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When her young daughter spent the majority of her life in the hospital, a local woman decided to help other families with hospitalized children by providing care packages and other gifts.
Shelly Adams of Tecumseh launched a blog for her ministry Leah’s Hope on Dec. 26, 2010, three months after her daughter Leah passed away at 17 months old last September.
Leah spent 14 of those months in Children’s Hospital in Oklahoma City. She was born eight weeks early, and it was then her parents learned she had Down Syndrome. She also suffered from pulmonary hypertension, pulmonary vein stenosis, chronic lung disease and chronic kidney disease during her life.
Through the ministry, Adams aims to provide support to other parents and children who face an extended stay in the hos- pital.
“During Leah’s short life, way before she passed away, I knew God had instilled in me that I would be an ad- vocate in some way, and he gave me Leah for a reason. I feel like he has led me to help and encourage others in the manner of what we experienced and be able to help others,” Adams said.
So far, Adams has given two families a care pack- age. She also has sent a Wal-mart gift card to two families who were out of state.
Two of her friends, Judy and Maybell, helped Adams provide gifts for parents on Mother’s Day and Father’s Day.
On Mother’s Day, Ad- ams distributed two dozen roses and handmade cards to mothers with a child in ICU.
For Father’s Day, two dozen candy boxes and handmade cards were handed out to the dads.
“Being at the hospital with your child on a holiday makes it a little rougher,” Adams said.
“I just wanted to make these parents feel a bit special and hopefully put a smile on their face,” Adams said.
The time her daughter spent in the hospital was tough financially, physically and emotionally, Adams said.
“Every time the phone would ring, I would jump and be afraid of it being bad news,” Adams said.
Just about the entire time Leah was in the hospital, Adams’ husband Paul was laid off from his job, adding a financial burden.
She said finances also have caused her ministry to get off to a slow start in helping families, but she is proud of what she has accomplished so far, due in large part to donations she has received.
Adams said it was heart breaking to see her child in a hospital bed not getting any better. Now, 10 months after Leah’s passing, Adams said her family misses her terribly, but “we know she is in a much better place, feeling no pain and sitting on Jesus’ lap.”
The idea to create care packages for families came from the baskets the Adams’ pastor Clint Dawkins of Sharon Baptist Church would deliver to the family.
Adams said these baskets included snacks, water, soda pop, a stuffed animal for Leah and snacks so the family could have some- thing to eat other than hospital food or vending machine snacks.
Dawkins also took the family to lunch several times and put gas in their car. He called the baskets “Blessing Baskets” and brought three to the family during Leah’s hospital stay.
“Those baskets might not seem a lot to other people, but when you practically live in the hospital, it was a huge blessing to have those extra items on hand and one less worry,” Adams said.
Now, Adams is using her pastor’s idea but with her own spin.
She said she wants to provide a “touch of love, care and thoughtfulness” with the care packages she delivers.
For example, if the basket is going to the family with a daughter in the hospital, the girl will receive a handmade boutique bow because Adams always did Leah’s hair when she was in the hospital.
Other items she may place in the baskets include handmade blankets, puzzle books for the parents to use to pass the time, a handmade card, beverages, snacks and chocolate.
“Having Leah has totally changed my way of thinking, and the loss of a child really makes you think and have compassion for oth- ers,” Adams said.
“Having that knowledge and experience, I know there are lots of other parents that I am sure are going through something similar to what we went through, and I want to touch others’ lives and try to be a blessing to other families like our pastor did for us,” Adams said.
Her main emphasis with creating care packages is to show the families someone does care and understand what they are going through, Adams said.
It is the hardest thing, she said, to see a child laying in a hospital bed hooked up to all kinds of medical equipment.
And, there also are more concerns during a child’s extended hospital stay other than the child getting better, although Adams said that was the number one thing on her mind.
Adams and her husband still had to pay rent and utilities on a home that Adams said was “a very expensive storage building just storing all of our belongings” during Leah’s hospitalization.
Since a parent’s main focus should be his or her child during a hospital stay, Adams hopes the care packages can ease some stress and provide some encouragement and hope to families.
“Yes, life goes on outside the hospital, so with providing these care packages, I know and believe in my heart these care packages will and do make a difference in the lives of a mom and a dad with a sick child,” Adams said.
Anyone interested in donating to Leah’s Hope can visit www.leahshope.us to do so via the website or send donations to Adams at 508 Cottonwood Lane, Tecumseh, OK 74873.
