Christ Church in Ossett to hold candle light ceremony to mark end of Baby Loss Awareness Week

The Wave of Light event at Christ Church South Ossett will take place at 7pm on Saturday October 15 to remember all babies that have died too soon.

Baby Loss Awareness Week runs from October 9 to 15 each year and is an awareness and support campaign around pregnancy and baby loss.

Now in its 20th year, the week is an opportunity to bring people who have experienced baby loss together as a community and to share their experiences.

Helen Berry, lay pastoral minister at Christ Church South Ossett, said: “Baby loss can often feel very isolating, and it can be very hard for people to talk about the death of a baby in pregnancy or shortly after birth.

"We want to give anyone in our community who has experienced this loss the opportunity to come and light a candle in memory of their baby, and to have time to reflect in a safe space.

“Bringing our pain to God is a very individual experience and coming face to face with the pain in our own communities can be raw and uncomfortable.

"We want to stand alongside people in their grief and our pastoral team will be there to provide support and prayer if people would like it.”

The ceremony is open to all people, whether the loss is recent or longer ago, or to people who are supporting others who have experienced baby loss. People of all faiths or none are invited to attend the observance.

Ruth Bender Atik, national director of the Wakefield-based charity Miscarriage Association, added: “Baby Loss Awareness Week provides a very special space for people from across communities and countries to join together to remember tiny lives lost far too soon.

"It is also a time for us to let people know whether they can find support for their losses, however long ago, and the Miscarriage Association – a UK-wide charity proudly based in Wakefield – is one such resource.”

Christ Church South Ossett is found at Vicar Lane, Ossett.

The charity is there to help anyone affected by miscarriage, ectopic pregnancy or molar pregnancy. For support or more information call Miscarriage Association on 01924 200799 or visit www.miscarriageassociation.org.uk.