Baby remembrance services in Eastbourne

They are at St Michael & All Angels Church in Willingdon Road and Our Lady of Ransom Church, 2-4 Grange Road. Both will be held at 6.45pm.

There will be tea, coffee and biscuits available afterwards and an opportunity to talk to a chaplain and a representative from the Local Sands (Stillbirth and Neonatal Death Society) group.

The services are a simple act of remembrance and will include the global ‘Wave of Light’ at 7pm. The Wave of Light is an opportunity to join with bereaved parents, families and friends around the globe to commemorate all babies who sadly died too soon.

To join the global ‘Wave of Light’, people can simply light a candle at 7pm local time on October 15 and leave it burning for at least one hour. This can be done individually or in a group, at home or in a communal space. Wherever people do this, they will be joining a global ‘Wave of Light’ in memory of all the babies who lit up lives for such a short time.

Reverend Dennis Nolan, hospital chaplain at Eastbourne DGH said, “Many of those who have lost a baby or suffered a miscarriage experience grief for many years afterwards. This act of remembrance is a way of sharing that grief with relatives, friends and those who have suffered a similar experience. At these services in the past we have met people who have attended these services many years, sometimes decades, after suffering their loss. It shows how enduring such losses can be and we hope it can help them to move forward in the process of grieving.”

The Baby remembrance services are part of the annual Baby Loss Awareness Week. It’s an opportunity for parents, their families and friends to acknowledge and remember their precious babies who have died. It is led by the stillbirth and neonatal death charity (Sands) in collaboration with over 60 charities in the UK.