Anita Kay Manning | Featured Story

This year, we had the pleasure of welcoming bereaved mother Pat Manning to Wave of Light to attend her first memorial event in honor of her daughter, Anita Kay Manning, born into Heaven in 1956. Pat shared that Wave of Light was an incredibly healing experience for her as it was the first time she could openly honor and grieve her daughter.

Hear her story in her own words...

Tell us about your daughter, Anita Kay Manning.

My uneventful pregnancy and second C-section preceded Anita’s birth. After delivery, her lungs did not expand, and by evening, we were told she had died. The next day, she was brought to my hospital room, where I got to hold her for a few minutes.

What was it like grieving a baby in the 1950s? Did you feel you had permission to grieve? Did you receive any support?

There was no one but my grieving husband to comfort me. I learned to keep my sorrow to myself after three women who were close relatives made comments which hurt rather than helped. Sixty-eight years later, I believe grieving mothers during that time typically received very little sympathy or support.

What was it like acknowledging Anita at Wave of Light? Share what the experience meant to you.

This year at Wave of Light, with my family surrounding me, I felt the balm of healing which had been missing. For the first time I can look at the photos of Anita without tears. They remind me when my life ends on this earth, I will spend eternity with her.

Do you have any words of encouragement for other moms who lost a baby many years ago?

I resisted attending Wave of Light for fear it would cause me to relive my grief. When I saw how many others traveled the same road, I experienced a miracle, and my fear turned into thankfulness for Bridget’s Cradles.

Written by Pat Manning, mother of Anita Kay Manning, born on 11/23/1956.

Please leave some love and encouragement for Pat and her family in the comments below. We appreciate your prayers for her and the Manning family.

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