Alpha Phi Sorority Begins “Hug-A-Bear” Program for Heart Surgery Patients

An area sorority will provide some useful and cheerful tools for some people just out of surgery.

The women of the Alpha Phi Sorority at Texas Tech will be donating 200 Hug-A-Bears to the Lubbock Heart Hospital, to replace the traditional firm cough pillows for patients that undergo heart surgery.

Each open-heart surgery patient must cough following the procedure to keep the lungs clear of fluid. The patient must hug a firm pillow during coughs to keep the sternum from cracking open, and to relieve some pain.

Alpha Phi plans to donate the 200 firm Hug-A-Bears in honor of February being Heart Awareness Month.

Each bear will cost around $10 to produce, and more than $2,000 has been raised from Lubbock residents.

“By next October, I want to spread this idea to other Alpha Phi chapters around Texas, and then gain national attention from Alpha Phi chapters all over the country,” said Blake Wagner, founder of the Hug-a-Bear drive.

The bears will be distributed at the Lubbock Heart Hospital on February 3rd. For more on this program, visit the group's Facebook page here.