OUR STORY
Who We Are
Empty Cradle is a peer support group dedicated to helping parents who have experienced the heartbreaking loss of a baby due to miscarriage, stillbirth, TFMR, infant death, SIDS, or SUID. Our mission is to provide comfort, connection, and resources to bereaved families through our network of support parents, monthly meetings, written materials, and partnerships with the healthcare community. To learn more about our monthly meetings, please visit our Support Meetings page.
Losing a baby is one of life’s most profound and devastating experiences, leaving parents feeling shocked, disoriented, and heartbroken. Grief after such a loss is deep, complex, and often misunderstood. Friends and family may struggle to grasp the depth of sorrow or the time needed to heal, making the grieving process feel even more isolating.
At Empty Cradle, we believe no one should have to navigate this journey alone. We are a community of parents who have walked this path, offering understanding and reassurance to those facing similar heartbreak. Through sharing, reading, and listening, newly bereaved parents come to realize that their feelings are valid and that healing, while difficult, is possible.
While Empty Cradle volunteers are not professional counselors—though we are fortunate to count some among our members—we are all bereaved parents who choose to give back, offering support and hope to others who are grieving. Together, we honor our children by ensuring that no family walks this path alone.
Our History & Mission
Empty Cradle is a nonprofit support group dedicated to providing comfort, connection, and community to parents in San Diego and Riverside Counties who have experienced the heartbreaking loss of a baby through early pregnancy loss, stillbirth, or infant death. Since our founding in January 1982, volunteer parents have offered compassionate support, friendship, and education to those navigating this difficult journey.
Empty Cradle was established by three families who, after experiencing their own losses, recognized the profound lack of resources available to grieving parents in the late 1970s and early 1980s. With little information or support, many families felt isolated in their grief. Determined to change this, these families created a safe and understanding space where parents could share their experiences, find solace in community, and access vital resources to help them heal.
What began as a single monthly meeting and a bi-monthly newsletter has since grown into a multifaceted organization that continues to expand upon the foundation laid by its founders. Guided by our mission, Empty Cradle now offers multiple in-person and virtual support meetings each month, a memory box program donated to select area hospitals, educational in-service meetings for healthcare professionals, and a wealth of resources available through our website and social media. As a 100% volunteer-led nonprofit, we rely on donations to sustain our programs and extend our reach.
Over the years, Empty Cradle has become a vital resource in our community, helping to transform both personal and professional responses to pregnancy and infant loss. We have seen firsthand how the shared experience of loss brings people together, creating a network of support that is invaluable not only to newly bereaved parents but also to those further along in their healing journey.
By reaching out to others, we remain committed to our core mission: to comfort the grief of an aching heart and ease the pain of an empty cradle.