An international event called the Wave of Light will occur this Saturday, October 15, in honor of Miscarriage and Infant Loss Awareness. This event is recognized across the world in order to make sure that these children are not forgotten.

October is recognized as International Miscarriage and Infant Loss Awareness month, while the specific date is October 15. One in four pregnancies end in miscarriage and this is a time that family members are able to remember their children.

During this event, family members of the child typically light a candle and say their child’s name aloud at 7 p.m. local time and leave the candle burning for one hour. The idea is that there will be a wave of light across the world in honor of the children’s lives.

If someone wishes to participate and can not light a candle, their child does not have a name, or they do not know anyone personally lost to miscarriage or infant death, any effort to celebrate these children’s lives is encouraged by this community. The point of the candle is simply to create a light that is signifying the child’s life. Turning on a flashlight, a lamp, or a night light works the same way and there doesn’t have to be a name said.

Though this celebration of life can be something that is very intimate for the family, there are often pregnancy centers or grief counseling services that host larger events on this date. During these events, people come together to speak their children’s names and spread the Wave of Light. Usually with these larger events, there are also poems read and a time where people can talk to other people openly about their children.

Locally, a non-profit called Forget-Me-Not Baskets is hosting a Wave of Light Ceremony in Wooster, Ohio. The event is located at Grace Church Wooster, 4599 Burbank Rd, Wooster, OH 44691. The event opens to the public at 6:30 p.m. and the lighting of the candles will occur at 7 p.m.

Forget-Me-Not Baskets offers bereavement baskets to people suffering through miscarriage and infant loss. They also offer grief counseling services and miscarriage awareness events.

President of Forget-Me-Not Baskets, Sara Ringle explained, “It’s such an isolating time for these parents…So many women and men, they don’t talk about their loss. They [think] it’s not significant enough, or they don’t want to make anyone else in their family or their friends uncomfortable about it. And so sometimes people don’t even know about it to talk about it.”

Forget-Me-Not Facebook Page: https://www.facebook.com/ForgetMeNotBaskets