People Need People

There is a very specific grief experienced by parents whose children are both alive and dead. Within every moment, we celebrate the milestones of our living children - smiling and laughing as our living children take first steps, graduate schools, or travel the world - all with a deep emptiness and raw emotion from jealousy to anger to guilt as we figure out how to show that same love and adoration for children who are no longer with us. 

Literal insult to injury, society seems to asks us to not only move on from, but to diminish the light of our lost children. Lost pregnancies are brushed aside with a quiet “try again". Acquaintances grow red faced as we list a dead infant as a family member.  And as the years pass, society expects the children we’ve lost and our grief to fade. 

There are several local resources that can help parents grieve courageously, but they are also valuable to greater society who are serious about learning how better to support families and children who are living with great loss.

PALS

Pregnancy After Loss Support (PALS) is a national organization designed to support grieving parents in both heartbreak and hope. Before PALS, I thought I had to keep my grief visible to prove the depth of my love and reverence for those babies I had lost. Now, I’ve learned that honoring grief also means living fully for my loved ones who are still here. Pregnancy After Loss Support offers that lifeline for parents like me. Our local chapter meets in person every month at Thomas Hammer in the Valley and connect via a private Facebook group Spokane Courageous Mamas. Join us when and in whatever capacity you can or reach out directly to our lead Carrie. 

Lion's Heart 

Lions Heart Spokane offers year-round support for families, but specifically children navigating grief after the death of a loved one - long after the initial goodbye. The children's grief support programs within Lion's Heart blend professional guidance with the healing power of community, giving children the chance to process big feelings through art, movement, and play, while also giving parents tools and space to share their own stories.

Throughout the year, Lions Heart hosts ongoing support groups, seasonal workshops, remembrance activities, and opportunities for connection. On Saturday, Nov 8th, children and parents can step into healing together through play, storytelling, and connection at Family Grief Day Camp. 

Our Mission: Creating a safe place for children, teens and their families to grieve courageously.

Our Vision: Every grieving child in the Inland Northwest has the support, connection, and education they need to process grief in a safe and supportive environment.

Our Philosophy: We know that children only learn how to express and move through grief by looking to the important adult figures in their lives. Lion's Heart provides comprehensive grief support to the family as a whole, ensuring that children grieve alongside parents, leaning on each other and strengthening the family bond and promoting healing throughout the family system.

FOREVEREST

And right here in Liberty Lake, another movement is helping to transform grief into purpose. The annual FOREVEREST 5K Walk/Run/Plunge, is on Saturday, November 8, 2025, at Harvard Road Trailhead. Gather with families and friends in memory of children gone too soon, especially Everest who "lived for just 44 hours. His life was short, but his impact is endless."

"Through FOREVEREST, we honor him by caring for other families facing child loss—providing financial relief, practical support, and a community that remembers with them. This 5K is more than a run—it’s a movement to transform lives."

~ Annie May, Everest's Mom

FOREVEREST exists to ensure no family grieves the loss of a child alone—by raising awareness, equipping communities with tools of care, and (perhaps most impactful) providing practical financial relief to families while they take leave from work to heal.

In just two years, the event has raised over $8,500 for local families, and this year the goal is to support two more families walking through unimaginable loss.

This year, our goal is to raise $10,000 to provide care and support for families navigating child loss. 

Pregnancy & Infant Loss Awareness Month 

Since 1988, The United States as recognized October as Pregnancy and Infant Loss Awareness Month. 

In Coeur d’Alene, Northwest Infant Survival & SIDS Alliance (NISSA) hosts events and programming throughout the year. On Sunday, October 5, 2025, 11:00 AM – 3:00 PM at Riverstone Park is their 13th annual Run for the Angels Memorial Run & Family Day. It honors babies and children who died suddenly or unexpectedly. Activities include a remembrance ceremony (with names read aloud), memory-making stations, a fun run/walk (~2.5 miles), and booths to bring community together.

On October 15, the entire world unites in Wave of Light — at your local 7PM, light candles, turn on pink and blue lights, and speak names. As 7PM falls across the world so does the the wave of light. 

People Need People

Healing grows in community. And sometimes the most radical thing we can do—for ourselves and for each other—is to show up, sit down, and make space for the whole of our stories- even the uncomfortable or ugly or scary parts.

If your family, church, or community group wants to explore how to better support grieving parents and children, Rooted Sonshine would be honored to walk alongside you. Together, we can cultivate spaces where love outlives loss.