Rusty Rae/News-Register##Dave Stevens, founder of BC Harleys drag racing group, rolls up to the hospital with other members of the organization Friday afternoon. The riders roared through downtown McMinnville on their way to deliver Christmas gifts.

Rusty Rae/News-Register##Santa (Scott Johnson) and Mrs. Claus (Donna Lowe) arrive at Willamette Valley Medical Center bearing gifts from the BC Harleys group.

Rusty Rae/News-Register##Jennifer Von Derahe, director of the Women’s Clinic at Willamette Valley Medical Center, demonstrates how the Caring Cradle can be used to give grieving parents more time with their babies. BC Harleys raised $2,950 so the hospital could have the special piece of equipment.

Special Delivery: BC Harleys group rolls Christmas joy into hospital

Members of the BC Harleys drag-racing group roared up to the Willamette Valley Medical Center wearing Santa hats, their parade accompanied by the lights from McMinnville Police Department and Yamhill County Sheriff’s Office escorts.

Santa, Mrs. Claus and a grinning Grinch were part of the entourage. Their “sleigh” was loaded with toys and stuffed animals the group had collected to give to the hospital for distribution to youngsters, including children in the emergency room and families in the birthing center.

This was the second year the Harley riders have delivered Christmas gifts. Last year, BC Harleys founders Dave Stevens and Judy Meierotto and the rest of the riders promised they would be back.

The group also held a motorcycle show at the hospital in June for staff, patients and guests.

This year, BC Harleys not only brought toys, but also a key piece of equipment designed to provide comfort to grieving parents, a Caring Cradle, also called a Cuddle Cot.

Not every pregnancy ends happily; some babies don’t make it, said Jennifer Von Derahe, director of the Women’s Health Clinic at WVMC.

The Caring Cradle allows more time with a lost infant, time to cuddle them, cry and begin the grieving process, Von Derahe said.

While it looks like other simple cradles, it contains a cooling mechanism beneath the soft mattress that preserves the body long enough for the parents to say goodbye. Von Derahe called it “a preservation of time” in a heartbreaking situation.

The first family that used the cot “couldn’t stop talking about how grateful they are,” Von Derahe said. “This makes the hard a little softer. It gives people a chance to grieve.”

She continued, “to cuddle a little longer … that’s everything.”

BC Harleys raised $2,950 to pay for the cost of the Caring Cradle, Stevens said. That made it possible for the hospital to purchase the device, Von Derahe said.
She teared up as she thanked the motorcycle group. “You encourage in a way that’s for good,” she said.