We are so sorry you have suffered the loss of your baby. To help you with this heartbreaking loss, HAND provides empathetic peer support and information about pregnancy loss and infant death. Bereaved parents often find solace in talking with others who’ve experienced similar losses and truly understand the complexity and depth of grief that comes with the loss of a child.
HAND offers:
- In-person and virtual grief support group meetings for parents who are grieving a pregnancy or infant loss.
- Specialized virtual support groups:
- Early Pregnancy Loss
- Parenting After Loss
- Subsequent Pregnancy
- One-on-one peer support from a HAND volunteer via phone and/or email.
- Information and resources for bereaved parents and professionals.
- Presentations and bereavement care sensitivity training for healthcare providers.
- Annual Service of Remembrance, creative workshops and other events to help parents process grief and cherish their babies.
- Helping Hands quarterly newsletter. We distribute our Helping Hands quarterly newsletter to parents, hospitals and health care providers, and you can also subscribe.
- Limited financial assistance to help eligible families with funeral expenses.
- Volunteer opportunities where parents can honor their losses while helping other bereaved families.
HAND volunteers are not professional therapists, but may offer referrals to licensed psychotherapists.
HAND Service of Remembrance
Each October, during National Pregnancy Infant Loss Awareness Month, HAND of the Bay Area hosts a Service of Remembrance for parents, families and friends who are or have been involved with HAND. All are welcome to join us in honoring and remembering babies we have lost. Before the event we encourage you to submit photos, poems, drawings, stories and your baby’s name or nickname, which will be read during the program. You’ll hear beautiful, reflective music performed and breakfast beverages and snacks will be served. We also provide wildflower seeds to scatter after the formal part of the service, and sometimes do a butterfly release. It’s always a special time spent together with all those in the HAND family.