When her young daughter spent the majority of her life in the hospital, a local woman decided to help other families with hospitalized children by providing care packages and other gifts.
Shelly Adams of Tecumseh launched a blog for her ministry Leah’s Hope on Dec. 26, 2010, three months after her daughter Leah passed away at 17 months old last September.
Leah spent 14 of those months in Children’s Hospital in Oklahoma City. She was born eight weeks early, and it was then her parents learned she had Down Syndrome. She also suffered from pulmonary hypertension, pulmonary vein stenosis, chronic lung disease and chronic kidney disease during her life.
Through the ministry, Adams aims to provide support to other parents and children who face an extended stay in the hos- pital.
“During Leah’s short life, way before she passed away, I knew God had instilled in me that I would be an ad- vocate in some way, and he gave me Leah for a reason. I feel like he has led me to help and encourage others in the manner of what we experienced and be able to help others,” Adams said.
So far, Adams has given two families a care pack- age. She also has sent a Wal-mart gift card to two families who were out of state.
Two of her friends, Judy and Maybell, helped Adams provide gifts for parents on Mother’s Day and Father’s Day.
On Mother’s Day, Ad- ams distributed two dozen roses and handmade cards to mothers with a child in ICU.
For Father’s Day, two dozen candy boxes and handmade cards were handed out to the dads.
“Being at the hospital with your child on a holiday makes it a little rougher,” Adams said.
“I just wanted to make these parents feel a bit special and hopefully put a smile on their face,” Adams said.
The time her daughter spent in the hospital was tough financially, physically and emotionally, Adams said.
“Every time the phone would ring, I would jump and be afraid of it being bad news,” Adams said.
Just about the entire time Leah was in the hospital, Adams’ husband Paul was laid off from his job, adding a financial burden.
She said finances also have caused her ministry to get off to a slow start in helping families, but she is proud of what she has accomplished so far, due in large part to donations she has received.
Adams said it was heart breaking to see her child in a hospital bed not getting any better. Now, 10 months after Leah’s passing, Adams said her family misses her terribly, but “we know she is in a much better place, feeling no pain and sitting on Jesus’ lap.”
The idea to create care packages for families came from the baskets the Adams’ pastor Clint Dawkins of Sharon Baptist Church would deliver to the family.
Adams said these baskets included snacks, water, soda pop, a stuffed animal for Leah and snacks so the family could have some- thing to eat other than hospital food or vending machine snacks.
Dawkins also took the family to lunch several times and put gas in their car. He called the baskets “Blessing Baskets” and brought three to the family during Leah’s hospital stay.
“Those baskets might not seem a lot to other people, but when you practically live in the hospital, it was a huge blessing to have those extra items on hand and one less worry,” Adams said.
Now, Adams is using her pastor’s idea but with her own spin.
She said she wants to provide a “touch of love, care and thoughtfulness” with the care packages she delivers.
For example, if the basket is going to the family with a daughter in the hospital, the girl will receive a handmade boutique bow because Adams always did Leah’s hair when she was in the hospital.
Other items she may place in the baskets include handmade blankets, puzzle books for the parents to use to pass the time, a handmade card, beverages, snacks and chocolate.
“Having Leah has totally changed my way of thinking, and the loss of a child really makes you think and have compassion for oth- ers,” Adams said.
“Having that knowledge and experience, I know there are lots of other parents that I am sure are going through something similar to what we went through, and I want to touch others’ lives and try to be a blessing to other families like our pastor did for us,” Adams said.
Her main emphasis with creating care packages is to show the families someone does care and understand what they are going through, Adams said.
It is the hardest thing, she said, to see a child laying in a hospital bed hooked up to all kinds of medical equipment.
And, there also are more concerns during a child’s extended hospital stay other than the child getting better, although Adams said that was the number one thing on her mind.
Adams and her husband still had to pay rent and utilities on a home that Adams said was “a very expensive storage building just storing all of our belongings” during Leah’s hospitalization.
Since a parent’s main focus should be his or her child during a hospital stay, Adams hopes the care packages can ease some stress and provide some encouragement and hope to families.
“Yes, life goes on outside the hospital, so with providing these care packages, I know and believe in my heart these care packages will and do make a difference in the lives of a mom and a dad with a sick child,” Adams said.
Anyone interested in donating to Leah’s Hope can visit www.leahshope.us to do so via the website or send donations to Adams at 508 Cottonwood Lane, Tecumseh, OK 74873.
