This Star Legacy Program creates a fund dedicated to providing birth planning &/or companioning services to these families free of charge.
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Donations can be made by PayPal or with your credit card.
Why Birth Planning is Needed
Most families plan for and are supported through pregnancy, labor and birth. However, families who experience the loss of a baby before birth or who are given a diagnosis that their baby has a lethal anomaly, are usually not offered this important opportunity.
These special parents have no preparation for the enormous challenges and the host of decisions that they will soon face. The process of saying hello to their baby in a loving way before they rush to say goodbye builds the foundation for how they will grieve and eventually heal. This in turn can help minimize the regrets which can haunt parents over time.
The initial shock of deth and the fears that follow make wise decision-making difficult for most parents. When possible, it is best to slow down the rush to the hospital. Some time can then be used to read helpful materials and talk with others who understand what is to come.
We have teamed with experienced birth planners who can offer support and guidance as parents discuss options and creat a birth plan to help them navigate this life altering experience, giving them back some control and helping them feel less alone.
How the Services Work
Birth Planning
Birth planners will meet with parents in their homes or talk over the phone to give information and offer options as they prepare for their baby's birth. When parents know all of their rights, options, and resources, they can be fully informed to make their own choices. It helps to hear stories of other parents and to learn why and how to make this time in the hospital and afterwards special.
Birth Companioning
A compassionate, experienced companion can be available to be present at, or around the time of, the baby's birth. As a parent advocate, they help orchestrate and guide the birth process as a member of the caregiving team. Assistance in making memories, involving family members, celebrating the baby's life, and planning a precious goodbye are also included.
Follow-up calls or visits can often be arranged as well.
In addition to stillbirth research & education, one objective of the Star Legacy Foundation is to help families make their best, informed decisions after they learn their baby has died. We hope to minimize their regrets and offer them support and guidance as they birth their beloved baby, and make special memories.
When faced with the news that their baby has died or will die soon after birth, parents enter a whole new world filled with decisions they never planned to face and financial obligations they had not planned on. Hospital staff find these situations equally difficult and often feel ill-prepared to provide adequate support to the grieving family. They too benefit from having a birth planner/companioner involved.
Contact us if you or someone you know has recently learned that their baby will be stillborn or has a condition incompatible with life for more than a short time.
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Copyright 2011 © ~ Star Legacy Foundation
Stillbirth Companioning & Support
Star Legacy Foundation ~ 11305 Hawk High Court, Eden Prairie, MN 55347 ~ (952) 715-7731 ~ E-Mail