We held our annual memorial service this month. It was wonderful to connect before the holiday. Everyone at HOPE would like to extend our heartfelt and warm wishes to every family who has experienced pregnancy loss. The holidays often trigger feelings of loss and sadness. Hold tight to the love you share with your child for they are always with you. You are not alone.
At the memorial each year, we recite the poem, “We Remember Them”. The words hold true to so many of us. As you read it remember HOPE is always here to provide comfort and support. Please reach out to us during the holidays if you need to talk…we are always here to listen.
We Remember Them by the Gates of Prayer, Reformed Judaism Prayer Book
At the rising of the sun and it’s going down – We remember them
At the blowing of the wind and in the chill of winter – We remember them
At the opening of the buds and in the rebirth of spring – We remember them
At the blueness of the skies and in the warmth of summer – We remember them
At the rustling of the leaves and beauty of autumn – We remember them
At the beginning of the year and when it ends – We remember them
When we are weary and in need of strength – We remember them
When we are lost and sick at heart – We remember them
When we have joy we crave to share – We remember them
When we have decisions that are difficult to make – We remember them
When we have achievements that are based on theirs – We remember them
Hello HOPE! Has it really been a year since I’ve posted on this site? Where’d the time go. I’ll try to do better. We always post on Rindy’s Hope Facebook Page so if you miss us here we’re there too. 36 years and counting is as long as the HOPE Group has been in existence. We strive to support families experiencing pregnancy loss. Our monthly meetings continue each month on the second Wednesday of every month at 7:30 pm in the first floor conference room of 200 Unicorn Park Drive, Woburn, MA. Thank you to all our donor families who allow us to continue this important work keeping Rindy’s mission to help families not feel so alone in their grief journey. There are a few things happening as we finish out 2025…
Until November 10, 2025 Remembering Together is accepting registration for their annual HOLIDAY SWAP. You can connect with another baby loss family to “trade” holiday ornaments/decorations. This is a great way to remember and kick off the holiday season. For more information go to https://rememberingtogetherswap.blogspot.com/p/ornament-swap-form.html
On November 12, 2025 Hope Member, Matt Jaskot will be premiering his composition, “By the Ocean in May”, a concerto for flute, bassoon, chamber orchestra and the Holy Cross Chamber Orchestra under the direction of Michael Carney. The concerto will be held at 7:30 pm at the Luth Concert Hall in the Prior Performing Arts Center at the College of the Holy Cross. Worcester, MA. The piece is inspired by Matt and his wife, Tracy’s yearly visit to Cape Ann every May to commemorate the loss of their stillborn son, Brayden. It is about the journey of healing after a tragic experience and how their mini vacations at a peaceful location by the water has become part of their healing process. We hope you can make it. for more information, visit https://www.matthewjaskot.com
We are in the process of putting together the HOPE Group’s annual memorial service program. If you’d like to submit a poem, letter, song lyric, or anything else to be read at the service, please send it to Donna donnamcd@me.com by end of day on November 29, 2025.
On December 6, 2025 at 7:00 pm, the Angel of Hope annual candlelight vigil will take place at Horn Pond, Woburn, MA. The vigil will be held at the Angel of Hope statue that is located to the right of the pond off Arlington Road, Woburn, MA. All are welcome to attend this free event held rain or shine.
On December 10, 2025 the HOPE Group will be having the annual memorial service at 7:30 pm in the first floor conference room of 200 Unicorn Park Drive, Woburn, MA. All families are invited to attend. The service is our way to connect to our families by remembering the precious children we have lost. We hope you can make it.
Thank you to all who support our work at HOPE. We try to pay it forward each and every month during our regular meetings. Recently I saw this quote and thought of all the brave, courageous families on their grief journey: “Because I carry it well doesn’t mean it’s not heavy”. We wish you all warmth and comfort as you head into the holiday season. Together we can carry the load of our grief. Please reach out to us if you need anything. We are always there for HOPE.
Hello HOPE! It’s that time of year again when we are accepting submissions of poems, readings, song lyrics and/or letters to remember your babies during our annual HOPE Group Memorial Service. This year’s service will be on Wednesday, December 11, 2024 in our regular meeting space: 200 Unicorn Park Drive, Woburn, MA. The service will begin at 7:30 pm in the first floor conference room.
If you’d like to submit something to be read during the service, please email Donna by December 1, 2024 at donnamcd@me.com and we will include it in the service program. Hope you can make it in person too! All families are welcome.
Remembering Ornament Swap is a crafting event organized each holiday season for families who have experienced the loss of a baby to miscarriage, pre-term labor, stillbirth, and neo-natal death. Many of the HOPE Group members have participated in the past. It is a lovely tradition and a beautiful way to honor the memory of our babies that we love and miss so much. This past season, there have been over 300 participants from five different countries. Below are the details from the Remembering Swaps Website:
Registration will be open from November 1st – November 10th, 2024.
Regardless of whether you’ve participated in past years, please be sure to re-read our simple rules as a first step.
Once registration officially opens, you’ll be able to fill out our registration form here on the blog.
All the details about this year’s Swap can be found on our website, and updates will also be shared regularly on our Facebook Page beginning November 1. If you are new to the Swap, please review the following 3 pages, as many of your questions will be answered there.
