Funeral Expenses, Time Off & Healing
Life is a journey. We begin in one place and the decisions and choices we make lead us to another. My name is Michael Andersen. In the picture is my wife Jessica and my daughter Sol. 2 years ago we lost our baby boy Ben who was born stillborn. Months after that we lost the most beautiful man I have ever known and that was my Grandfather Herb.
The loss of a child is something no one should ever have ever to deal with. Once is enough to tear apart a happy family, destroy your self esteem, crush your hopes and dreams and leave you a shadow of the person you once were. Twice is just unbearable. Losing Ben left an irreplaceable hole in our family. Many of you helped us to get him to Paramus and bury him. We are forever thankful to you all. When we lost Ben I literally walked away from a business I worked 6 years to build and not only did we lose a child but we lost everything. Our business, our hopes and all of our savings. We wound up on a wild ride which lead us to anew business partner and a new business. We have since been very focused. In my tunnel vision I never realized how much pain my wife was in right in front of me. After almost losing each other we realized that this injury would never heal. We were missing something. A member of our family, a son, a child we were robbed of.
There was a hole in my wife’s heart only a baby could seal. My beautiful and brave Wife decided to have faith and try again to make a baby. So that we could have the child we wanted and Sol could have a brother or a sister. She quickly got pregnant and we were on the ride again. We knew the risks. She knew the risks and her beautiful bravery gave her the courage to try again. Knowing she could die. Knowing we could lose another child. She tried. We made it 8 months this time a month longer than with Ben. My daughter Sol has anxiously been waiting the arrival of her baby sister, and my wife would have the baby she wanted so badly. Even though having 2 daughters terrified me, I was very excited to have a new edition to our family. We named her Aspen after the beautiful trees all over the mountains we Have come to love in Colorado. It is with great pain and terrible sorrow that I share this story with you and end it by telling you that we have lost our little angelAspen. My wife woke up in pain last night and immediately called an ambulance. As the ultrasound tech searched the vastness of a 8 month pregnant belly hopelessly searching for a sign of life I could feel the pain all over agin. The loss all over agin. My poor wife would now have to deliver our beautiful little baby girl with life in her. No cries to hear, no cord to cut. just another funeral to plan.
I have been so busy working and I have been building a business that puts food in the table and allows us to all be together all the time. The last time this happened I couldn’t leave my wife for 5 mins to go to work anymore so I let it all go. I can’t do that now but my family needs me. I need to be there for my wife. Explain to my daughter that she has a brother and sister in heaven with God. We are broken. We need time to heal. I’m trying to raise money to pay for this burial, take some time with my family, and make arrangements for someone to help with my business as long as i can so that I can be with my family. I thank you for taking the time to read our story. I hope you can find it in your hearts to help us. God bless you all.