One assisted living facility took that opportunity to do something special for the infants in Northside Hospital's NICU. A group of residents, led by an 86-year-old knitting novice, created more than 300 hats to donate to preemies in the hospital.
Ed Moseley has every excuse to sit back and live out the rest of his days watching golf on television, but instead he's committed to making a difference. He jumps at any opportunity to help out (not literally — he's got limited mobility) and didn't let a thing like not knowing how to knit stop him from contributing to his residence's hat drive.
Meet Ed Moseley.
Ed is an 86-year-old retired engineer who lives at the Dogwood Forest Assisted Living facility in Georgia. He's a widower, and receiving cancer treatments, but still wants to help others through their own hardships.
Recently, staff at the Georgia facility asked residents to help knit tiny hats for premature babies in the NICU at Northside Hospital.
Northside Hospital in Atlanta cares for approximately 2,000 premature infants each year.
"Our corporate office gave us a challenge to see how many knit baby camps each community could make," JoAn Hobbs, Dogwood Forest Assisted Living's executive director, said. "The goal was 200 caps for the entire eight communities," though Ed's was really the only one that participated.
"Our corporate office gave us a challenge to see how many knit baby camps each community could make," JoAn Hobbs, Dogwood Forest Assisted Living's executive director, said. "The goal was 200 caps for the entire eight communities," though Ed's was really the only one that participated.
Ed helps out wherever he can.
Last year, he participated in a donation drive by filling shoe boxes for women and children in need. He collected toiletries and items to contribute.
He wanted to help contribute this year as well.
"Corporate said it’s a nice project for keeping the old people out of trouble," said Ed. There was only one small problem, "I’ve never knitted in my life."
Ed's daughter got him started with his new-found hobby.
"I told my daughter about it and I said, ‘How can I knit? What do I need to do?’ and bless her heart, she went to Jo-Anns [Fabrics] and got a kit, yarn and instruction kit for me. So I started slowly and learned it just takes patience," Ed said.
When he started, it was taking him over three hours to complete a hat. Now he's churning them out in an hour-and-a-half.
"I could watch TV at the same time and knit," he said. The more he made the more word spread. Other residents and staff started bringing him hats they had made or yarn for him to work with. Ed hoped they'd be able to donate 150 newborn caps, but that goal was reached a lot earlier than expected, "we started filling up my couch with caps, and then all of a sudden, caps started coming from various places."
When he started, it was taking him over three hours to complete a hat. Now he's churning them out in an hour-and-a-half.
"I could watch TV at the same time and knit," he said. The more he made the more word spread. Other residents and staff started bringing him hats they had made or yarn for him to work with. Ed hoped they'd be able to donate 150 newborn caps, but that goal was reached a lot earlier than expected, "we started filling up my couch with caps, and then all of a sudden, caps started coming from various places."
Ed made 55 of the 300+ hats that Dogwood Forest donated to Northside Hospital for National Preemie Awareness Day.
"To have a gift left at the bedside, or a nurse put the hat on the little baby’s head, makes it all seem less like a hospital," Linda Kelly, the clinical manager of the special care nursery at Northside, said that the little knit hats are making a huge impact on patients' families.
One family in particular couldn't agree more. Doug Bunt's youngest son, Matthew, was born on November 12th, five weeks early. "It means a lot to us because this is our second stint in the NICU... We have a 5-year-old who spent 54 days up there. To know there are other people who are thinking about the well-being of these babies, our babies, it’s really nice to know," Doug said. "The fact this man is taking time out of his day to help the kids really means a lot to us."
One family in particular couldn't agree more. Doug Bunt's youngest son, Matthew, was born on November 12th, five weeks early. "It means a lot to us because this is our second stint in the NICU... We have a 5-year-old who spent 54 days up there. To know there are other people who are thinking about the well-being of these babies, our babies, it’s really nice to know," Doug said. "The fact this man is taking time out of his day to help the kids really means a lot to us."
Matthew has one of Ed's first hats.
But it's far from being the last — Ed's got a new goal: 30 new hats for the hospital every month.
"When someone appreciates something you do, that makes you feel good, naturally," he said. On top of continuing to make hats to send to the NICU, Ed's going to be making even more this holiday season. "I got a lot of enjoyment doing this and now I’ve graduated to large caps. I’m doing caps for all my grandkids."
"When someone appreciates something you do, that makes you feel good, naturally," he said. On top of continuing to make hats to send to the NICU, Ed's going to be making even more this holiday season. "I got a lot of enjoyment doing this and now I’ve graduated to large caps. I’m doing caps for all my grandkids."
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