I got a really overwhelming sense to get the remaining blankets and take them to the Surgical unit and NICU, both places we spent time in with Gracie. So that’s what we did.

It was truly an amazing way to spend some time with my son. I’m so thankful that my work allowed us the opportunity to deliver these blankets, and for their time, talent, and sacrifice in making them. I’ll never be able to fully convey the joy I felt delivering them.

Max summed it up perfectly when we were talking about it in the truck afterwards. He said, “Dad, I feel really good, that was really amazing”.

On this Christmas Day, I would like to thank each and every one of you who has supported our family. Your countless kind deeds, the many encouraging words, the out-pouring of love and concern. I’m especially grateful for your faith and prayers. This has been the most challenging & difficult year of our lives. So it’s no surprise that in so many ways, it’s also been the best! Merry Christmas!!