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BC Hearts Matter - The Heart Pillow Project

Sewing Heart Pillows for Women Diagnosed with Breast Cancer

HIWC Members sew heart pillows and knit and crochet knitted hats, scarves & socks for women with cancer diagnoses and being treated at the NCT (National Center for Tumor Diseases) Heidelberg.

Heart pillows are used by women who have had mastectomies. One of our members says...

“I got such a pillow myself, at NCT, 5 years ago! […] that pillow really helped me! After the surgery it was so helpful for the pains, but especially during the radiation!!! This is really a project that makes a change! And unfortunately, it is true that there are not enough! […] We want to make as many heart pillows as possible this fall to donate to the NCT.“ - Maria João Barros Weiss, HIWC Member

Heart pillows and other handmade items

We Need Your Support—How can you help?

Donate money or materials

We need the following materials to make the heart pillows:

Fabric: Bright, cheerful cotton/fleece/wool/flannel
Polyfil/fiber fill stuffing (e.g. pellon cluster fill)
Thread, needles, scissors
Sewing machine to borrow during one-day craft bash sessions

Or we're happy to get cash donations via bank transfer so we can get these materials. About €15 makes 2 heart pillows; €50 makes 7 heart pillows.

Make a bank transfer to our Club account with the following details:

Account Name: Heidelberg International Women’s Club e.V.
Bank Name: Heidelberger Volksbank
IBAN: DE08 6729 0000 0149 6548 52
BIC: GENODE61HD1
Memo (Verwendungszweck): BC Hearts Matter

THANK YOU!

Sew, stuff, or support making the heart pillows

We'd love to have lots of women making heart pillows on their own, or contributing to an upcoming one-day craft bash. If you'd like to sew, cut, iron, stitch or generally be involved...

Join the HIWC! Learn more about membership and become a member today.

During the one-day craft bash, we need the following support:

Do you have an ironing board and iron that you could bring?
Could you help set up tables?
Could you help cut out the pattern?
Could you help fill the heart cushions with filling?
Could you hand sew them closed?
Could you help wrap the cushions?
Could you write notes wishing the patients well?

It's meaningful work, plus we're a fun, social club. So join and start making a difference with us.

Project Goals & Updates

Our goal is to donate as many heart pillows and other handmade items to the NCT towards the end of 2021. With our monthly Stitch 'n' Bitch activity and individual members sewing on their own, we're making awesome progress with over 70 pillows done or ready to be stuffed.

For any and all questions or to find out where to drop off material donations, please contact Charities Coordinator Ulrike Näumann at charities@heidelbergiwc.org.

We're making things happen with our local partners!

Shop online with purpose by starting your Amazon shopping at smile.amazon.de. Choose Heidelberg International Womens Club e.V. as your organization of choice and show us some love!

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