Volunteers & Helping Hands - Angel Pockets & Cuddle Hearts

We are looking for volunteers and helping hands for our projects, Will you join us?

Come along to do some hands-on community service by helping us with our Project; and meet our members and find out more about Altrusa. Altrusa International of Christchurch Inc is having a working bee to cut out, sew and construct Manaaki Mat Covers for Sands Canterbury and Cuddle Hearts for the project coordinated by Lisa Paget of Rolleston. There will be tasks for non-sewers as well as sewing experts. The Club is providing most of the required equipment and resources from our project funds, but feel free to bring along sharp scissors or a sewing machine if you have one.

Here is some information about the Cuddle Hearts for NICU project itself:
Cuddle hearts are small cotton fabric hearts shared between parents and babies and proven to have benefits for both. Babies' senses develop in the womb and by the time they're born, not only do they recognise their mother's voice, but they can identify her scent. The sound of their mother and her smell are comforting and familiar to newborns and in return, mothers have a physical and hormonal reaction to the scent and sound of their baby.

Here is some information about Sands Canterbury (part of Sands New Zealand):
Sands Canterbury is a non-profit, volunteer organisation that supports parents and families who have experienced the death of a baby.
Covers for Manaaki Mats are constructed like a pillow case. Families will keep these covers so they have an ongoing need for them (around 50-70 per year). Fabric required to make them: quilting cottons, poplin or flannelette.

'Manaaki' - to care
Manaaki Mats are a safe, simple, specialist and effective cooling resource for deathcare.

Valuable for pregnancy loss, stillbirth and all other deaths including babies, children, teens and adults. Suitable for hospitals, maternity wards, NICU and PICU wards, hospices, funeral homes and community settings.

Using Manaaki Mats slows down the natural changes that occur after death by keeping the body cool. They are a more natural, environmentally friendly and affordable alternative to chemical embalming.

More about Altrusa:
We are a member organisation with Clubs around New Zealand, and internationally. We believe that everyone is able to make a positive difference to the world around them. We can each volunteer our time, or donate our money, towards worthy causes. Our individual efforts may be small, but combined they matter. We can achieve even more when we bring people together.

For over 100 years Altrusa clubs have gathered members from varying occupations and lifestyles, all sharing an interest in community service. We enjoy the friendship, fun and satisfaction that comes from working together for the benefit of others. Each club develops a programme that is tailored to local needs, undertaking a variety of hands-on service and fundraising projects each year. One of our shared goals as an organization is to improve literacy, which we believe is the key to opportunity.

This is a great opportunity to contribute and find out more about what we do, and the exciting events we have coming up that we'd love you to get involved in with us.