January 21, 2020
Strawberry Shortcake is just one of the colorful flannel patterns used by quilter Erin Kyle to create special G-tube buttons.
Story by Diana Rinne | Photos by Jennifer Mickanuik
BEAVERLODGE — Sometimes the tiniest of things make the biggest difference.
This thought struck homecare nurse Jennifer Mickanuik this past fall while working with a family at Horse Lake First Nation.
Based in Beaverlodge, the Alberta Health Services (AHS) employee has been working with three-year-old Arizona and her family at Horse Lake First Nation, west of Beaverlodge, for the past two years.
Arizona lives with a rare congenital disorder called CHARGE syndrome, which involves extensive medical and physical difficulties from life-threatening birth defects to vision loss as well as swallowing and breathing problems.
To help Arizona gain weight in order to undergo surgery for a heart defect, a G-tube (gastrostomy tube) was placed in her belly to ensure she receives the nutrition she needs — and Mickanuik says she’s been doing better.
The procedure was performed in Edmonton, and when Arizona’s family left hospital, they were given a G-tube button made of flannel to protect the toddler’s skin around the tube site.
“Unfortunately, between coming back from Edmonton, Mom having a new baby and moving into a different home — the small G-tube button was lost,” says Mickanuik.
Knowing how useful the G-tube buttons are, she looked into getting replacements for the family. She did find some online, but there were expensive.
After mulling it over, Mickanuik called Erin Kyle, owner of the Around the Block quilting shop in Beaverlodge, to see if she could help.
“I went home that night, found a pattern on Pinterest, grabbed some flannel and it worked,” says Kyle.
While the G-tube buttons aren’t difficult to craft, it’s intricate work due to their wee size.
“I love heartwarming projects like this,” Kyle adds. “For me, I had a cousin who had a child who had a G-tube, so I know how needed they are.”
Kyle made about 20 G-tube buttons for Arizona, and has continued to make more, putting the call out to a local quilting group that’s expressed interest in becoming involved as well.
When Mickanuik saw the G-tube buttons Kyle had created, she says she felt overwhelmed.
“I just started to cry, they were so beautiful,” she says. “The colours and the patterns … they were bright and they were soft.”
When Mickanuik brought them out to the family on her next home visit, she subtly laid them out on the bed next to Arizona where mom Trina would notice.
“Her eyes just got huge and she says ‘Are those all for us?’” says Mickanuik. “She was so grateful.”
For Mickanuik, mom’s reaction says it all.
“It’s just a little piece of flannel, but it’s made an impact for this family,” she says.
“I can’t even put into words and can’t measure how much this little act made such a difference for this family. Kindness really counts.”
