Our Story
On March 14th, 2022. Our son Parker was stillborn. The only physical item we have to remember him by is a single blanket. One that he did not get to take with him.
The Parker Project is the start of something I’ve begun for our boy. We were fortunate enough to have a fairly great experience in the hospital, given our circumstances, but I do have one large regret that has followed me through my healing to this point.
A decision I made that day following birth. That was the decision to leave Parker at the hospital without his blanket. To many, this won't hit the same way it does to a loss parent, but to me, I had to make the choice to either leave him without his blanket or to give up the one physical thing that connected me so much to him. I made the decision to take the blanket with me because that was the one thing I had that physically represented our pregnancy and time together.
It was the first thing I ever picked out for him. I was so excited to see him play on it, be wrapped in it, carried in it and even carry it when he was older. It's wild how much I had planned to see around a singular physical object. To me, it was a symbol of all we we’re going to miss, and all that had been lost. I wasn't willing to part with it forever like I had to with my son.
Now it is a decision I think back on often, daily even and what has brought us to this project.
We want to supply the hospital with a pair of matching blankets. One that the family can take home, and one that can stay with the baby forever. This will always ensure there is some kind of physical link, and hopefully bring some comfort as well.