Dear Friend,

Thank you so much for inquiring about Threads of Love baby gowns and for your interest in serving the Lord in His work.

Our mission statement is this: Threads of Love is a sewing ministry serving the needs of newborns and their families in crisis. The ministry is about healing and binding together the hearts of parents at a time of uncertainty about their baby's health, or when they lose an infant. Our mission is to show to parents the love of Christ, especially at a time when their personal pain is hard to endure, and to let them know that God's is faithful and that His peace and serenity extends far beyond the situation. Through acts of obedience and donation, His work can and will continue. We pray that this ministry will have an impact far beyond our expectations.

We feel this is a ministry the Lord would have others join in to blanket the country with Threads of Love.

There are three things that remain: faith, hope, and love .' 1 Corinthians 13:13

HOW CAN I HELP?

1. Contact us on the web at www.threadsoflove.org
2. Make a gown or dress to be donated to one of the hospitals in your local community. The patterns are included on this website.
3. Tell a friend about Threads of Love! Anyone can help even if they cannot sew. We have a saying..."If you can count to five, we can use you!" If you aren't sure about your sewing skills, the ladies in your local chapter will be happy to teach you. If you have a sewing machine that goes backwards and forwards, you can sew for us!
4. Make a donation of fabric, ribbon, lace, or funds to your local chapter of Threads of Love.
5. Pray for Threads of Love. God has been so faithful to our ministry since its inception, thanks to prayers from you!
6. Sign up to become a chapter in your community. See the rest of the website for more information.

God has given us all a talent that we are to use to serve Him. Our goal is to have chapters of Threads of Love set up all across the U. S., serving the needs of parents of babies who die or who are sick in the NICU. We now have over a hundred established chapters in over thirty states. If you do not feel lead to establish a chapter in your area please contact one of the chapters listed on the website, and join with them in their efforts of bringing comfort to those families in need.

The day gowns that we contribute to the babies in the NICU are just a small part of Threads of Love. The public seems to have a problem with talking about the grieving families whose little angels don't live. We have decided to furnish local hospitals with burial gowns, bonnets, blankets and a prayer to give to these grieving families. Sometimes our ladies express a problem with making a dress for a dead infant…..but we must look past this and see it as a gift of love—maybe the only gift some infants will ever receive on this earth. Through this project we have learned that the loss of an infant leaves a mother and her family in need of being nurtured; it is important to put a closure to this loss. Our feeling is that maybe the little outfits help to soften their loss and in some small quiet way say, "Someone cares about your loss.” Most mothers keep the bonnet or blanket as a reminder of their little one.

If you want to start a Threads of Love chapter of your own, please contact us at info@threadsoflove.org and we will let you know what is involved. However, if you wish to sew for any of the existing chapters, please contact one near you (you can find a list on our website). We can all use the extra help! Many fabric stores will give you a discount on a bolt of material if presented with an introduction letter on your church letterhead.

With the help of friends, church members and the local smocking guild, we have set up workshops for our local chapter here in Baton Rouge. We meet once a month and work on these little outfits. Those who can’t sew, cut out the patterns; some ladies sew on labels or sort out each different piece for delivery. We get a sewing assembly line going; and this works great! The ladies furnish the thread and love to complete the outfits.

The day gown pattern in this packet has been kept simple so the less-experienced sewers can be a part of this. For the day gowns, we use solid colors and any print appropriate for boys and girls. For the burial gowns we have found white to be the best color to work with. Since the attached material was printed, we have learned that the size A and C of the internment gowns are all that are really needed for our hospitals. Also, to make our fabric go farther, we have been making the blankets 26" long and cutting the material in half when using 44/45 " material.

If you would like more information on starting a chapter in your area, or if you wish to get on our mailing list for the quarterly newsletter, Sew Precious In His Sight, please contact us at info@threadsoflove.org or at the address at the top of this letter.

May God bless you in your efforts,

Sissy Davis, Director

sissy@threadsoflove.org