A warm and wonderful way to remember a friend gone too soon

Jenna Davidson has found a unique way to honour the memory of her late friend MacKayla-Rose Eaton and the young son she left behind.

Davidson has started the MacKayla-Rose Hat Campaign, asking people to knit or crochet hats for newborn babies and premature babies. Those hats are then being donated to various hospitals around the province.

"Even the smallest action can change and better a person's life," says Davidson, who now lives in North Bay but grew up near Guelph.

The effort is in memory of her longtime friend MacKayla-Rose Eaton, a Guelph woman who passed away on April 26 at the age of 22.

"We kind of grew up together. We were always close and we even have little boys close to the same age," says Davidson.

MacKayla-Rose was diagnosed with an enlarged heart when she was 12 and underwent a heart transplant at Sick Kids Hospital in 2007.

In August of 2015 she defied all odds and gave birth to her son Averi.

It's very rare for a heart transplant victim to have a child, due to complications caused by the anti-rejection drugs the person has to take.She was told she could never have a child.

Averi was 13 weeks premature and weighed 960 grams (2.1 pounds) at birth, spending his first two months in hospital.

In and out of hospital most of her life, MacKayla-Rose's battle came to an end suddenly in April.

"We kind of knew something was going to happen, but not this sudden," says MacKayla-Rose's ex-partner and Averi's father Cole Hepburn. Averi now lives with his dad.

"The project is great. The good part about it is that her legacy lives on. It will help Averi remember his mom."

Davidson was talking to MacKayla-Rose the day before she died.

"It devastated me," she says. "I didn't believe it. She fought through everything."

MacKayla-Rose, once again, inspired her.

"She was a very strong girl and will be forever my inspiration. She went through a hell of a lot and she never didn't have a smile on her face," Davidson says.

"I wanted to do something. I needed to do something for closure for myself but also something that I know she would have liked."

Davidson started the Dolly & Donald Project in memory of her late grandparents in 2016 after taking part in a charity crocheting project during her own maternity leave that saw her crochet over 100 hats that she donated to hospitals.

The MacKayla-Rose Hat Campaign is an extension of that, says Davidson, who got the blessing of MacKayla-Rose's mom before starting the project. So far Davidson alone has made 16 hats. Another 16 have been collected by a supporter in Sarnia.

All hats for babies and premature babies are accepted, any colour or pattern, although the hats should be made with 100 per cent acrylic yarn, no wool, says Davidson.

Crochet For Cancer in Burlington has also agreed to donate any baby hats they get in the month of May will be donated in MacKayla-Rose's name.

"Pretty much all of Ontario is covered, which is kind of cool," Davidson says.

A number of hospitals are accepting the hats so far, including McMaster Children's Hospital and London Hospital. Davidson is still waiting to hear back from Guelph General Hospital.

Addresses for where to send the hats, including a person in Guelph, to can be found at www.facebook.com/thedollydonaldproject/.

Davidson can be contacted at [email protected].