Book Bags for Babies encourages reading to infants

St. Luke physician, Sharla Hart, MD, and Delta Kappa Gamma member Billee Collins look on as St. Luke Child Birth Educator, Linda Cox, RN, reads one of the books available in the Book Bag program. (courtesy photo)

RONAN - New mothers at St. Luke Community Hospital will have an early start on reading to their newborns thanks to the Upsilon Chapter of the Delta Kappa Gamma Society International of Polson. For the tenth year, the honorary society has hand-stitched book bags for new babies at the two hospitals in Lake County and filled them with primary books so that mom will have something to read to their child.

"It's never too early to begin reading to a child, because even before children have a language for reference, they enjoy the sound of a loving, caring voice talking to or reading to them," according to Lori McCurdy, the Upsilon Chapter president.

Two years ago, Marsha Anson, outreach coordinator for the Polson School District, developed a DVD video designed to encourage parents to read to their child.

Billee Collins, an Upsilon member who has been involved in the project from the very beginning, says that through the support of the Polson school district those DVDs go to the babies born at St. Joseph Medical Center in Polson.

The forty-three member honorary society is made up of women who are or have been involved in education, including school nurses, librarians and anyone involved in the teaching profession. The local chapter has put together nearly a thousand bags of children's books for new mothers who have delivered in both hospitals in Lake County over the past ten years.

Collins says the goal of the project is to encourage mothers to begin reading to their babies now and to make it a daily practice. From there, the child will be encouraged to read on its own.

"And, the more a child reads, the more proficient the child becomes which translates into better school performance," according to Collins.

Delta Kappa Gamma Society International of Polson expresses thanks to Steve Lozar of Total Screen Design of Polson for donating the silk-screening on the front of the bags that are hand-sewn from scratch by society members. Collins adds that Wal-Mart of Polson gives the group a "huge discount" on material for the bags.

Anyone who would like to help the chapter with new or what they call "friendly, used" books is encouraged to do so.

St. Luke delivered 170 babies in 2007, eighteen more than a year earlier. St. Joseph Medical Center had 156 deliveries in 2007. Combined, the two hospitals in Lake County welcomed 326 babies, which is one more than in 2006.