By Melissa Wagoner
Silverton resident Dawn Tacker, the mother of 6- and 11-year-old boys, knows carrying a baby can foster mutual attachment and provide comfort. That kind of comfort is especially helpful for children whose home life is in upheaval.
That is why Tacker and a group of women have joined together this holiday season to collect new or gently used baby carriers for refugee mothers fleeing the Middle East.
“There are thousands of families and children fleeing terrorism and the war in Syria and the Middle East,” Tacker said. “Currently, 9,000 Syrian refugees are arriving in Greece daily and 30 percent of them are children. Refugees have to carry their babies in their arms for hundreds of miles.”
Tacker and volunteer Chloe DeVito, a nanny who also has practiced “baby wearing,” recently discovered the group Carry the Future (CTF) on social media and felt compelled to help.
“As women who support and practice baby wearing, it moved us to help these families,” DeVito said.
Silverton drop off locations:
Silver Falls Library, 410 S. Water St.
St. Paul’s parish office, 1410 Pine St.
White Oak Wellness, 306 Oak St.
Pick-up: [email protected]
CTF, based in Glendale, Calif., is a group devoted to providing baby carriers to displaced refugees in Europe and also to raising funds for relief packs which include protein bars, solar blankets and sleeping bags.
“The current refugee crisis is the biggest humanitarian crisis seen since World War II,” Tacker said. “It is a tangible way for us to reach out, one caring human being to another, one parent to another, to literally lighten their journey.”
During December, Devito and Tacker will be accepting donations of soft structured carriers that have clasps or harnesses, small, cold weather items such as hats and gloves and monetary donations to aid in the shipping costs. CTF also encourages letters of support that can be attached to the carriers and bring hope to those who will receive them.
