October 15th, Pregnancy and Infant Loss Remembrance Day

Many of you know that October is Breast Cancer Awareness month (How can you miss all the pink?? I actually saw pink ribbon-shaped bagels being sold at Panera!) October is also the month set aside for a different kind of awareness. In a 1988 Presidential Proclamation, President Reagan officially made October Pregnancy and Infant Loss Awareness Month.

Each year, approximately a million pregnancies in the U.S. end in miscarriage, stillbirth or the death of the newborn child. National observance of Pregnancy and Infant Loss Awareness Month offers us the opportunity to increase our understanding of the great tragedy involved in the deaths of unborn and newborn babies. It also enables us to consider how, as individuals and communities, we can meet the needs of bereaved parents and family members on work to prevent causes of these problems.

The Congress, by Senate Joint Resolution 314, has designated the month of October, as "Pregnancy and Infant Loss Awareness Month" and authorized and requested the President to issue a proclamation in observance of this month.

NOW, THEREFORE, I RONALD REAGAN, President of the United States of America, do hereby proclaim the month of October as Pregnancy and Infant Loss Awareness Month. I call upon the people of the United States to observe this month with appropriate programs, ceremonies, and activities.

More recently, (on September 28, 2006), House Resolution # 222 was passed in the House of Representatives supporting the goals and ideals of Pregnancy and Infant Loss Remembrance Day.

Whereas each year, approximately one million pregnancies in the United States end in miscarriage, stillbirth, or the death of a newborn baby;

Whereas it is a great tragedy to lose the life of a child;


Whereas even the shortest lives are still valuable, and the grief of those who mourn the loss of these lives should not be trivialized;


Whereas during the past 3 years, Governors of all 50 States have signed proclamations designating October 15 as Pregnancy and Infant Loss Remembrance Day;


Whereas the observance of Pregnancy and Infant Loss Remembrance Day may provide validation to those who have suffered a loss through miscarriage, stillbirth, or other complications;


Whereas recognizing Pregnancy and Infant Loss Remembrance Day would enable the people of the United States to consider how, as individuals and communities, they can meet the needs of bereaved mothers, fathers, and family members, and work to prevent the causes of these deaths; and
Whereas October 15th of each year is an appropriate day to observe National Pregnancy and Infant Loss Remembrance Day:


Now, therefore, be it Resolved by the House of Representatives (the Senate concurring), That the Congress—


(1) supports the goals and ideals of National Pregnancy and Infant Loss remembrance Day; and
(2) requests that the President issue a proclamation calling upon the people of the United States to observe such day with appropriate programs and activities.

President Bush has also issued a letter to those observing this day. You can view it here: President Bush's Letter.


The goal of Pregnancy and Infant Loss Remembrance Day is to promote awareness and compassion for families who are grieving the loss of a child through miscarriage, ectopic pregnancy, stillbirth, and neonatal death, and to provide these families with a special day to remember their precious children. I think many women who have experienced this kind of loss feel theirs is a "silent grief", one that they are expected to "get over" much sooner than if they had lost an older child or a spouse, for example. So I see October 15th as being a day for this grief to be recognized and these children remembered as precious and valuable.

To read more about Pregnancy and Infant Loss Day, visit Remembering Our Babies and Pregnancy Loss Info.


"Because EVERY life, even the tiniest and shortest lived deserves to be acknowledged and remembered. The parents of these children never forget, we would just like one day of the year for everyone else to remember then too."

So today I remember my baby Matthias, and the other sweet babies I know who are in Heaven, and I thank God for their precious lives. Among all the joys of Heaven will be the joy of being reunited with these children.