The loss of a child is one of the most heart-wrenching experiences parents can endure. Across the country and around the world, people are coming together to support grieving families by sewing wedding gowns into beautiful infant burial dresses – known as angel gowns.
When a woman in Garden City, Michigan, lost her baby at 34 weeks, she turned to the community for help. She began a small but profoundly meaningful initiative that turns used wedding gowns into burial clothing for babies who don’t make it home from the hospital. Now, more than 7,000 angel gowns, blankets and headbands have been made, thanks to volunteers who have donated their time.
In the US alone, more than 626,000 babies die during stillbirth or miscarriage each year – that’s one every minute. The grieving process can be so long and so traumatic, and many families struggle to find comfort when their arms are left empty. The gowns are meant to provide a moment of peace and beauty, making the family feel like their baby is still present.
NICU Helping Hands, a non-profit in Akron, Ohio, is the first organization to offer this kind of service nationally. After a Facebook post last year asking for bridal dresses, NICU Helping Hands received about 40 that seamstresses repurposed into angel gowns and other burial attire for babies too early to come home. Now, the nonprofit has gowns from all over the world and is connecting with hospitals to distribute them.
Lisa Grubbs is the organization’s placement coordinator, helping grateful hospital staff connect with these wonderful seamstresses to place gowns in the hands of bereaved families. She’s also an advocate for the program, spreading the word about the impact of this beautiful work. Grubbs, who has a master’s in nonprofit management and worked in program evaluation for Goodwill EasterSeals, says that her experience with the dress donation inspired her to start a similar effort back home in Utah.
She reached out to a seamstress in a developing country, followed her on social media and learned about her life. She was able to make a connection and send the dress along with other angel gowns to the little girl, now in her late teens. The seamstress took photos of the girls in their gowns and sent them to the mother, who posted a touching video of the moment. The video went viral, and the mother is now a regular contributor to the nonprofit. In addition to her volunteer work, she’s a real estate agent and homeschools her three kids in Cradock, Utah.