The agency had said before the birth that it was "investing" in the family, and that it hoped to one day get paid by finding product endorsements that would also help the Tetricks meet the cost of raising the quads.
"I don't think people should judge without being in the position," Christina Tetrick said.
As both sets of parents await the day their children come home -- all the babies are expected to stay in the hospital for about a month -- each is dealing with the financial aftermath in different ways.
For the Headrick sextuplets, the hospital's Via Christi Foundation is handling donations to help the family. Among them are US$6,000 worth of breast milk, offers of baby care products for a year, car seats, diapers and six knitted blankets from a Wichita woman. About US$1,000 in unsolicited cash donations have arrived from around the world.
As for the Tetricks, the agency has secured a leased nine-passenger van and four car seats from a local car dealership. It's also working on a shopping spree for other items. A Wichita radio station has collected thousands of diapers and baby wipes.
The Tetricks also received a donation of storage for the babies' umbilical cord blood for the next 18 years from Cord Blood Banking of San Bruno, California. Cord blood is rich in stem cells, which could prove valuable if the babies ever developed cancer, leukemia or certain other diseases. The Tetricks also established a Quad Fund at a local bank.
In return for the van, Christina and Patrick have appeared in newspaper ads for the car dealership, which is mentioned on the quadruplets' Web page.
"The family needs privacy, but they also need help -- and there is a very fine line between them," Pierce said.
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