Attend the Walk to Remember and Ways to Give
The Walk to Remember is less than three weeks away. Are you planning to attend?
Walk to Remember is for anyone who has lost a child, at any stage of pregnancy or in early infancy. Of course friends and family are welcome. It is a time for celebration, remembrance and camaraderie.
Life is busy – and while I think of my son Zachary daily, I cherish the Walk to Remember for its poignant message and sweet atmosphere. I attend the Walk to Remember to halt life’s rush and simply reflect, cry, and openly miss my beautiful boy.
I encourage anyone sitting on the fence about attending, to come and remember with me.
Registering for the event ensures your child’s name will be written on the sidewalk in chalk along the path of the walk and read aloud during the ceremony. You can register here.
You can fundraise or make a financial donation to the Walk to Remember here.
We collected teddy bears at Zachary’s memorial service and donated 100 bears in his name to the hospital.
Another fantastic way to give is through the donation of a new teddy bear. The stats say that over 15,000 babies die every year in Alberta – that number is heartbreaking. Alberta hospitals give parents a teddy bear in remembrance of their child. Obviously nothing can replace our babies, but I will never forget hugging the bear given to me after my son died. It now sits in my bedroom and whenever I look at it I think about Zachary. The bear is kindly called ‘Zachy’s bear’ by my daughter and it is a helpful reminder to our family of our son, brother, grandson who is not with us.
Even if you have not lost a child yourself, you can still donate to the Teddy-Drive. There will be a special area set up at the Walk to Remember where you can donate a bear. You can read more about the Teddy-Drive here.
As I am preparing my speech for the Walk, I am both saddened by the collective loss of the families who will attend from our city and area and also motivated to find the right words for the occasion; words of comfort, reflection and hope.
It is strange to say that I am looking forward to the event, but I am. I’m looking forward to donating bears, finding Zachary’s name on the sidewalk, blowing bubbles when my son’s name is called and meeting fellow mourners. If you are reading this and will be in attendance at noon on Saturday, September 29, 2012 at the Alberta Legislature grounds in Edmonton, please come and find me. I would love to hear your story and give you a hug!
Love to you all,
Alexis Marie