Western Wisconsin Health (WW Health) is pleased to announce that Halos of the St. Croix Valley donated a CuddleCot to the new birth center.

In October, 2016, in honor of National Pregnancy and Infant Loss Awareness Month, Halos of the St. Croix Valley launched a fundraising campaign to fund a CuddleCot for a hospital in the local community. In less than 30 days, $3000 was raised by community families to purchase the unit and bassinet. A Facebook poll was conducted to decide which hospital would receive the CuddleCot and Western Wisconsin Health won the poll by overwhelming numbers.

“We are honored to receive such a wonderful gift from the community,” stated Stephanie Johnson, Director of Women’s Health Services. “Losing a child is difficult enough. We want grieving parents to have more time in order to grieve their loss.” Since the new birth center at WW Health opened in July 2016, we have had record numbers of new babies born. We expect to reach over 200 in 2017.

The CuddleCot will help provide comfort to others experiencing the loss of an infant. A CuddleCot is a bassinet that uses a medical cooling system that delays changes to a stillborn child. The cooling unit is hidden inside the sheets of the bassinet, allowing a serene setting for parents. This unit allows families to spend more time with their precious babies, to capture photos and memorize their every detail.

On February 17, a dedication ceremony was held at the Western Wisconsin Health Birth Center in honor of families that have lost their children. Kelli Espiritu, Co-Founder and CEO of Halos of the St. Croix Valley and Mari Rasmussen, Project Manager from Halos of the St. Croix Valley presented the unit to the Birth Center staff and provided a demonstration of how to use it.

Halos of the St. Croix Valley’s mission is to provide ongoing support, encouragement, and assistance to families who are grieving the loss of a child. To learn more about Halos of the St. Croix Valley, visit their website at halosofthestcroixvalley.com.

To learn more about Western Wisconsin Health, visit our website at wwhealth.org.