This is a very small list of the organizations and services which we know are available. There are also a few links to organizations within specific dioceses below. We are always open to suggestions for additions to this page.
If there is nothing listed for your diocese, but you would like to know what is offered, contact your diocese’s office of marriage and family life.
GENERAL
CALIFORNIA
MARYLAND
MINNESOTA
NORTH CAROLINA
Web-based and General Services
These services are typically available to anyone. Travel may or may not be required, depending on your location.
- All Embrace encompasses many aspects of pregnancy and infant loss, including support for families, resources and education for friends, extended families, and religious leaders. It is a Catholic organization that started in the Archdiocese of Atlanta.
- A Mom’s Peace is a non-profit Catholic apostolate whose mission is to bring peace by discretely supporting mothers with burial, bereavement and remembrance programs. We lovingly guide families through difficult decisions in the immediate wake of loss and we serve all families, regardless of religious beliefs. A Mom’s Peace exists to fulfill the corporal and spiritual works of mercy “bury the dead” and “comfort the sorrowful.”
- Bereavement Doulas have been trained and certified to help you prepare for the delivery experience when you know you are miscarrying or will have a stillborn baby. They can help during as well as after the birth, usually with a nominal or no fee. Many or most may not be Catholic, but could still be helpful as you go through the physical process of miscarrying. Here is a database to help you find a bereavement doula near you:
- Comassionate Friends provides grief support after the death of a child (at any age, from any cause). “Time has proven that in caring and sharing comes healing.”
- Faith’s Lodge is “a place where parents and families facing the serious illness or loss of a child can retreat to reflect on the past, renew strength for the present and build hope for the future.” They offer weekend retreats for those families experiencing pregnancy or child loss, as well as the families of a child with a life-limiting condition.
- The Fletcher Foundation “walks along families after miscarriage or stillbirth, providing hope and financial assistance.”
- IRIS (Infants Remembered In Silence) offers many services to those families dealing with the loss of a child during pregnancy or infancy. This is also listed below under the Diocese of Winona, Minnesota, as some of their services are limited to that area.
- Missing GRACE Foundation is “a national nonprofit organization that provides education and bereavement materials for Professional Care Providers as well as resources and support for families that have experienced a pregnancy loss, infant loss, infertility or adoption challenges.”
- Now I Lay Me Down to Sleep is a non-profit organization of photographers who will come to the hospital and take photographs of a stillborn (25-weeks plus gestation) child for free. Most hospitals will give you this option when you are in labor and delivery.
- Pope Paul VI Institute is an organization geared toward treating real problems (infertility, recurrent miscarriage, and other women’s reproductive health problems) with real solutions within the context of the Catholic Church’s teaching on marriage and life.
- The Pregnancy and Infant Loss Center is a national, non-profit support, resource and education center located in Wayzata, Minnesota – a suburb of Minneapolis. They have a quarterly newsletter, “Loving Arms,” and also offer an extensive catalog with books, videos, comfort cards, and keepsake items for grieving parents, their extended families, and caregivers. Contact them by phone at (612) 473-9372 or by email at [email protected].
- Present in the Pain is a multi-faceted ministry formed by Eileen Tully, herself a Catholic mother who has experienced miscarriages, as well as a stillbirth and an infant loss. She has a book, a podcast, and a community of online support, among other offerings.
Archdiocese of San Francisco, California
- The Archdiocese is hosting a Memorial Mass and Healing Service for those who have suffered miscarriage and infant loss. Anyone is welcome to attend, but please register on their site.
Archdiocese of Baltimore, Maryland
- Holy Innocents is a ministry of the archdiocese for those who have lost a child to miscarriage. They have a very helpful Q&A section as well as contacts for direct, live support.
Archdiocese of St. Paul and Minneapolis, Minnesota
- God’s Children is a ministry and support group for those who have experienced the loss of a child to miscarriage, stillbirth, or infant death. Please contact the Office for Marriage, Family, and Life for more information at [email protected]. In addition to the support group, there is typically a Mass held to honor these children every October at Nativity of Our Lord Catholic Church in St. Paul.
- Jessica J. Kegley is a Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist whose Catholic faith supports her counseling work with individuals, couples, and families in a variety of circumstances, including pregnancy loss.
Diocese of Winona, Minnesota
- IRIS (Infants Remembered In Silence) offers many services to those families dealing with the loss of a child during pregnancy or infancy.
Diocese of Charlotte, North Carolina
- Be Not Afraid provides “comprehensive, practical, and peer-based support to parents experiencing a prenatal diagnosis and carrying to term.”