Hardmeyer - City Magazine

The founders of the site envisioned a day when all grieving
parents could come together and be surrounded by support
from friends and families, a day when communities could
better understand their pain.
This discovery launched Dana’s mission to go to the N.D.
legislators to get a bill passed proclaiming October 15th as
Pregnancy and Infant Loss Remembrance Day in N.D. Her
mission was successful, and Senate Concurrent Resolution No.
4014 was passed. (Ironic side note: October 15th is also the day
Dana went into labor with Lakin.)
Then Memorial Day came, springing a much larger calling
for Dana. When Dana was passing the cemetery, she noticed
all of the American flags marking the veterans’ graves, and
thought, “Why can’t we do that for October 15th?”
Her vision from that moment was to get a white flower
circled with a pink and blue ribbon, a note of what it signifies
and a poem attached, and place them on all of the graves of
children ages two and younger in Bismarck-Mandan.
This idea seemed fairly easy and straight forward until
she found out there isn’t a map of where the babies are in the
cemeteries (with the exception of the N.D. Veteran’s Cemetery,
which is the home of six angel babies).
So, on July 6th, Dana started canvassing the cemeteries;
mapping the sites of each child under the age of two. So far,
they have found 102 at Sunset, 345 at Fairview, and 585 at
St. Mary’s, and are just starting at Mandan Union.
With this discovery, Dana’s vision of marking each grave
by October 15th seems overwhelming as time isn’t on her
side, and she is doing all of this without funding. She has been
reaching out to friends, family, businesses and the community
for help.
These minor details haven’t slowed Dana down and, as
September 10th nears, the one year anniversary of her
daughter's death, her mission strengthens.
Ways you can help:
1) Light a candle at 7:00 pm on October 15th in memory
and honor of infants who have lost their lives.
2) Donate white flowers, pink and blue ribbon, money
or time. If anyone would like to help with this
project, you can contact Dana at 701-220-9791 or
schweitzers@bis.midco.net.
Nicole Morrison-Mathern is assistant director of the Harold
Schafer Emerging Leaders Academy at the University of
Mary, as well as the co-owner of the 100% women-owned
businesses, Moxe In Action, LLC, Entertainment Resources,
and URL (U Rock Lately) Radio.
You've Come A Long Way Baby is sponsored by:
September 2009 17