OUR STORY
Who We Are
Empty Cradle is a peer support group for parents who have experienced the loss of their baby due to miscarriage, stillbirth, TFMR, infant death, SIDS or SUID. Our goal is to offer bereaved families support via a resource parent network, through monthly meetings, written materials and partnership with the health care community. For information about our monthly meetings please visit our Support Meetings.
The death of a baby is one of life's most devastating experiences. It leaves parents feeling shocked, disoriented and heartbroken. This grief reaction is a powerful and complex emotional response to the loss of a beloved child. Often, the friends and family of the bereaved parent may have difficulty understanding the depth of the sorrow or the length of time needed to deal with the pain. For this reason, grieving can be very lonely.
There are other parents, however, who have faced a similar sorrow. Assisting families through the normal grieving process is why Empty Cradle exists. Through sharing, reading, and listening, the newly bereaved come to understand that their feelings are natural, thus giving them a sense of direction and hope. The grief then begins to ease, allowing healing to begin.
Empty Cradle volunteers are not professional counselors, although we do count professionals among our numbers, we are comprised entirely of bereaved parents, all of whom choose to volunteer with the hope of helping others who also grieve.
Our History & Mission
Empty Cradle is a nonprofit support group for San Diego and Riverside County area parents who have experienced the loss of a baby through early pregnancy loss, stillbirth or infant death. Volunteer parents have offered emotional support, friendship and community education since the group was organized in January 1982.
Empty Cradle was founded by 3 families that had experienced a loss during or shortly after pregnancy. In the late 70's/early 80's, there was little to no support in the community for parents experiencing this type of loss. With no literature or information, families were left feeling isolated and alone in their grief. The founding families led the way in creating an organization that has succeeded in bringing a safe, supportive environment for parents to share in their grief, connect to community services, access information through literature and help each other through one of life's hardest journeys - grieving the loss of a baby.
Empty Cradle started out offering one meeting per month and a bi monthly newsletter. Over the years, the members have grown the organization by building on the foundation laid by the founding families. Services have been added along the way to make the organization what it is today. With the mission statement as a guide, Empty Cradle now offers support through multiple monthly meetings at different locations, telephone support, a lending library, literature for new members, a memory box program in some area hospitals, In -Service meetings for the health care community, information about local and internet support, and support via our website and social media.
Empty Cradle has established itself as a vital resource in our community. The response has been positive, resulting in many beneficial changes in both professional and personal responses to the death of a baby through early pregnancy loss, stillbirth or infant death.
We have discovered that the common bond of a shared experience draws us together and helps us with the painful task of resolving our grief. For this reason, our resource parent network is vital not only to the newly bereaved, but also to those whose grief is no longer new. By reaching out to others, we can achieve our stated goal: To comfort the grief of an aching heart and ease the pain of an empty cradle.