'Knit For Good' Brings Joy To Patients At OU Children’s Hospital

There was a special delivery to OU Children’s Hospital on Tuesday that not only warmed the patients’ heads but also their hearts.

"Knit For Good," a group that knitted more than 700 hats, brought them all to the hospital to donate to the pediatric patients and their families.

Debbie Trachtenberg said she decided to create "Knit For Good" after volunteering at Oklahoma Children's Hospital with her therapy dog. While she and her dog were visiting a patient's family, Trachtenberg said she saw the mother was knitting hats for infants in the neonatal intensive care unit.

Inspired by that, Trachtenberg began learning how to knit by watching YouTube videos. She and her friends then formed "Knit For Good." The group is now comprised of more than three dozen members.

“I know everyone in our group is so passionate about helping the kids and their families here," Trachtenberg said. "And it’s so different when you actually are here and witness it yourself and see the moms with tears in their eyes, saying, ‘Thank you so much. This has totally helped my child get through a hard time, helped me take care of my child, helped me relieve my stress, helped me put a smile on my child's face.'"

Every hat was displayed together on a large metal frame, allowing patients and their families to pick their favorites to keep. In addition, members of "Knit For Good" brought supplies and taught patients how to knit their own masterpiece.

One of the first people to pick out hats and knitting supplies was Kristi Saul, whose daughter will be undergoing surgery at the hospital.

Saul said being able to bring those items to her child brought a sense of normalcy.

“If you’ve been camping for a week and then you finally get a shower and a good meal, that’s what this is like for the kids who are up in these rooms," said Saul.

Another parent who picked a hat was Antoine Johnson. His teenage son suddenly became ill, suffered septic shock and had to be put into a medically induced coma.

Johnson said he lost his job while caring for his son.

“It’s a big burden. But at the end of the day, I’m more about getting him to better health than anything else," said Johnson. "Whatever I’m going through, I can deal with.”

Johnson's 5-year-old daughter, London, was “so excited” when she picked out a hat for herself.

“It feels like a representation of love and prayer for the children that’s here inside of this hospital," said Johnson. "So each hat can represent a child in the hospital, whether it’s each floor, each room.”

If you’d like to learn more about "Knit For Good," you can reach them at KnitForGood@gmail.com.