After Westbrook resident Kimberly Tarbox’s oldest boy was born prematurely, she did what every mother looks forward to doing: She went to buy him his first clothes.
She was dismayed to find, however, that few children’s clothing stores sell clothes for premature babies. She finally had to resort to going to a toy store to find clothes small enough for her son.
Tarbox and mothers like her are the reason the Walker Memorial Library has decided to partner with the March of Dimes, Maine Chapter, to raise awareness about the epidemic of premature birth in Maine and the nation.
The library will be hosting two Preemie Project 1372 baby showers at 10:30 a.m. on Tuesday, Oct. 18, and Thursday, Oct. 20, during story hour. The party will be in the children’s room at the library. Those not wishing to attend the party, but who wish to support the families of these tiny babies born too soon, can drop preemie-sized clothes off at the front desk.
“The Walker Memorial Library is happy to partner with the March of Dimes as we have in the past,” said Children’s Librarian Pat Larrabee. “We think the library is the perfect place to endorse healthy children, and we welcome opportunities to participate in such programs.”
Preemie Project 1372 is a statewide, grassroots project to collect 1,372 preemie-sized articles of clothing. On Nov. 3, at the USM Abromson Conference Center, the clothes will be displayed to create a visual impact of the severity of this epidemic in Maine. The Maine First Lady Karen Baldacci will host a program to thank the stitchers and contributors for their support. The public is invited to view the display. Later, the clothes will be donated to preemie families. For more information on Preemie Project 1372, please visit the Web site at www.marchofdimes.com/maine and click on the Preemie Project 1372 icon. You may contact the March of Dimes at the Falmouth office at 878-1199.
Jeff Stimpson, a Maine native, and author of the Borders’ Recommends book, “Alex, The Fathering of a Preemie,” will speak about his experience and sign books on Nov. 3. His son was born at 21 ounces and was in the neonatal intensive care unit for 13 months.
Preemies are born too soon, before 37 weeks gestation. (A normal pregnancy is 40 weeks.) These premature babies can suffer lifelong consequences, like mental retardation, blindness, chronic lung disease and cerebral palsy. Preterm birth is the leading killer of newborns. Preterm birth can happen to any woman.
In Maine, in 2002, there were 1,372 preemie births. Preemies represent 10.1 percent of all live births – one in every ten babies is born prematurely, and we don’t know why. Between 1992 and 2002, Maine had a 35 percent increase in the number of preemies born.
The March of Dimes is leading a multi-year Prematurity Campaign to draw awareness to this epidemic. They are raising money to support vital medical research into the causes and treatments and prevention of preterm labor.
Kimberly Tarbox, of North Street in Westbrook, experienced preterm labor during each of her three pregnancies. “Everyone knows having a preemie is a tough enough job for any
parent,” she said. “Clothing a preemie can be next to impossible. When my oldest child was born, he was born at 23 weeks. He weighed 1 pound and 6 ounzes and was only 11.5 inches long. When he was 4 weeks old, we were given the OK to bring clothing in for him. I did what most moms can’t wait to do. I went to go find cute little outfits for my son. I went to several stores and asked to see their “preemie” clothing. At each store, I was dismayed. These clothes were absolutely huge compared to the size of my son. Following the advice of former preemie moms of incredibly tiny treasures, I went to the toy store and bought my son doll clothes. Even these were too big on his tiny frame. Finding doll clothes suitable for a preemie is a daunting task. The fabric must be soft; there mustn’t be anything rough that could injure delicate skin like Velcro. My son ended up wearing a pink doll shirt. On him, it was like a dress. The task was equally challenging with my two youngest children who were also tiny little peanuts, but at that point I knew where to start my search. Sadly, the number of premature births is amazingly high, yet there really is no market suited to their tiny sizes. Preemie Project 1372 can make a difference to these young lives.”
After the Nov. 3 event, all items will be donated to preemies in the three neonatal intensive care hospitals in Maine.
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