MEET THE BABY CUDDLER!
DOTING GRAN GWEN HAS SPENT MANY HOURS GIVING LITTLE MIRACLES HUGS
Being invited to cradle a stranger’s precious newborn baby is a humbling experience. And it’s one that doting grandmother Gwen Grant will never take for granted.
Gwen, 79, is a volunteer at Brisbane’s Mater Mothers’ Hospital Special Care Nursery and has spent 15,000 hours helping Queensland’s tiniest babies.
When parents are unable to be with their little ones, Gwen steps in with unconditional, loving cuddles.
“It’s a special unit,” Gwen tells New Idea. “It’s a privilege to be there because the little ones are absolute miracles.”
The grandmother of three has volunteered there for more than 25 years and always lends an ear to worried parents when they need to chat.
“Most parents have been through quite a traumatic time,” Gwen explains. “When the staff ask if I can help with a baby when their mum has an appointment or just needs a bit of rest, I’m not going to say no to having a cuddle. It’s priceless. I’m very happy to be there for the parents and thankful that they allow us to do that.”
The professional queen of comfort cuddles and often sings lullabies to the babies as well to soothe them.
“I’ll start off with ‘Rock-abye Baby’ and then ‘Itsy Bitsy
‘IT’S A PRIVILEGE BECAUSE THE LITTLE ONES ARE MIRACLES’
Spider,’” Gwen says, with a heartfelt grin. “You should see the babies’ reaction as their little eyes just stare up. It’s beautiful.”
Gwen, whose husband Errol also volunteers, even enjoys the behind-the-scenes administrative side of the role, too.
“Out in our community, there’s a lot of people that make things and send them in to the babies,” Gwen explains. “They knit gloves and beanies and my job is to sort them out. It’s amazing how many generous and kind-hearted people there are.”
More than 2000 seriously ill and premature babies are cared for at Mater Mothers’ Hospitals’ Neonatal Critical Care Unit (NCCU) in South Brisbane.
Gwen acknowledges the incredible work all the doctors and nurses do for the little ones but unsurprisingly, the toughest and most heartbreaking aspect of the job for Gwen is when babies are really sick and struggling.
“I try not to let my emotions get the better of me,” she says. “The main thing is to reassure parents and make them feel calm.
“When you see the babies come out of the other side, that’s rewarding.”
Clearly Gwen gets enormous satisfaction from her work – not to mention an enormous amount of cuddles!