Share this:
Thursday, 15th October is International Baby Loss Awareness Day. Across the world people whose lives have been touched by the loss of a baby during pregnancy or just after birth, will be attending memorial services, balloon releases and candle lighting in remembrance of those children who never had the chance to grow up.
In Australia, the Australian Community of Child Photographers (ACOCP), a non-profit organisation that gives the gift of photographic memories to families who have lost a child, is urging people to recognise the many families that go through the tragic loss of a young child, rather than risk isolating them by neglecting to acknowledge their loss.
ACOCP was founded by Melbourne photographyer Jessie Broome and former NICU Nurse Siobhan Cowell in 2006. The organisation is an entirely not-for-profit Australian organisation that gives the gift of photographic memories to families who have had a stillbirth, premature baby, infant in the NICU or child with a serious or terminal illnesses.
President and co-founder of ACOCP, Jessie Broome, told Australian Women Online that International Baby Loss Awareness Day is a good way for parents to remember their children and for the rest of the community to help honour all these children.
“The grief that follows the loss of a child is so engulfing but it can also be very isolating. We encourage people to take the time to honour this grief; to realise that by avoiding the subject does not make it go away and by simply acknowledging the child can help the family immensely,” said the mother of four.
ACOCP has more than 120 participating photographers in every state of Australia who donate their time. The service is provided entirely free to parents – there are no charges for the photography, prints, presentation, packaging or delivery.
ACOCP survives on donations and membership contributions. “But it’s a low cost organisation to run,” said Jessie. “Photographers donate their time and we don’t spend a lot of money on anything and Hospitals refer us to families.”
Participating photographers – some of whom have previously experienced their own loss – are on call 24/7 to go to hospitals or homes and are often present during the families’ most tragic hours. To cope with the emotional demands placed on them, photographers are provided with training and are debriefed by a psychologist.
“It is hard but I think a lot of our members just see the rewards and are just so grateful for the opportunity to help. When someone loses a child, you don’t know what to do or what to say. So I guess from our point of view, we know that at least we can do this one thing and we do this one thing really well. We might not know exactly what to say or what else we can do to help, but we can give these families a lifetime of memories.”
In June of this year ACOCP held their first exhibition in Sydney. The Heartfelt Exhibition featured the best of 153 pictures submitted by proud ACOCP photographers with the blessings of the children’s families. “We had parents flying in from all over Australia to come and see their children’s stories told.”
“We get the most amazing, positive feedback from all the families. Some of the families are probably our biggest spokespersons. One of the mums, Dawn Johnson, she always puts her hand up to be interviewed about our service,” said Jessie Broome.
Tomorrow, all members of ACOCP will be blogging and twittering about International Baby Loss Awareness Day and what people can do to help parents who have lost a child.
“We will be focussing on how the community can help these families who have lost children. Listening is the key. Parents often want to tell you the stories of their children. You don’t have to say much. Alternatively, some people find practical measures easier, such as helping out with cooking meals, child care services or housework.”
For more information about the Australian Community of Child Photographers (ACOCP) visit the website www.acocp.org.au
Inspired by Pregnancy & Infant Loss Remembrance Day in the United States, International Baby Loss Awareness Day was started in 2002 by a group of parents in the United Kingdom. For more information visit the website www.babyloss-awareness.org