by Vicki Tumilson
It was a joy to meet with Myrtle Fourier in October to talk to her about her efforts for White Cross, which is a part of our Women's Ministries. Myrtle makes kimonos and layettes that are sent to Tandala Hospital in the Congo and which are then given to newborn babies. In this part of Africa, the delivering mothers walk to the hospital to have their babies, as they are too poor to obtain transportation. In most cases, these kimonos and layettes are the only thing that these new mothers have to keep their babies warm.
In addition to her White cross efforts, Myrtle also knits baby caps for the March of Dimes! The March of Dimes in turn provides them to various Neonatal Intensive Car Units (NICU) for premature babies right here in our own backyard.
These caps touched my life three years ago when I gave birth to premature twins. They arrived thirteen weeks early. Both Robbie and Tommy were given one of these caps that they wore throughout their stay in the NICU. After the passing of Robbie, I kept his cap to treasure the memory of my precious little boy.
Myrtle started doing knitting in the '60s, making kimonos and layettes for the White Cross; later, she started making greeting card pictures and rolling bandages. When I asked her if she had any idea how many she had made over the years, she stated, "Oh, I have no idea. I've done about 460 this year and 200 caps for the March of Dimes." This is quite an accomplishment for a person of her age with such obstacles as blurred vision! In order to continue doing this, she uses many lights in her sewing room and utilizes her sense of touch. The reason? "I just enjoy doing it. It gives me something to do." Because she is "up there in age," as she describes it, she relies on Diana Maas to purchase the materials and other friends to deliver items to and from the church.
Regardless of the struggles that may come her way, Myrtle continues to make the kimonos, layettes, and caps for White Cross and March of Dimes. She resides in a retirement home and looks forward to visits from her family and friends. I myself consider her a new-found friend and look forward to the next time I am blessed to talk to her.
Note: This was originally published in the second issue of At the Well, the quarterly EFCCL Women's Ministries newsletter. Please let us know if you'd like to be added to the mailing list!
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