Thousands of babies born this year in Anchorage and their parents will be taking home a gift bag full of resources thanks to Programs for Infants & Children, Inc. (PIC) and their partnership with thread and other community organizations that focus on giving every child the best start in life.
“thread is excited to be a part of this initiative to get critical child care and other information into the hands of families as they welcome home a new baby,” said Jenni Pollard, thread’s Chief Marketing and Development Officer.
Distribution began with a 50-bag pilot program in October 2022, at Alaska Native Medical Center (ANMC). This January the initiative is expanding to provide hundreds of bags to Providence Alaska Medical Center and Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson. The goal is to reach all hospitals and birthing centers in Anchorage before summer.
“Approximately 4000 babies are born in Anchorage each year,” said Amy Simpson, Executive Director of PIC. “Our hope is that every parent of every baby born will receive this gift by July.”
The gift bags provide items like a swaddle blanket, board book, and growth chart. Each bag also contains over 15 other resources to help parents get to know the local organizations that support families with young children, as well as learn about new baby basics: safe infant sleep, feeding, tummy time, dental care, postpartum depression, positive parenting, developmental milestones, and more.
The gift bag project, organized by PIC, includes support and contributions from thread, Alaska Native Tribal Health Consortium, Children’s Hospital at Providence, Focus, Help Me Grow, Alaska Children’s Trust, LaTouche Pediatrics, United Way of Anchorage, and Southcentral Foundation.