October 10, 2017
Every year in the United States, more than 25,000 babies are lost to stillbirth. Despite this staggering statistic, the topic of stillbirth remains a taboo subject. Thousands of families endure the pain and trauma of stillbirth every year, and until we as a society acknowledge this and talk openly about it, health care professionals, friends, family will remain unprepared to help their loved ones.
The reality is, many stillbirths are preventable and occur at a viable gestational age. We know that with greater awareness and proper education, we can make a meaningful difference in preventing stillbirths.
The 2 Degrees Foundation was founded at the Community Foundation of New Jersey in 2014 by two moms, Debbie and Stacey. They realized that most women, whether they realize it or not, have just “two degrees” of separation from pregnancy loss. Debbie and Stacey themselves were brought together when their daughters, Autumn Joy and Rhyan Ava, were born still. Since then, the friendship between Debbie and Stacey has grown and together they hope to break the silence around stillbirth and create the type of awareness necessary to improve stillbirth outcomes so that other women do not need to suffer the way that they have.
How you can help
The 2 Degrees Foundation recently launched a fundraising drive to support multiple ongoing initiatives designed to bring this dire unmet maternal health need out of the shadows of silence, starting with a national Public Service Announcement (PSA). By bringing stillbirth to the forefront of a national dialogue, the 2 Degrees Foundation hopes to spark urgency for state and national authorities to take action in improving stillbirth outcomes in the United States.
Please donate today to help give every family a fighting chance against stillbirth.