Mamie's Poppy Plates - 7 Years of Growth

In 2010 when Sarah and I hatched the plan of MPP, our goal was to provide plates for grieving families who experienced stillbirth and early infant loss at St. Vincent Little Rock. Little did we know, God had a much larger plan for us!

Shortly after we set our original goal we raised enough funding to cover all hospitals in Little Rock. So, in 2011 we partnered with Baptist Little Rock, UAMS, Baptist Springhill and Arkansas Children’s Hospital. I remember chatting with the social workers at ACH about our program. The question came up, “At what age do you cut off who receives a plate?” Sarah and I looked at each other and my heart felt like it might explode. We both knew what the other one was thinking. We answered together, “Give them to all families who lose a child here.” As Sarah and I walked out of that meeting we both shared with each other how excited we were to be able to do this even though it was outside of our original mission. It just felt right… We knew God was leading us and He would provide.

He has done just that over the 6 years since! Shortly afterward our board made the decision that MPP would serve all families who experienced loss at any additional children’s hospital that we formed a partnership with. Over the years as we have picked up LeBonheur Children’s Hospital in Memphis, OSF St Francis Medical Center/Children's Hospital of Illinois- Peoria, SSM Health Cardinal-Glennon Children's Hospital - St. Louis, and most recently National Children’s in Washington D.C. we have continued to grow outside of our original mission by providing plates for bereaved families of any child in these hospitals.

2012 was the inception of our Adopt a Hospital Program. Our first hospital adoptees were friends who had recently lost their 3 month old baby boy to SMA. They started the Miller McNiel Woodruff Foundation in memory of him and immediately funded Arkansas Children’s Hospital through Mamie’s. Once we let the community know about the Adopt a Hospital Program, it took off and many wanted to do this in memory of their child. Now we have 45 of our 47 hospitals adopted by families or businesses providing for additional growth!

For the first few years here at MPP we reacted to the explosive growth we were experiencing. It was massive and Sarah and I were doing most everything with the help of our board! We were coordinating painters, inputting orders, contacting hospitals regularly, quality control, glazing and firing plates, applying prints, packaging and shipping. Occasionally we would even paint solid rims or polka dots when the painters would get behind, not to mention the press and social media… And the race! We realized we hit such a nerve in the community and we had to pace ourselves. Thankfully we had a working board who helped with the back office, however, the explosive growth was crazy and we knew we couldn’t sustain that pace for long.

One day while Sarah and I were working at the office God placed it on our hearts to open up to the many mother’s who had asked how they could help. The next month started our monthly volunteer night in the summer of 2013. It has been a place of service, prayer, comfort, healing, support and deep friendships.

Over the next year we had more gifts! Through mutual friends we connected with Lynette Rivera, a very talented painter and bereaved mother who started working on our plates. She took ownership of her responsibilities and more and had such a heart for Mamie’s that we later hired her to be our Art Director. Lynette continues to coordinate painters and paint alongside them while keeping supplies in place and painting all of the awards for our annual Race to Remember. In the summer of 2014 Lynette introduced us to a friend of hers as a new volunteer. Kris Halpin started helping glaze plates and run the kiln along with serving at volunteer night regularly. During this time we were able to set our sights to expanding our reach to the remainder of the state of Arkansas. Over the next year we were able to accomplish the majority of this goal bringing our hospital total from 11 hospitals to 24 in 2014 and now to 47 in 2017. This has come as no easy task and we are grateful for the many hearts and minds that now pour into the MPP mission.

We are now in a place of looking outward again. We have systems in place and people to support the growth. Since we have partnered with all willing hospitals in the state of Arkansas and a few in 7 other states totaling 47 to date, we are setting our sights on new growth. Our goals for the next 5 years are to continue to renew our adopted hospitals while partnering with hospitals in our region (TX, LA, TN, OK, MO, MS). $40 funds one plate and every penny goes into the raw plate cost. Our overall goal is to provide plates to all families who experience loss in the United States. We have no idea how long that will take us, so putting a timeline on it seems a little unrealistic. However, we will continue to step forward prayerfully and follow God’s lead and we know He will provide. It is a labor of love!

#mamiespoppyplates #breakingthesilence #stillbirth