Urgent Update March 18, 2009

Four days ago marked Jacob's third birthday and his second in Heaven.  While the pain and loss will always be with us, the essence of Jacob lives on - in our lives and the fact he made them better; and most definitely in our hearts and precious memories.  But perhaps the most spectacular tribute to our little man is the fact God continues to use Jacob to touch the hearts and lives of others through the newly formed nonprofit formed in his memory - Tiny Handprints.

Please read the Tiny Handprints newsletter below by my wonderful, brave daughter, Stephanie, Jacob's mom and then visit Tiny Handprints website. 

http://www.tinyhandprints.org/thpvolunteer.htm

While most of you know why we started Tiny Handprints, few of you know the story behind the journey that brought us to where we are as an organization today. We think it’s a wonderful testament to the goodness and grace of God, and how He can work even the worst of circumstances for His good in a design so intricate that it can only be evidence of the Master’s hand. We wanted to share that story with you.

The seed for non-profit work was planted in my heart early, at the age of 14 when I watched one non-profit after another come in to help as my older sister battled leukemia. Make-A-Wish granted her a shopping spree. Ronald McDonald house provided my parents a place to stay as they traveled to Vanderbilt from Lebanon on a regular basis. Others brought her gifts to entertain her as she spent countless hours in her hospital bed on chemotherapy. I was in awe of their compassion and generosity they extended to strangers, and I knew that’s what I wanted to do some day.

Fast-forward eight years…I first met Scott and Traci Williams, friends and former roommates of my then-boyfriend, Ladd. Anyone who knows the "Texas Williams" knows that they have been with us through a lot, and we’re proud to call them our very best friends.

Fast forward just a few more years to April 2007, just after we lost Jacob. We were introduced to another family, the Blands, who had just lost their little girl. If you’ve read the website, you know a little about them. The similar circumstances surrounding the death of our little ones and our lives since then are almost scary. We’ve supported each other on our journey through the grief, and I’ll be forever grateful to be able to call them friends.

In March 2008, my sister invited us to attend her church. The sermon was on having a "Plan B" when life doesn’t go the way you expect it to. They shared the story of a family who had just lost their infant daughter at only 2 hours old to a birth defect. I was touched, to say the least, by their tremendous faith. I have been a "believer" for some time, but I was really struggling with my relationship with God since we’d lost Jacob. I began to follow that family’s blog and found it a constant source of strength and encouragement – I admired their relationship with God and how they sought His will for their lives, in spite of what they’d lost.

I started to pray for these things for myself, and to really try to focus on my relationship with my Savior. It didn’t take long for my sorrows and fears to give way to hope and a whole new sense of purpose, and I found that my childhood dream of starting a non-profit organization had a renewed place in my daily thoughts. We certainly had a way to connect with families in need, but what now?

In early May, my cousin’s son lost his infant son to SIDS. A few weeks later, the siblings of the author of the blog I had been following lost their infant son to SIDS. My heart ached for them, knowing first-hand the extent of their losses. I felt called to do something, anything to try to extend to them the comfort we had so graciously received. Ladd and I started talking about the materials we’d been given during that first year after we’d lost Jacob that had the biggest impact in our lives – the series of grief books sent to us from a friend of the Texas Williams, the SIDS Handbook that was given to us by Jacob’s babysitter, the list of websites we found containing SIDS research information, and the memorial charms that we received from another dear friend. We could send those things to these two families, and we did.

Our newly developed "SIDS Survival Kit" seemed like a good thing, so I began to search for a local SIDS group to join up with in hopes of reaching more families. After much searching, we realized that there weren’t any organizations dedicated to SIDS Support in Tennessee. How could that be – Tennessee ranks 7th in the nation in SIDS deaths, and there was NOTHING? What were we going to do, start our own organization? No way, we didn’t have the money, resources or the know-how to take on something like that.

I began to pray about it, and then held on for an amazing ride as we began to experience God’s power in our lives in a way I had never experienced before. Breath-taking, awe-inspiring, life-changing, miraculous power…thank you, Lord. A website - my brother is a website wizard who walked us through setting up the initial site and securing the domain. A website design and layout - the Texas Williams presented us with a design, logo, and completely laid out website for us only to fill in the text. Have you seen the website – it is powerful in itself. They also joined us as the first board members of our organization. Legal documents to make us official – a lawyer friend of mine researched and drafted our organizing paperwork and helped with the state registration forms, free of charge. IRS registration – my sister is a CPA who made the application process effortless. Advertising materials – a printer in Clarksville gave us letterhead, business cards and bookmarks for almost nothing. And what about funding? With one simple introduction letter sent to friends and family, the donations started pouring in. We have now had over 85,000 hits to our website, raised almost $4,000, and adopted 17 SIDS families.

