The Hello, Little One programme at Denver Health, established in 2003, provides free "warm welcome" bags filled with essential supplies for newborn babies to families facing financial hardship. Over half of all babies born in Denver take their first breath at Denver Health, and nearly 90% of these families face financial hardship. The programme aims to ease this burden by ensuring every infant starts life with diapers, blankets, clothing, and other newborn necessities. This initiative is entirely donor-funded and supported by volunteers who pack each bag with care.
The programme, also referred to as Newborns in Need in some documentation, has evolved significantly since its inception. It began with gift baskets consisting of basic items like disposable diapers, a onesie, and some receiving blankets, initially provided to incarcerated women and women experiencing homelessness who had no means of providing material necessities for their newborns. The programme then expanded into essentials given to a few more mothers and eventually evolved to become the current welcome bag that is given to every parent who delivers a baby at Denver Health. Since 2003, the programme has provided 134,000 diapers, 201,000 hats, and helped 60,000 babies, celebrating its 20th anniversary in April 2023. There are tens of thousands of Denver families who have felt its impact in their lives.
The welcome bags are assembled by community volunteers in a dedicated space on Denver Health’s downtown campus. Sessions to assemble the bags last about two hours and are held several times each week. Volunteers average 50 per week and come from all walks of life, including students from public and private schools, local news personalities, employees from numerous companies, members of religious, fraternal, and sororal organisations, local charity groups, scout troops, and Denver Health employees themselves. There is also a devoted collection of local knitting, sewing, crocheting, and quilting groups that donate blankets and other hand-made items. Groups like Project Linus, Warm Hearts–Warm Baby, Koelbel Library Knitters, and many others have been longstanding supporters.
The contents of the welcome bags have evolved over the years. Currently, parents are gifted with a large bag containing diapers and wipes, baby shampoo and body wash, baby lotion, warming and receiving blankets, a bib and a burp cloth, a sleepsack, a book and a stuffed animal, an outfit, a hat, and two pairs of socks. Also included in each welcome bag is a special, high-value item, such as a pair of shoes or a hand-made sweater. Additionally, informational brochures in English and Spanish are provided from Denver Public Library, Dolly Parton’s Imagination Library, College Invest, Denver Water, and Cribs for Kids on Safe Sleep.
For parents of newborns who have greater needs, Denver Health social workers assist them in attaining car seats, strollers, cribs, pack ’n’ plays, and similar items. The programme's most needed donation items are warm blankets (24" x 36"), receiving blankets, sleepers and onesies (3-month size), and socks and mittens. Donations are generally accepted Monday through Friday from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m., but special arrangements for donations may be available. To schedule a donation drop-off, individuals can contact Volunteer Services. To find out more about volunteering with Hello, Little One, interested parties can email or call the programme.
The programme was conceptualised by Jean Galloway, founder of Galloway Group and Prosono, who first had the idea of local women throwing baby showers and delivering care packages to new parents at Denver Health. Her husband, Dr. Ben Galloway, was a physician at Denver Health, and Jean volunteered at the hospital and was a consultant to Denver Health Foundation. Jean, along with former Denver Health Foundation Executive Director Paula Herzmark, Foundation board members, former Denver Health CEO Dr. Patty Gabow, and others at Denver Health, reached out to their personal and professional contacts to drum up support. In addition to Dr. Gabow, Debra (Baldwin) Pain, former Denver Health Foundation Annual Giving Manager Robin Engleberg, and former Colorado First Lady Frances Owens were instrumental in getting the community involved. First Lady Owens quickly helped initiate male-inclusive counterpart events that underwrote the cost of car seats for the programme. Denver community figures such as Pam Crowe, Peggy Shanahan, and Sharon Magness Blake—who offered her home as the setting for the first Newborns in Need baby shower—were also early supporters.
Dr. Sharon Langendoerfer, then head of Denver Health’s Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU), also played a crucial role in the birth of Newborns in Need. The first recipients of the Warm Welcome bags were incarcerated women and women experiencing homelessness who Dr. Langendoerfer was caring for in the NICU who had no means of providing material necessities for their newborns.
Other organisations in the Denver area that provide essential items to mothers and families with young children include marisol family, which provides much-needed supplies including diapers, wipes, formula, baby food, blankets, and clothing; ARC of Colorado, which provides low-cost, previously used baby items; the catholic charities’ little flower assistance centre, which provides food, hygiene items, baby supplies, diapers, and formula; Comitis Crisis Center, which provides food, hygiene items, baby supplies, clothing, and bus tokens; Haven of Hope, a shelter for people experiencing homelessness that provides food, personal care items, and shower and laundry services; the gathering place, which provides food, laundry, clothes, and more, and is only for women, transgender individuals, and children; and Metro Caring, which provides food and other services.
The Hello, Little One programme is part of a broader network of Denver Health initiatives that benefit children and parents, including the Denver Health Doula Program (DHDP) providing devoted, equitable care and support during labour and birth, integrated perinatal mental health and infant mental health services, and Reach Out and Read, a programme encouraging families to read aloud together. The immediate and long-term well-being of Denver’s families is a priority for Denver Health and Denver Health Foundation.
Conclusion
The Hello, Little One programme at Denver Health is a well-established, donor-funded initiative that provides essential free supplies to newborns and families facing financial hardship. Supported by a robust community volunteer network and partnerships with various local organisations, the programme distributes comprehensive welcome bags containing diapers, clothing, blankets, and other necessities to every parent who delivers a baby at Denver Health. Its evolution from a small-scale effort for the most vulnerable mothers to a universal programme highlights its significant impact over two decades. For families in the Denver area, this represents a key resource for accessing no-cost baby essentials, complemented by other local organisations offering similar support.