Parents of Still Born Baby Donate Cots In Lower Merion

WYNNEWOOD, PA -- Theodore Jude Clement was still born on November 21, 2015. Now his parents are making a donation in his memory.

A ceremony will take place on Saturday, June 11 at 10 a.m., when his parents, Beth and Chris Clement, will donate four Cuddle Cots to the Maternity Units of each Main Line Health acute care Hospital in memory of their late child during a ceremony at Lankenau Medical Center.

In partnership with Stories of Babies Born Still (SOBBS), the Clement family was able to raise funds for the Cuddle Cots, devices about the size of a humidifier disguised inside of a Moses basket that help to slow down the body’s natural decomposition process, giving families of stillborn babies the ability to spend more time with their baby, Main Line Health said.

The Clements will present the Cuddle Cots, in addition to a memorial plaque in remembrance of their son, during a ceremony at Lankenau Medical Center, officials said.

The donation of the Cuddle Cots is being made through SOBBS, whose mission is to have a Cuddle Cot in every hospital in the United States, allowing families more quality time with their child, according to Main Line Health's news release on the ceremoy.

The hospital noted that about one in every 160 pregnancies in the U.S. ends in a stillbirth, and about 200 of the nearly 5,700 hospitals in the U.S. offer Cuddle Cots. Officials noted the importance of the gift:

This gift of time that the Cuddle Cots allow offers precious hours for bonding and for other family members to come and meet the baby. In addition, the baby can now stay in the room with the family the entire hospital stay if the family chooses. While Cuddle Cots may not be the option for every family, they do offer families the choice to spend more time with their child.

Lankenau Medical Center is located on 100 E. Lancaster Avenue in Wynnewood.