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Overview
This little hand-knitted newborn beanie represents a ground-breaking moment in New Zealand and international politics; the moment when Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern introduced her new baby to the world. Ardern was New Zealand's third female Prime Minister, and only the second Prime Minister internationally to give birth while in office.
Jacinda Ardern discovered she was pregnant just six days before she became Prime Minister-elect in October 2017. She gave birth to her first child on 21 June 2018 at 4:45pm at Auckland City Hospital. Her pregnancy and the baby’s arrival made headlines internationally.
Jacinda Ardern and her partner Clarke Gayford publicly introduced their baby, Neve te Aroha Gayford, to the world at a press conference on 24 June 2018. Neve was wearing this little handknitted hat. The Prime Minister recalls:
'Before Neve was born my midwife Libby brought around a collection of knitted hats and told me to pick one. This is the one I picked. In amongst all of the beautiful hand-knitted hats and beanies we were so kindly gifted, this simple green hat offered to us by a woman who was so generous to us and who was there when Neve arrived, seemed the perfect one to introduce our daughter to the world in.'
The beanie was one of a number of knitted hats donated to the neo natal intensive care unit and maternity service by a knitting group. Jacinda Ardern's pregancy gave rise to the #knitforJacinda movment. Started by a New Zealander living in the United States, the campaign has encouraged knitters to knit hat and cardigans for neo-natal units, maternity wards and women's shelters throughout the country.
Libby Cain, the PM’s midwife, joked that the green beanie would be great as the baby’s first fishing hat, and the PM liked the gender neutral colour.