Hello HOPE! We continue our monthly meetings every second Wednesday of the month in the first floor conference room of 200 Unicorn Park Drive, Woburn, MA. The meeting time is 7:30 pm.
Next month there are two upcoming events that some of our members may be interested in attending. One is the ACDK Hope Foundation fundraiser on November 9th and the St. Augustine’s Church annual Mass of Remembrance on November 2nd.
The ACDK Hope Foundation is a non profit organization that provides free memory boxes to grieving families of pregnancy loss. ACDK gives these boxes to many local hospitals in the Boston area. They need our help through donations to support their work.
ACDK is hosting a night with Jimmy Plunkett, a local musician to raise money. Please consider attending or donating if you can not make the fundraiser. The event is on Saturday, November 9th from 7 to 11 pm. The event will be at the American Legion, 162 Winn Street, Burlington, MA. Tickets are $25 per person and $30 at the door. Presale tickets are accepted on Venmo @Julie-Paige-3
Also, St. Augustine’s Church in Andover, MA is having a Mass of Remembrance for children lost through miscarriage, stillbirth, or in early childhood. The Mass is on Saturday, November 2nd at 9:00 AM at St. Augustine, 43 Essex St, Andover, MA. If you’re looking for a nice way to remember your child during this time of year, the mass is just right.
If you are looking for more support other than our monthly meetings, please remember to contact us at donnamcd@me.com. As always in HOPE, Donna.
Hello HOPE! Our monthly meetings continue this summer and into fall and winter. We meet at 7:30 pm in the first floor conference room of 200 Unicorn Park Drive, Woburn, MA. All meetings are free and open to anyone experiencing pregnancy loss. Our meetings have been meeting faithfully every month since our group first began in 1979 so please drop in if you need support. Please contact Donna at donnamcd@me.com if you need more information.
Have you ever listened to Podcasts? We’ve found one called “All There Is” by CNN host Anderson Cooper. It addresses all kinds of grief from losing a parent, a spouse and even a child. An episode called “The Greatest Loss” is about Stillbirth. It’s a great listen if you’re looking for a connection and can’t find a meeting. The episode is raw but makes so many connections to pregnancy loss.
With the coming fall months, we are beginning to plan for our annual memorial service in December. Please reach out to us if you’d like to contribute to the readings.
Thinking of you all. Remember we always have HOPE.
Hello HOPE! We are having our annual memorial service again this year on Wednesday, 12/13/23 @ 7:30 pm. It’ll replace our regular December meeting. All are welcome. The service and our meetings are held in the first floor conference room of 200 Unicorn Park Drive, Woburn, MA. If you would like to submit a reading to the memorial service program, please send it to Donna at donnamcd@me.com by Friday, 12/08/23. You are welcome to bring a reading to the service to share even if it does not make the program.
The Angel of Hope Candlelight Vigil at Horn Pond will also take place on December 6th at 7pm. The vigil is held rain (snow) or shine and will be held at the Angel of Hope Statue on Arlington Road, Woburn, MA. Flowers and candles will be provided by the committee. Stone pavers can be purchased and placed at the base of the statue.
Thank you all for attending the memorial service in January. It was small, intimate and just what the new year needed. We remembered all of our HOPE babies and missed members who were not present.
We start February with an in person meeting. This month’s meeting is on Wednesday, February 8th @ 7:30 pm. We meet in the first floor conference room of 200 Unicorn Park Drive, Woburn, MA. Masks are required for the meeting. We hope to see you in attendance. Any questions, please contact us.
Recently we donated items to be placed in the memory boxes that the ACDK Hope Foundation generously donates to local hospitals. Jeana, Christine and Julie do an amazing job keeping this beautiful blessing and their children’s spirits alive. The items we donated include silk roses tagged with The HOPE Group’s contact information along with our history. To learn more about the ACDK Hope Foundations work, look for them on Facebook.
We hope our members and those new to HOPE are doing well this month. If you need more support, please email Donna.
A new year has begun and we hope that you are starting it with a focus on yourself. Take time to reflect and remember your beloved child/children.
We start the year with a memorial service for the first meeting of the year. We hope you can make it.
The HOPE Group Memorial Service is scheduled for January 11, 2023.
The service will replace our regular monthly meeting. We will not be serving refreshments after the service. Masks are REQUIRED for attendance at the service AND at all meetings.
The memorial service will begin at 7:30 pm in the first floor conference room, 200 Unicorn Park Drive, Woburn, MA. Please arrive early if you’d like to help set up prior to the service.
If you would like something read to honor your precious child/children, please email Donna donnamcd@me.com by January 6th.
The HOPE Group Memorial Service is scheduled for January 11, 2023.
The service will replace our regular monthly meeting. We will not be serving refreshments after the service. Masks are REQUIRED for attendance at the service AND at all meetings.
The memorial service will begin at 7:30 pm in the first floor conference room, 200 Unicorn Park Drive, Woburn, MA.
If you would like something read to honor your precious child/children, please email Donna donnamcd@me.com by January 6th.
Reminder: December’s meeting is a regular meeting.
