Making little memories in the midst of despair

A mum from Lettermore is using her family’s heartbreaking tragedy to help others who may follow in her footsteps by raising money to buy a cuddle cot for Galway babies.

Geroldine Gannon was 22 weeks pregnant with twins when she felt a cramp in her stomach on November 7. She decided to leave work as a special needs assistant in a local school to get things checked out at University Hospital Galway.

She underwent a scan and was told she would be confined to bed for the rest of the pregnancy. Minutes later she went into labour and the unimaginable happened.

Aingeal and MacDara were born but survived for just 40 minutes.

“It was just shocking, completely unexpected. Everything was going so smoothly then this happened so quickly. Luckily we had plenty of family and friends and neighbours around us.”

She and husband John were given two memory boxes provided by Féileacháin, the Stillbirth and Neonatal Death Association of Ireland.

Inside were teddies, handmade blankets, a decorative box to contain keepsakes such as a lock of hair and their identity bracelets as well as ink sets to take copies of their footprints and handprints. Practical items like Vaseline to prevent drying lips were also invaluable.

Geroldine’s sister rang the number contained in the box and spoke to Jacinta Murphy, chairperson of Féileacáin, who is based in Craughwell.

She told the family about the availability of cuddle cots, which could be used to allow them to bring the twin babies home to say goodbye.

The devices work by creating a cooling environment and after sourcing one from Limerick the Gannons were afforded the chance to keep their precious babies with them for a number of days before their burial.

“I mostly treasure the footprints and the handprints. We’ll have that forever,” reflected Geroldine.

The teddies are given to the babies and then swapped when it comes time to bury them so that their parents have something with their smell.

“They also gave [two-year-old son] Jeaic two teddy bears to remember them which I thought was lovely.”

Geroldine decided she wanted to give something back to the charity which helped her family to cope with the horrific loss. She wants to raise €2,500 to buy a cuddle cot which will be used specifically for Galway babies. She is also offering to keep it in her home at Tiernea, Lettermore and bring it to those who put out the call.

“We want this to their legacy for anyone else who goes through it. The amount of people who have said they have lost babies since this happened is amazing,” she explained.

Since word of the sponsored walk was put out over the airwaves of Raidio na Gaeltachta, already people have been pledging their support, with €2,400 so far promised online. Any extra money raised will go towards the cost of the memory boxes, which cost €35 to produce but are given free to families around the country.

Féileacháin was launched in Cork in 2010 by similarly bereaved parents with the Galway branch launched the following year. As well as distributing the memory boxes, they hold support meetings, provide low cost counselling and organise the cuddle cots. They can also arrange professional photographers to visit who specialise in neonatal deaths and stillbirths.

Geroldine has organised a walk from the church in Lettermore to Tigh Kitt in Casla on March 6, the day the twins were due to be born. It also happens to be Mother’s Day.

For further details or to take part in the walk contact 087 0695376.

*The Galway meetings take place at the Harbour Hotel on the first Tuesday of every second month, 7.30 to 9.30pm. The next meeting takes place on May 3.

Contact Féileacáin on 085 2496464 or log onto www.feileacain.ie