Memorial Suggestions for Reproductive Loss
There are many ways for faith leaders to help a family memorialize their reproductive loss. These memorial practices can transform isolating loss into stories of grace, community, and shared sorrow.
Here are a few suggestions:
- Offer a memorial service for the family that was impacted by a pregnancy loss.
- Offer an annual memorial service for your whole congregation to memorialize any pregnancy loss. A good time to hold these services is in October for Pregnancy and Infant Loss Awareness Month, or specifically around October 15th which is Pregnancy and Infant Loss Remembrance Day.
- Provide funeral service options – private or public.
- Offer burial options – private or formal interment.
- Create a beautiful, tranquil area of remembrance.
- Plant a tree or a memorial garden.
- Display a memorial statue, or create a special place to honor the child on your grounds.
- Send sympathy cards to the family.
- Provide a memorial remembrance item, such as a candle, medal, or stone.