There is no greater pain for a parent than the pain of outliving their child. But we parents are not the only ones who suffer. The death of a baby can be very difficult on our surviving children, and even our subsequent children. These kids witness their parents wrestling with overwhelming grief, and struggle with their own feelings of sadness and confusion. They deserve a day just to be carefree children, playing with their parents in the sunshine and having fun, and that is what our annual picnic is all about.
Sweet Pea Project will hold this special event for children who have lost a brother or sister during pregnancy or infancy on Saturday, June 7th, 2014. Parents are invited to bring their surviving and subsequent children to Lititz Springs Park in Lititz, PA, from 4pm-7pm to play, eat, and enjoy each other's company. This event is free but registration is required. To register, go to www.sweetpeaproject.org/picnic and click on Picnic Registration Form! Registration will close on April 30.
Just as we did in years past, we will be offering tons of food and family fun activities. Rita's Italian ice will be handing out free ice, Dancing Bears Music will be performing on the bandshell stage, Ronice Kay Photography will be doing free family portraits, Bob's Critters will be doing live animal demonstrations, Acts of Jennius will be leading kids in some hula-hooping fun, Country Conjuring will be performing magic tricks and Tony the Balunguy will be making balloon animals. We'll be offering various arts and crafts projects, face-painting, a bounce house, and children will be able to plant flowers from Shenk's Greenhouse. We'll be serving a picnic dinner and dessert, so bring your appetites! Grace Photos will be on hand to capture images of the festivities, all of which will be available to our guests after the event. We'll continue to announce activities as the event date approaches, so be sure to check out www.sweetpeaproject.org/picnic for more!
The idea for the Sweet Pea Sisters & Brothers Picnic came about after Beth Gauthier and Nicole Jackson joined the board of directors in 2010. Both had older children who grieved along side of them when their sons were stillborn and each have had another baby since then. Though support groups exist for parents, very little is offered for children. Sweet Pea Project is excited to be able to reach out to these children through this annual picnic, in honor of Mark and Max.
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