Global charity The Mariposa Trust is hosting a ‘Saying Goodbye’ service of remembrance at King’s Lynn Minster to give those who have lost a baby through miscarriage, stillbirth and early years loss the opportunity to find healing and solace.
On Saturday, June 17 at 2pm a ‘Saying Goodbye’ service will be taking place at Kings Lynn Minster. This is the 87th service that The Mariposa Trust has held since September 2012.
Zoe Clark-Coates who founded and runs The Mariposa Trust with husband Andy commented: “The experience of baby loss affects people deeply, often impacting key areas of their life, including health, relationships and work. People often feel isolated, and due to the taboo nature of loss, their pain and grief is seldom discussed or properly acknowledged.
“The Saying Goodbye services give people the opportunity to publicly remember and commemorate their losses, which is often the first time they have been able to do so.”
The services are held in cathedrals and similar venues across the country and world and are open to anyone of any faith or no faith, and free to attend. Individuals and couples who have been through loss are welcome as are extended family, friends and children.
The services are uplifting and moving filled with music, poems, acts of remembrance and more have been attended by countless thousands of people, who have found healing and solace by attending.
When parents go through the devastating loss of a baby, whether during pregnancy, at birth or in infancy, they often feel isolated and unable to process the overwhelming grief and trauma that miscarriage, stillbirth, neonatal and early years loss brings. What most do not realise is that they are not alone and sadly around 700 other parents will go through the same loss each day in the UK.
One of the many attendees said this about her experience of attending a service: “The Saying Goodbye service gave me the time and space to formally recognise all of my babies and the experience of being with people who just knew how it felt was a real strength. The loss of a baby by miscarriage is never formally recognised by ceremony – no funeral service is held, no date is noted, no names are recorded.
“As I stood with other parents and proudly rang the bell for my 14 babies, I felt unbearable sadness but also a great privilege in being able to properly celebrate their existence. For the first time ever I felt my tears of grief, loss and love were allowed, shared and understood.”
Ths following shows a film about the work of the charity:
Full information on the work of the Saying Goodbye division, including the services, support and resources available, can be found at www.sayinggoodbye.org, whilst further information on the charity can be found at www.mariposatrust.org.
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