Hi. I’m Annette Lawless, an investigative and seasoned storyteller from Kansas. This past year, I had the privilege of sharing the story of two women who suffered the loss of their children. However, they found a way to turn their loss into hope. They poured their love into helping others in ways they saw fit.

They truly are remarkable.

Austin Marsh donates breastmilk for other babies.

Nicole Lauer helps pay for the gravestones of babies at a Wichita cemetery. Many of those graves, Nicole noticed, didn’t have a proper headstone. She wanted to change that. So, in honor of her son Kade, on his birthday every April, she donates to help other families lay their children to rest.

The story of pregnancy and infant loss has touched a lot of lives, including another woman: Chantal. She reached out to me this year. She has suffered the loss of two children, and they do not have headstones. I’ve been talking about it with her, but it would do me an honor to raise money on behalf of her kids. It costs about $2,000 total to put a headstone for her two children.

With your help, I would like to donate the $2,000 to the Kade Lauer Memorial Fund so that Chantal can have this gift.

Any excess funds will go toward other families suffering loss.

This is nothing any parent prepares for. My husband and I didn’t, as we’ve had three pregnancy losses in the past 10 years. But, in a moment when your world seems to fall apart, I hope we can be the community that pieces things back together to prop these families up.