Attendees are shown at a previous Community Baby Shower. The Marquette Community Baby Shower provides handmade and donated supplies to families with new children. (Photo courtesy of Barbie Durpas)

MARQUETTE – The Marquette Community Baby Shower will be hosting its annual event at Redeemer Lutheran Church Friday at 10:30 a.m.

The community baby shower is an event designed to support new parents by serving expecting couples and those with children six months and younger by providing them with supplies and information. This will be the 30th iteration of the event, which began in the 90s.

“Originally there were some nurses from the health department, or from organizations that were helping women who were expecting, and they were in great need of supplies for their babies,” said Barbie Dupras, event organizer. “They didn’t have any money and they didn’t have any resources or people to help them. And so they started a used baby item sale. That’s how it started. And it just blossomed. They just kept getting donations.

While the community baby shower originated as an event held indoors, the COVID-19 pandemic drew it outside, where it has remained since. Now the shower operates as a drive-through in the church parking lot, where parents stop at each designated booth for baby-related items or information.

“It’s like a parade,” said Dupras. “As much as I love the indoor one, because it’s more of a party kind of atmosphere, like a shower, the participants really enjoyed that they got to talk to everybody when we moved to the drive-through. When there’s a crowd with 150 people in the room, it’s hard to get to everybody.”

The baby shower has become not only a resource for parents, but also a place to introduce them to other community resources, showcasing the wide ranging support available for families in the county.

“All of the agencies and organizations in Marquette County that serve families with small children are there,” said Barbie Dupras, who listed the Marquette Health Department, WIC, Head Start, and the Children’s Museum as examples. “They hand you their pamphlet or their brochure about their organization and what they have to offer, and you get to ask a question or two.”

Apart from information, though, the community baby shower provides plenty of tangible support to new families in the form of baby clothes, diapers, bottles, and other vital supplies. These items come primarily from community donations.

“There are people who knit specifically just for the shower every year,” said Dupras. “RSVP, the retired senior volunteer program up in Ishpeming, knits 175 burp cloths for us every year.”

There are also larger items available, such as humidifiers, strollers and diaper genies, which are available in more limited quantities.

“We appreciate the community collaboration, the people who make it happen, because it will not happen without all of the donations that people bring us,” said Dupras.

The people behind Marquette Community Baby Shower work all year to prepare for the event.

“We shop year-round,” said Dupras. “We shop sales, we clip coupons. This shower isn’t sponsored by any organization. It’s sponsored by the entire community to support the tiniest citizens.”

The decades of work Dupras and other volunteers have put into the baby shower have not gone unnoticed – this year representatives from Houghton and Delta counties will be visiting the baby shower to learn about how to start their own community baby showers in their counties.

While the event’s official Facebook page states that the shower caps at 75 participating families, Dupras stressed that “we have enough to go around, we don’t want to turn anyone away.” With that in mind, she said that interested families will be able to reserve spots up until May 15th.

“It’s absolutely fun to have people excited for you to have your baby and be successful,” said Dupras. “And then the other thing is all of the resources! The mothers who come always say that they had no idea how many resources are in this community for them.”

For more information, visit the Community Baby Shower’s Facebook Page, or call Barbie Dupras at (906) 228-6522 ext. 253

Annie Lippert can be reached at 906-228-2500, ext. 542. Her email address is alippert@miningjournal.net.