Some heroes show up in a hospital gown and gloves.

Twice a week, 73-year-old Dave Whitlow walks into the neonatal intensive care unit at Children’s Hospital of Richmond at VCU to comfort premature and critically ill babies.

For the past eight years, Whitlow has served as a volunteer cuddler, spending Tuesdays and Thursdays holding babies in the NICU.

“It’s the best gig I’ve ever had. It just feels right,” Whitlow said.

During a typical visit, he holds five or six infants. On especially busy days, he may hold as many as eight babies, some weighing less than 0.9 kilograms.

Whitlow starts each visit by putting on a gown and gloves before entering the unit. He also leaves his phone outside.

“I pretty much just want to be with them,” he said.

Before picking up each baby, Whitlow checks with nurses about the child’s condition and any special care instructions.

“I ask the nurse, ‘Tell me. Tell me what this child is receiving. What kind of treatment? Is there anything special I need to know about it,'” he said.

Once a baby is resting against his chest, Whitlow watches the monitors closely.

“I watch the monitors first to see whether positionally there’s anything to do to improve,” he said. “His sats are at 100 percent, so that’s what we’re looking for.”

Before retiring, Whitlow spent more than 40 years as a local government manager. He is also the father of two and grandfather of three.

Today, he said the NICU has become a place where healing reaches beyond medicine.

“The support and spiritual needs of the family and the staff, and so it all kind of gets tied together here,” he said.

Before returning each baby to their bed, Whitlow quietly shares the same message.

“Grow strong, grow smart, grow kind.”

“It’s important to me to think that this is what I want from people in general,” Whitlow said.

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