DANVILLE – Three Lakeview College of Nursing students this weekend will host a unique baby shower, where the guests of honor will receive more than just baby gifts.

The expectant parents will also get information on prenatal and infant care and local resources for them and their children.

"We want the women who participate to feel empowered to have healthy pregnancies and healthy babies," said Kate Kinney, who is organizing the community baby shower for low-income pregnant women along with Carolina King and Heather Rice.

"I'm realizing that it's not always easy, and I've got a great support system," added King, who is seven months pregnant. "We want to make them feel special and celebrated and feel good about the baby that's coming. Hopefully having this information and knowing how they can access resources will help them feel this way."

The community shower will be held from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Saturday at the Fair Oaks Community Center in Danville. So far, 20 public housing complex residents and nine Danville High School students have pre-registered, and there's room for more.

"We want to reach as many in the community who could use this information – and have some fun that they might not otherwise have," Kinney said.

The shower is the students' "legacy project" for their senior seminar course, the capstone course of Lakeview's nursing program and a graduation requirement.

"Nursing is a community service," said Dean Sara Wheeler, who teaches the course. "The project is a way for them to take a lot of the information they've learned, and serve the college or the community. Hopefully, it's something that can be continued."

This year, Wheeler said, 28 students in Danville, who are working in groups, are collecting gifts for Toys for Tots and supplies for soldiers in Iraq and Afghanistan.

One group is expanding a support group for male nursing students, and another is offering a "boot camp" for students preparing for a comprehensive exam that's a predictor for how they'll do on their state boards.

The community shower is a new and much-needed idea, said Wheeler, who's from Indiana and has been involved in a similar event in Fountain County sponsored by the local community action agency. In April, Kinney and Rice participated in that shower as part of their obstetrics clinical, providing medical information to parents.

"We thought this was something Danville needed," Kinney said.

Kinney was pleased with the support from local agencies – including Crosspoint Human Services, the Center for Children's Services and the Vermilion County Health Department – and $1,000-plus in gifts and donations from businesses, churches and individuals.

Kinney said obstetrics students also will provide guests with information on topics such as breast feeding, false labor, infant safety, newborn jaundice, SIDS and the importance of avoiding smoking and using drugs.

Once guests visit all of the educational stations, their names will go into a drawing for prizes such as a highchair, playpen, baby equipment, gift baskets and pajamas and school supplies for older children.

Fair Oaks residents are eager for the event, said Tamera Forthenberry, the Danville Housing Authority's director of family services. "We have a lot of activities for children, and our adult residents have been asking for some events. All of the information they provide, from prenatal care to the developmental stages of children, will be very helpful to them."

Guests will be treated to lunch and cake, plus they will receive a package of diapers and baby wipes, shampoo and a bottle.

"It's definitely been a lot more work than we anticipated, but it's also been a lot of fun," Kinney said. "And we've gained a lot of knowledge that we can take with us into our careers. As nurses, you're always trying to promote health in the community through education. You don't want to see illness. You want to help people take steps to be healthy, and you do that through education."