Knitting red hats for babies raises awareness of heart defects

The American Heart Association is kicking off this year's Little Hats, Big Hearts campaign by collecting knitted or crocheted red baby hats.

American Heart Association volunteers are raising awareness during American Heart Month in February by knitting red hats for babies born at Northside Hospital.

Volunteers from the American Heart Association’s Little Hats, Big Hearts project donated nearly 5,000 red hats to the Northside Hospital Auxiliary in Sandy Springs and Forsyth County.

Hats will be collected from now through Dec. 31, and volunteers are encouraged to visit www.heart.org/LittleHatsBigHearts for hat patterns and more information about the initiative.

The Little Hats, Big Hearts program raises awareness of heart disease, the No. 1 killer of Americans, and congenital heart defects, the most common type of birth defect in the country.

The American Heart Association is looking for hats in both newborn and preemie sizes made of yarn that is red, cotton or acrylic, medium to heavy weight, and machine washable and dryable. Donations of yarn are also accepted.

Marietta resident Jan Murphy, director of affiliate meeting management for the American Heart Association, led the Little Hats, Big Hearts project in Georgia. Murphy said her volunteers mailed her knitted and crocheted red hats from Alabama, Puerto Rico, Mississippi and the U.S. Virgin Islands after she made online requests, craft store flyers and word of mouth spread about the project.

Mail your hats and yarn donations can be sent to the same address. 

Jan Murphy
American Heart Association
1101 North Chase Parkway, Suite 1
Marietta, GA  30067 

If you have any questions, please contact Jan Murphy at (770) 354-6886 or jan.murphy@heart.org

For more information about Northside Hospital Auxiliary, visit NorthsideAtlAux.com or call 404-851-8707