My niece in her 33rd week of pregnancy gave birth to a stillborn baby. A stillbirth is any baby born with no signs of life after 24 weeks of pregnancy.

When it came time to bury the baby, I found out that depending on which funeral home you went to, different things where available. This is the second child my niece has lost.

Her first child lived for four days. When the funeral arrangements where made, she was able to have the baby embalmed, placed in a casket and have a showing. With the second one, she was told by one funeral home that the only thing they offered was cremation. They considered the baby a fetus.

The baby didn’t take a breath so it couldn’t be embalmed, therefore they only offered cremation.

How uncaring can a place like this be? After all, it is supposed to be the in business of offering personal service and being sensitive to a person’s loss at all times. Because she thought every place was the same, she had the baby cremated.

I wanted to know what others offered, so I called around. I found that many other things where offered. Even though this baby couldn’t be embalmed, they would do what they could to ease everyone’s loss. Others understood that this was a baby and a great loss to everyone. No matter what it is that you are looking for, it is better to shop around.

Doris Daigle, Lewiston