Donation protected
On September 19th, the Wampler family suffered an unfathomable tragedy when Benny, their youngest, unexpectedly passed two days shy of his one-month milestone.
Most people don't know the details of what happened to Jason and Chelsie's family last week and have voiced that they want to show their support. I'm using this platform to share the events with you best I can...
The morning started like any other, with the added excitement of preparing their eldest son Jacob, for his first day of preschool. Their middle son Noah stayed with his grandma, so Chelsie could focus on getting Jacob settled in. Chelsie and Benny were inseparable so like any other outing, Benny quietly went along for the ride, falling asleep somewhere along the way in his carrier worn by Chelsie.
Dropping Jacob off went smoothly so Chelsie and Benny headed to the Registry to order his birth certificate. Just before they started to head home Benny started getting fussy so Chelsie stayed in the parking lot to feed him. While Benny was nursing, Chelsie received notification she needed to be at the preschool to assist Jacob, so back her and Benny went. Chelsie got Jacob settled in once again, as Benny slept in his carrier, then headed back to the truck to wait with Benny until Jacob was out of class.
Between leaving the school and walking back to the truck, unbeknownst to Chelsie, Benny had become unresponsive. When Chelsie took him out of the carrier to put him in his carseat she found him limp and bleeding heavily from his nose; she immediately started CPR and called 911.
Benny was rushed to the University hospital where a team of ER professionals performed CPR on Benny for 45 minutes before getting him stable enough to move him to the Stollery's NICU. Once there, a team of specialists worked on Benny for multiple hours. Numerous tests were ran while Chelsie and Jason waited, still hopeful. Ultimately the CT scan showed Benny had severe brain damage. He spent his next hours in his favourite spot, on Chelsie's chest with Jason right beside him. Devastatingly, the extraordinary measures taken to save Benny didn't end up being enough, and his condition worsened by the morning, and the immediate family was called to say their final goodbyes.
To determine if Benny would be viable for organ donation, a final neurological test was conducted to determine his brain function. During the test they took him off the ventilator to see if he was able to breath on his own, and at that point he was not. They determined he had minimal brain function. In the process of trying to get him stabilized while ventilated again it was apparent Benny was struggling to recover.In that moment, with tremendous support from the NICU doctor, Benny was taken off life support and placed in Chelsie's arms where he passed away. Benny wasn’t even a month old and he had countless numbers of people fighting in his corner for him to survive, he was docile and sweet, cuddly and calm, he would have been the yin to the yang of his brothers.
Until recently, I’ve had no reason to put much thought into Maternity/Paternity Leave and the allowances and limitations associated with it. Until recently though, I had never had to watch someone I love and admire, grapple with the unexpected loss of the baby who completed their family, the baby they didn’t think they could possibly love any more than they did. Imagine losing the final piece of your family and finding out your leave was terminated immediately following. Beyond unpaid bereavement leave, families are left with no financial support to help through the grieving process.
This fund is intended to help the Wampler family grieve without facing unnecessary financial hardships due to the abrupt termination of Chelsie’s Maternity Leave. It was spurred by a collection of close friends who love and support the Wampler’s because we know they are forced to hold it together more so, for their two kids who aren’t quite old enough to totally understand but have still felt the effects, and are devastated. They don't get to grieve in peace on their own time, they pick themselves up every day and force themselves to smile even when they aren't ready to, for their two remaining kids who have a zest for life and want to keep exploring.
If we’ve learned anything as a society: tragedy is usually the catalyst needed to invoke change, so please educate yourself on this topic: If you lose a baby anytime after 15 weeks maternity leave, which can be started 3 months before a baby arrives; the paternity portion of the leave is immediately terminated. Families that lose their children past this date have no access to employment insurance benefits even though they would still be receiving 35 additional weeks minimum coverage if they were still caring for their child. No parent should have to immediately return to work after a loss like this. If you want to give financial support, great, if that isn’t your thing, please think about getting involved politically- ask more of your MP and more of our province, this has the potential to affect every family…
Blake Richards, The MP of Banff—Airdrie implored the Standing Committee of Human Resources to conduct a study of the impact on parents who have lost a child. One of the recommendations in the report is a bereavement grace period be established so Employment Insurance or other caregiving benefits are unable to be ended abruptly in the event a child dies. Go to his website and read up on Motion 110, sign the petition or write your MPS and demand change.