And then there’s Sunshine, a Stroller Strides instructor in Murfreesboro. Last July, Momma Bland asked me to go with her to a Stroller Strides class in Murfreesboro. We met Sunshine – believe me, she lives up to her name…always sunny, warm, and a pure joy to be around – and ended up joining Stroller Strides, enjoying the workouts and the companionship of being surrounded by other Moms and their infants. After hearing just the minor details of our developing organization, she latched on and adopted us as her own. She’d been looking for an organization to support, and said "she’d finally found it." Our upcoming event, Strides for SIDS Mom Olympics is a product of Sunshine’s generous heart and dedication to the mission of our organization, helping us to reach out to our community. 

And so the journey continues thanks to the support of friends, family and God’s unending grace.

Will you help us honor Jacob and reach out to others by becoming a sponsor to our first fundraiser for Tiny Handprints?  If you live or are planning to visit the Nashville area, please come out and join us for Mom Olympics.  It will be a day filled with fun and prizes and proceeds could not go to a better cause.  Please tell all your friends.  God bless you all!

Judy

Update March 14, 2007

Happy Birthday to our precious little man.

Please visit Jacob's Birthday Page and share our memories and pictures of our adorable, baby boy.

http://www.catchanangel.com/Jacob.html

Jacob Hughes Williams - The Brightest Light In The Darkest Sky!

It is with a heavy, broken heart I tell you our family just lost the greatest joy and hero of our lives.  Jacob Hughes Williams, my grandson; nephew to Briana and Ryan and precious son to Stephanie and Ladd earned his heavenly wings last Tuesday.  We are devastated beyond words and Jacob is not only our hero, but our joy, and the light in our lives.  Stephanie wrote a letter I am adding here.  This is just part of the essence of Jacob and his legacy.

Glory in the Highest

Mon, 29 Jan 2007 09:49:56 -0800 (PST)
From: Stephanie Williams

stephaniewilliams01@yahoo.com
 

Subject: Glory in the Highest

Dear Friends:

First of all, let me say thank you for all the love, support and prayers you've sent over the past few days. We can feel your prayers...

I'm sure some of you are wondering how we're doing, how we're dealing with this situation. Let me assure you that we are not angry at GOD, nor do we feel anything but love and admiration for Jesus Christ our Lord and Savior because we know He's right here with us, that He understands our suffering and His heart is breaking for us. He tells us that "blessed are the grieving, for they shall be comforted" and that "All things work together for the good of those who love Him" (forgive me for not knowing the exact scripture).

Our God is an awesome God and we know that his Grace, and his Grace alone, is sufficient to carry us through this difficult time. This has only strengthened our faith. I know that our precious Jacob closed his eyes for his nap and opened them again to find Jesus waiting with open arms to scoop him up and steal all his sweet sugar. We have countless friends and families waiting in line to get a taste of his sweetness...too much sweetness for a dying world. I know that one day soon, I too will close my eyes to sleep and open them again only to see my savior waiting for me with my precious baby boy in his arms. Oh what a glorious day that will be!

There were many times over the course of Jacob's life I would find him "playing" with the angels we cannot see...laughing and smiling at the angels in his midst. Those memories bring me comfort now. I had a dream a little more than a month ago that I was walking around outside with Jacob bouncing in my arms, then suddenly, he was gone. I looked to the sky to find the warmest, brightest, most wonderful light I had ever seen. I knew immediately that God had taken Jacob from my arms to protect him from what was to come. I knew our time left here was short, and that my job was to encourage others to examine their hearts and make straight their paths so that they too may be lifted into heaven by our savior when he returns very soon.

Let me encourage you all now, if any of you do not know Jesus Christ as your personal Lord and Savior, please take a moment to invite Him into your hearts. Please encourage those around you to do the same. It will be the most important decision you will ever make. The end is near, friends.

If I don't see you before, I look forward to meeting you all in the air at His glorious appearing.

In Christ,
Stephanie & Ladd Williams

Our precious, loving, wonderful, joyful, beautiful Jacob will be the last name I add to this page.

It was started as a tribute to my daughter, Jennifer.  It was a means to allow me and the visitors to this site to easily check on families and children in dire need of prayer.  There are many such sites with Caring Bridge being just one of them.  My family has paid their dues and faced enough pain and heartbreak to last a lifetime.  We will continue to keep so many others who walk this path in our hearts and fervent prayers.  We don't need this page to be reminded to do that.

This page will end as a reminder of God's promises and faithfulness.  It will serve as a reminder of just how much we need each other and the importance of remaining in prayer.

But first and foremost, it will end in loving memory and honor of Jacob.  Precious Jacob, you have always been and will always be our greatest gift!!!  You are so very loved and missed!  Save us some sugar sweet baby - we'll hold you in our arms again soon!

It is my fervent prayer the day will soon come when there will be no more names to add to this page; no more angels who earn their wings and instead, this page will be a celebration of life, miracles and lasting cures.  Our precious Lord and Savior will return, wipe every tear from eyes and take us to our real home.  We may never meet on this earth, but if your heart is right with Him, we will meet in Heaven.  Until that day, you all remain in my heart and prayers.  May God bless you all!

With all my love,
Judy