Retirees donate crafted hearts to parents and children separating for the first time at Kialla Children’s Centre

A pair of crafted hearts are given to new families so the parent and child can each hold something that reminds them of the other, no matter where they are during the day.

The hearts are a mix of sewn, crocheted and knitted, featuring a variety of colours and patterns.

Ms Galea said it was “a privilege to be trusted with these children”.

She said while she was lucky to have her two boys with her at work, being a parent had given her perspective on how it felt to leave your child.

Ms Galea said the centre staff knew parents were “sitting at work worrying”.

“We encourage them to call as many times as they need,” she said.

Childcare worker Kim Largo said the parents were really appreciative of the hearts and felt like they were taking their child with them.

The retirees in the Shepparton Retirement Village Crafting Group began making the hearts in December 2025, after Ms Galea spoke to her grandmother, Dianne Hutchins, who is a member.

The crafting group regularly donates handmade clothes and toys to young children in hospice care and mothers who have lost their babies.

Ms Galea helped the crafting group find patterns to follow, as a heart can be a difficult shape to make, and said she had “all sorts of shapes coming my way”.

Kialla Children’s Centre invited the crafting group to visit for morning tea on February 25, which Ms Galea said was to thank the volunteers and “bring two groups together and watch on as relationships flourish”.

The crafters enjoyed a spread of cakes and biscuits with their tea and coffee.

Ms Hutchins was able to visit her great-grandsons and said the centre was “a wonderful set-up”.

Fellow crafter Josie Anderson said she loved visiting the children because her own grandchildren lived too far away.