Most people don't know the details of what happened to Jason and Chelsie's family last week and have voiced that they want to show their support. I'm using this platform to share the events with you best I can...
The morning started like any other, with the added excitement of preparing their eldest son Jacob, for his first day of preschool. Their middle son Noah stayed with his grandma, so Chelsie could focus on getting Jacob settled in. Chelsie and Benny were inseparable so like any other outing, Benny quietly went along for the ride, falling asleep somewhere along the way in his carrier worn by Chelsie.
Dropping Jacob off went smoothly so Chelsie and Benny headed to the Registry to order his birth certificate. Just before they started to head home Benny started getting fussy so Chelsie stayed in the parking lot to feed him. While Benny was nursing, Chelsie received notification she needed to be at the preschool to assist Jacob, so back her and Benny went. Chelsie got Jacob settled in once again, as Benny slept in his carrier, then headed back to the truck to wait with Benny until Jacob was out of class.
Between leaving the school and walking back to the truck, unbeknownst to Chelsie, Benny had become unresponsive. When Chelsie took him out of the carrier to put him in his carseat she found him limp and bleeding heavily from his nose; she immediately started CPR and called 911.
Benny was rushed to the University hospital where a team of ER professionals performed CPR on Benny for 45 minutes before getting him stable enough to move him to the Stollery's NICU. Once there, a team of specialists worked on Benny for multiple hours. Numerous tests were ran while Chelsie and Jason waited, still hopeful. Ultimately the CT scan showed Benny had severe brain damage. He spent his next hours in his favourite spot, on Chelsie's chest with Jason right beside him. Devastatingly, the extraordinary measures taken to save Benny didn't end up being enough, and his condition worsened by the morning, and the immediate family was called to say their final goodbyes.
To determine if Benny would be viable for organ donation, a final neurological test was conducted to determine his brain function. During the test they took him off the ventilator to see if he was able to breath on his own, and at that point he was not. They determined he had minimal brain function. In the process of trying to get him stabilized while ventilated again it was apparent Benny was struggling to recover.In that moment, with tremendous support from the NICU doctor, Benny was taken off life support and placed in Chelsie's arms where he passed away. Benny wasn’t even a month old and he had countless numbers of people fighting in his corner for him to survive, he was docile and sweet, cuddly and calm, he would have been the yin to the yang of his brothers.
Until recently, I’ve had no reason to put much thought into Maternity/Paternity Leave and the allowances and limitations associated with it. Until recently though, I had never had to watch someone I love and admire, grapple with the unexpected loss of the baby who completed their family, the baby they didn’t think they could possibly love any more than they did. Imagine losing the final piece of your family and finding out your leave was terminated immediately following. Beyond unpaid bereavement leave, families are left with no financial support to help through the grieving process.
This fund is intended to help the Wampler family grieve without facing unnecessary financial hardships due to the abrupt termination of Chelsie’s Maternity Leave. It was spurred by a collection of close friends who love and support the Wampler’s because we know they are forced to hold it together more so, for their two kids who aren’t quite old enough to totally understand but have still felt the effects, and are devastated. They don't get to grieve in peace on their own time, they pick themselves up every day and force themselves to smile even when they aren't ready to, for their two remaining kids who have a zest for life and want to keep exploring.
If we’ve learned anything as a society: tragedy is usually the catalyst needed to invoke change, so please educate yourself on this topic: If you lose a baby anytime after 15 weeks maternity leave, which can be started 3 months before a baby arrives; the paternity portion of the leave is immediately terminated. Families that lose their children past this date have no access to employment insurance benefits even though they would still be receiving 35 additional weeks minimum coverage if they were still caring for their child. No parent should have to immediately return to work after a loss like this. If you want to give financial support, great, if that isn’t your thing, please think about getting involved politically- ask more of your MP and more of our province, this has the potential to affect every family…
Blake Richards, The MP of Banff—Airdrie implored the Standing Committee of Human Resources to conduct a study of the impact on parents who have lost a child. One of the recommendations in the report is a bereavement grace period be established so Employment Insurance or other caregiving benefits are unable to be ended abruptly in the event a child dies. Go to his website and read up on Motion 110, sign the petition or write your MPS and demand change.
Organizer and beneficiary
Tee Marie
Organizer
Edmonton, AB
Chelsie Wampler
Beneficiary