Red Hats, NICU Octopuses, and MORE! By Rebecca Dotson

Hey team!

I wanted to share a quick update on the two special projects (outside of making hats of any size, which we will always accept!) we have going this spring!

Little Hats Big Hearts

As a reminder, we will be accepting hats for the Little Hats Big Hearts project through the American Heart Association through Thursday, January 25. Remember, donated hats should be made with red cotton or acrylic yarns of medium to heavy-weight. The yarn should be machine washable and dryable. Check out the news story below to hear more about the project. ​

Check out the story!

New Project: NICU Octopus Project

We are so excited for the new opportunity we have to impact NICU families through our octopus project. We came across this story from the TODAY show where volunteers had made crocheted octopuses and donated them to their local Neonatal Intensive Care Unit to families. The tentacles on the octopus were perfect for the baby to snuggle and resembled the umbilical cord to the baby. Also, the tentacles help the baby have something to hold onto and tug on, other than their tubes. We love this and think it is a creative way to impact families that maybe we haven't had the opportunity to reach before -- how exciting! Check out the story below. We will be partnering with UT Medical Center this spring to provide these for their families. We will collect them through the month of March and they will be donated in April. Be creative - there are so many ideas on Pinterest of different color combinations and character themes. Each octopus will get donated with a handwritten letter of encouragement just like our hats and will be packaged with an 818 Ministries logo so that families can get connected to us!

Check out the story that inspired us on the TODAY show!

We are so excited for all that 2018 has in store! Stay tuned over the next few weeks for more updates about upcoming Impact Squad visits. It's going to be an exciting year! Below is our address where all hats, letters and octopuses can be shipped!

Rebecca Dotson
P.O. Box 52343
Knoxville, TN 37919

Cheering for you,
Rebecca Dotson
Founder, 818 Ministries