Honoring those who never make it home

Mommies of Angels — a pregnancy awareness and infant loss support group in Creston— is collecting donated wedding gowns. However, it won’t be a bride wearing the gown, but, a baby.

The donated wedding gowns being collected will be transformed into tiny “angel gowns” for babies who never make it home from the hospital.

The idea was found online by Marie Chapman of Carter Agency, who approached Amy Lohoff.

“She saw it done in Texas and said, ‘what do you think?’” Lohoff said.

The dress drive was originally the idea of Lisa Grubbs, whose husband is a specialist for premature babies. Grubb’s organization, NICU Helping Hands in Fort Worth, Texas, was started because they felt “the passing of a child is a sacred event that should be honored.”

Lohoff said all the wedding gowns collected through Mommies of Angels’ dress drive will be made into infant gowns and donated to local hospitals for parents who may want them, at no charge.

Lohoff said after she floated the idea in a post on Facebook, the response was overwhelming. She even received an offer from Supreme Cleaners to dry clean the gowns.

“I didn’t think it would go over very well in Creston, but, I am shocked.”

Building awareness

Lohoff is one of the founding members of Mommies of Angels.

In 2009, Lohoff’s son Kooper died as the result of a knot in the umbilical cord the day before she was scheduled to be induced.

In the month leading up to Kooper’s birth, Lohoff said she knew “something wasn’t right.”

After a number of ultrasounds, she was assured everything was fine. But, Lohoff and her unborn baby continued to experience warning signs such as reduced movements and hiccups.

“I felt like I was over reacting,” Lohoff said.

After her son’s death, Lohoff was contacted by Count the Kicks, a pregnancy-loss advocacy and awareness group out of Des Moines.

“They want women to know, you are supposed to be counting the kicks ... the movements,” Lohoff said. “Don’t let anyone tell you you are a crazy person if you run to the doctor and you want them to check you out. I think it’s pretty important. I wish someone would have told me.”

Mommies of Angels

Lohoff said it was a letter she received from a high school friend, who suffered a similar experience, that inspired her to start a similar advocacy group to Creston.

“She gave me tips and warned me of things like your first trip out in public, ... taking the baby stuff back to Walmart, ... your first trip to a restaurant and a new baby comes in. Just things you don’t think about,” Lohoff said.

Lohoff said, even though she still grieves, she is getting stronger every day.

Starting Mommies of Angels and helping others through their grief has turned a devastating experience into a meaningful one.

“As a mother, we just wanted to talk about it,” Lohoff said. “Because, people don’t want to hear our story. Because, for one, they are your friends. They don’t want to see you upset. If it’s your family, they ... are trying to grieve, too. “

Gown donations

Mommies of Angels will also be collecting formal and semi-formal dresses.

“I was completely in shock by the amount of girls who don’t go to prom because they can not afford a gown,” Lohoff said. “Last year ... there were girls that picked out gowns that were two sizes too big and pinned them. They were just excited to have a dress.”

For more information about Mommies of Angels, follow “Mommies of Angels Creston Iowa” on Facebook or email Lohoff at mommiesofangels@hotmail.com.

Donated gowns may be dropped off at House of Pain, Teresa’s Fine Floral, Carter Agency, Inc., and Supreme Cleaners.