Our beautiful baby girl, Hazel Rose, was born on May 29th, 2014 at 10:12am. She was born with squishy cheeks, pouty lips, bright blue eyes, and gorgeous red hair that stopped everyone in their tracks. We never knew a baby could be so perfect! She made us the happiest parents in the world. We couldn't help but boast about what a lovely baby she was - so quiet and happy, a great eater, and a champion sleeper. Everyone always told us how lucky we were, and we knew it.
When Hazel was just 3 months and 2 days old, she passed away suddenly, silently, and unexpectedly in the night. We are forever changed and yearn to go back in time to be with her again. We think of her every moment of the day and miss how she felt in our arms and the sweet smell of her skin. What we wouldn't give to count her little fingers and toes again or to sing her to sleep with our favorite oldies songs.
Two and a half years after losing Hazel, we met her sister, Lily Pearl. Lily was diagnosed with full Trisomy 13, also known as Patau Syndrome. We were only able to have her in our arms for mere hours instead of the lifetime that we had hoped and wished for. Hazel and Lily now live on in our hearts, thoughts, and dreams, and we remember them always and we will continue to say their names and give them a lasting legacy.
In memory of Hazel and Lily and their short time here with us, we decided to create "Hazel's Heroes". Our vision is that we will be able to support families to take part in a healing retreat where they will be given the opportunity to honour their child, heal some of the pain in their hearts, and potentially help other families going through a similar experience. We offer these weekend retreats at no charge for parents and we rely solely on the generosity of those in our community.
We have found it incredibly helpful and healing to connect with other families in our grief journey, and our hope is to connect more families so that they may be able to share stories, talk, cry, and maybe even laugh with one another. We want to give parents an opportunity to dedicate time for self-care and self-love. Unfortunately, that task may seem almost impossible to do once you lose a child. We hope to make it a possibility and to remind bereaved mothers and fathers that they are not alone.
Thank you for visiting our site and for reading our story. Our wish is that Hazel and Lily’s names will be spoken everyday and that they will make a positive impact on this world, just as we are certain they would have had they survived. We welcome any questions that you may have so please be in touch, whether you are a grieving parent or you are supporting a loved one who has faced the most devastating loss imaginable.
It is our absolute honour to be able to create a space where hope and love grow. We know that we are making our daughters proud, and we feel blessed that we can do this in honour of Hazel and Lily so that their memories will live on, always. Please contact us if you have questions or want to hear more about our vision - we welcome any opportunity to talk about our daughters and their legacies.
Gillian Hatto
