Every time a baby is born at Lehigh Valley Health Network, visitors hear music like Vivaldi’s Four Seasons.
But sometimes, the unthinkable happens.
“One in four women will suffer from miscarriage, infant death, and childhood death,” said Michelle Adler, who lost a child in 2015.
In that case, the sound of a cart wheeling down the hallway can provide some comfort.
“All of our hospital carts are dedicated in memory of a baby or a child who has passed away,” said Chloe Ciferri, co-founder of the Adalyn Rose Foundation.
The foundation is named for the baby girl Ciferri and her husband lost in 2017.
The foundation’s mission is to help other families cope with the heartbreak they know all too well.
Families like the Adlers.
August David Adler was born in September of 2015 and he died two days later.
His family dedicated a remembrance cart in his name.
It’s one of three at LVHN Jefferson and 54 across the country.
Each cart has items that allow families to make memories with their child.
“So that you can read your child a story. You can dress your child,” said Adler. “You can hold something in your hand that your child held even for a moment. You can give your child a stuffed animal.”
The idea being something as simple as making a keepsake bracelet can provide comfort for everyone in the family.
“We do everything we can at Lehigh Valley Health Network to make sure that we support our families during this time in spaces like bereavement rooms and other ways this cart is just another tool, another way to help support families in need,” said Robert Begliomini, President of Jefferson Health Lehigh Valley Region.
Begliomini says it’s a loss his family has also experienced.
The cart is a tool that families like the Adlers and the Ciferris say would have made a world of difference at their time of loss.
“We can’t go back and change our story,” said Ciferri. “But we can help the families that come after us.”
The Adalyn Rose Foundation also provides support, therapy and funeral expenses for grieving families.
It relies on donations to provide services.
For more information, you can visit their website.Â