ST. LOUIS — This holiday season, we're reminded not everyone gets to spend time at home with family and friends.
Some new parents are in the NICU waiting for the day they're cleared to leave, and one group called the Mightiest mama's is helping them get through the holidays.
"Ho, Ho, Ho, "
Santa's hearty hello….
"Merry Christmas"
Echoing through the halls, as he and Mrs. Claus prepare to meet some of his smallest helpers.
"Hazel, what an adorable child."
The two made their way through SSM Health St. Mary's Hospital on Monday, bringing not toys, but holiday joy to babies in isolation.
Their tiny faces, fingers, and toes getting their first feel of Christmas thanks to a group of mighty mamas.
"Holidays are a really hard time to have a baby in critical care so I decided to find this organization to come in and give some lightness some joy and a hand to hold to our mothers during holidays so it feels more like a holiday," said Tara Docekal, the organizer.
The group, adequately called, Mightiest Mama's was started by a mama who spent her holidays here too.
"It's not quite like being a regular mom, you get to hold your baby only at certain times, -- you hear all the alarms and it's just hard so trying to focus on its a holiday outside of that is next to impossible."
This year Tara Docekal created 60 goodie bags for all the NICU families and antepartum moms at St. Mary's Hospital.
"Holidays are not always fun for everyone when you have a baby that's in the hospital. You know Christmas can be bittersweet, its so nice to have things like this," said Julia Shaw, a NICU nurse.
