Halloween isn’t spooky, but it sure is sweet in the neonatal intensive care unit. A team effort ensures families have special memories of their babies’ first holiday.

It started with a tiny blue onesie. Bit by bit, nurses pulled other materials out of their supply bins – purple felt, shiny fabric, glue – to build the cutest Rainbow Fish costume for one of their tiny patients. 

They hadn’t even turned the calendar page to October yet, and they didn’t know who would be under their care come Halloween, but they were going to great lengths to make sure the holiday would be a special one.

The NICU team has been creating Halloween costumes since 2018. Katelyn Eutsler, RNC, NIC, took the lead in 2020 and has been gathering crafty colleagues to make memories for families ever since.

“I was up so late that first year making pumpkins to be sure we had enough,” remembered Katelyn, thinking of how far the operation has come.

Costume themes have evolved from pumpkins and monsters to food and, this year, story books – hence Rainbow Fish. The Tin Man, Corduroy and 101 Dalmatians are also among the batch ranging from newer book characters to old classics.

Each year, the number of costumes has grown along with the demand for care in the CHoR NICU, but so has the group of people who give of their time as the holiday approaches. 

With the second NICU that opened in January, the costume quantity took a significant jump this year. Their goal was to make a minimum of 70 to ensure they’d have sizes and styles to fit every infant.

Camaraderie, care and a whole lot of cuteness

The evening the Rainbow Fish costume and many others were made, nearly 15 CHoR NICU nurses gathered at the home of one of their colleagues, Emily Ott, NP. Some brought their children; most came with snacks to share. They exchanged ideas and laughs as the fall breeze blew through the screened porch. 

The costume making is still a labor of love, but it’s become so much more: A community of colleagues who are committed to caring for more than their patients’ medical needs.

“A lot of NICU experiences are more somber – family meetings, test results, treatments. Holidays allow for things to be a bit lighter and more fun,” said Danielle Cebrian, a nurse who’s been part of the costume-making process for several years. “The parents’ thoughts of their babies’ firsts were probably not in an ICU setting.”

The tried-and-true costume makers started recruiting others to join them months ago.

“They asked who would be interested, and it took no convincing at all,” said Delaney Lambiotte, who’s marking her first Halloween on the NICU team. “I love crafts and this is just so fun.”

“With this being our first year with the new unit, it was a little overwhelming to think about the number of costumes we would need. But people really came together and pitched in. It’s amazing,” said Katelyn, gratefully.

One bin of supplies has multiplied to four. Unused fabric and accessories are saved from year to year. The nurses buy some new supplies and generous groups such as the Junior Board donate others.

“We always have to make sure we have the right color felt,” Katelyn laughed.

Then there’s the sweat equity. The Junior Board, Senior Board, church small groups and a couple of the nurses’ moms made about half of this year’s costumes. Sororities have helped in the past and it’s become almost a rite of passage for the nurses’ children to join the ranks. Nurse Genevieve Tehovnik’s 11-year-old daughter, Madison, was one of the first to sit at the picnic table and start working on Fancy Nancy.

Making sure NICU families aren’t missing out

Dress-up day is also a collaborative affair. Nurses came in on their day off for the several-hour process.

“We come in just for this. We start in one room, get the baby ready, get pictures and then move to the next,” said Danielle. “We’ve determined the more the merrier when it comes to helping. Our goal is not to make the nurse on duty’s job any harder.”

Big siblings are always important in the NICU, so it was imperative that they got in on the fun too. While the babies were in the limelight, brothers and sisters trick-or-treated for candy, coloring books and other goodies.

With this year’s costume-making festivities in the books, it won’t be long before there’s talk of next year’s theme. But first, the team will turn their attention to creating Christmas and Hanukkah hats, snowman scenes and other celebrations for the families who will soon be counting on care in the CHoR NICU. 

“The whole point is to make sure no one feels like they’re missing out on their baby’s firsts,” said Katelyn of the why behind it all. “You never get those firsts back.”

This story is part of a VCU Health News series called “At the Heart of Health,” which spotlights VCU Health and VCU team members whose passions outside of the workplace inspire and support the community.