The Caps to Cap-Haitien Project: A partnership with Konbit Sante

(Photo courtesy of Konbit Sante, in the Haitian area where Safe Birthing Kits will be distributed.)

Mama to Mama is honored to introduce our first project. The Caps to Cap-Haitien Project: A Partnership with Konbit Sante, will initially provide newborn jersey caps to be distributed in Safe Birthing Kits in northern Haiti.

I invite you to join me in sharing your creativity, time and energy to aid our Caribbean sisters. Our life circumstances may be so very different from one another, but as women and mothers, we share so very much in common - the most basic being our desire to keep our children safe and healthy from the moment of birth onward. Please read on to find out how you can contribute to this project in a simple but meaningful way.

In northern Haiti:

• Just 1 in 5 women receives skilled medical care during childbirth.
• Haiti has the highest maternal mortaility ratio in the Western Hemisphere.
• 1 in 40 women will die as a result of pregnancy complications, unsafe abortion, or obstetrical emergency.
• Twelve percent of children die before the age of 5.

About Konbit Sante:

Konbit Sante is a Maine-based volunteer partnership working to save lives and improve health care in northern Haiti. In Haitian Creole, a konbit is a traditional method of working together to till your friends' and neighbors fields as well as your own - a cooperative effort. Sante means health. The name defines their committment to address the staggering health problems in northern Haiti where most lack basic care and live without running water.

One aspect of their work involves OB/GYN care . Konbit Sante is working to assemble Safe Birthing Kits to be distributed by traditional birth attendants in the desperately poor Fort St. Michel area of Cap-Haitien. These kits - consisting of plastic sheeting, hand sanitizer, a sterile piece of string and razor blade, and these newborn baby caps - have the potential to reduce infant and maternal mortality, and give babies a safer, healthier start.   

The Caps to Cap-Haitien Project

How you can help:

Download the Caps to Cap-Haitien PDF, where you'll find the pattern for a Simple Knot Newborn Cap. The cap can be sewn on your sewing machine, using t-shirts you have available to you. The project is suitable for any level of sewing ability - even children, with help.

Deadline:

While the intent is to create an ongoing relationship with Konbit Sante and the mothers of Northern Haiti, the initial goal is to gather as many caps for the Safe Birthing Kits as we can by December 10th, 2008.

Mail your finished hats to:
        Mama to Mama
        c/o SouleMama
        PO Box 8190
        Portland, ME 04104

Thank you for your interest and help in this project!

Amanda
MamatoMama.org

Comments

[Regina]

Beautiful project Amanda. Thanks for sharing it with us and involving us too!!

[Amber]

This is so wonderful - I've been wanting to get involved somehow in using crafting to help others - what a great group. Thank you so much for starting this!!

[Claudia]

Amanda your idea is breathtaking!

And starting with Haiti, the perfect target, the most needing nation of the Americas.

So fantastic, I am thrilled!

[Monica]

Beautiful, beautiful, beautiful! I can't wait to get sewing - thank you for a wonderful project that we can do from home yet will make a lovely difference around the world!

[elizabeth]

What a great idea Amanda.
I hope my lack of sewing skills are up for the challenge. :)

One question though, should we wash the fabric first in a baby type of wash? Wanted to check before I got started.

[Laura Frantz]

AMANDA, HELP!
The bottom of the hat pattern spills off the edge of the page and I'm not experienced enough to extrapolate the lines. I've tried scaling down the image but it looks like the original is cut off at the bottom. Any suggestions?

[Morgan]

I'm so proud of you for doing this and creating a way for women to connect and share and support one another. Kudos-job well done!

xo
Morgan

[Stephanie Jedlicka]

LOVE this idea, Amanda. Love it. I'll get started immediately!

[Sarah]

I can't open the Cap to Cap PDF. I am a pretty expereinced sewer and hope to figure the pattern out from the picture. Is that OK? Is there any other info I need from the PDF?
Thanks,
Sarah

[eesh]

Thank you so much for this Amanda. Lately I've been looking for a way to help out anyone who would need it in this world we live in. And this is exactly the kind of project I need to dip my feet into the kindness thru giving pool. Thank you again.

[Zelia]

i am off to download my pdf file and also spread the news...

[meg]

I love this. Sewing brings me such joy, and I usually have more energy for it than need. It is a blessing to be able to use what I have to help others -- thank you for the opportunity!

[Sarah-Michelle]

Just think there are already 37 (I make 38) comments on this project. If everyone made 10 (which would be easy and not take much time), we would have 380 caps to donate. I'm passing this on to my friends and I hope they all participate. Thank you for the opportunity to help.

[Ellen]

Amanda,
I have been a silent follower of your blog for ages. I've been looking for something to do with my 5 year old son to start teaching him about charity and giving as the season of gimme, gimme starts. As I try to instill these ideas in him, I hope to re-energize myself as well.
I've been asking for tshirts from friends, and the idea has already spread- now a girl scout group as well as several other people I know are going to join in and contribute.
Thanks for the inspiration!
Ellen

[Kendra]

What a wonderful mission and I will be pleased to help. One question...is it ok to use gently used (clean) t-shirts? I'll check back in hopes of seeing an answer!

[Jennifer]

What a beautiful idea Amanda! I am happy to contribute. I have loved reading your book and try to incorporate many ideas with my 5-year-old son. This is certainly something he can help with too. Thank you for using your position to encourage others to make this world a better place.

[Sonya]

What a wonderful idea....I have never sewn in my life but am going to do this project! My 4 year old daughter and I will do it together. I have been wanting to learn and this is the perfect opening task. Thank you, Amanda. You continue to inspire me.

[Lisa Scandrette]

Amanda, I've been a Soule Mama fan for a long time. Now, I'm even more so! Thanks for doing this. I'll be sending some caps your way.

[Bev]

Saw your post this morning just as I took a break from clearing out the closet. Great timing! So I sat down to stitch this afternoon, and there are two little caps ready to be sent to you from Australia with best wishes....

[flaneuse]

Thank you Amanda for organizing this.

[Mellimoomoo]

This is fnatastic Amanda. A beautiful, heartwarming thing to inititate.

[Kristen]

Those statistics just break my heart. I can't get any alone time with my machine until Saturday, but I am looking forward to sewing some caps so much!!!

[Jamie Ivey]

LOVE this idea. I just talked about it on my blog too, so hopefully you can get some people involved too. I printed the pattern and hope to do some this week or next.

Brilliant idea! Love both your sites too by the way!

We are in the process of adopting two kids from haiti right now, so this is dear to my heart. I'm heading back in Dec to visit them for the fourth time this year. I can't wait!

[Shannon]

I am in the PTA at my local elementary school and we will be making hats for you. We will have them finished by December 4 and are hoping to have collected and finished over 1000 hats!!! We LOVE this idea and are so glad we can help!!!

[Julie P]

We are just loving this. First 9 hats are done, and we're rummaging through drawers for more shirts. Cross posting this on my blog...