Supporting families who have lost a child
Mission:
In February 2009, Berrefonds was founded by Christine Vandenhole and Wouter Van Hoye. When giving birth to their second son, they decided not to ask for gifts. Instead, Christine and Wouter asked for donations to set up a non-profit organization in honor of their first son Berre who the couple lost at 10 weeks of age.
What started out as a small-scale idea to support other parents in the loss of a baby has now grown into a warm organization that tries every day to make a difference for parents, grandparents, family, friends, and caregivers to cope with the greatest loss imaginable.
The ‘cherishing case’, a briefcase full of things and inspiration to make everlasting memories, was the first and most tangible project of Berrefonds. Today they do so much more, trying to give a voice to parents and to break the social taboo around the loss of a child, together.
Why It Matters:
Every year there are so many parents that are confronted with the death of a child, whether that be shortly after birth, due to an accident, or from suffering from a terrible illness. Every circumstance is a tragedy and an indescribable loss, from which the grieving process is unbearable.
Unfortunately, this grieving process is still not receiving appropriate attention within the professional care field, or even within society as a whole. The taboo surrounding the death of a child results in parents feeling isolated in their loss. Although progress has been made, on many different levels, there is still a lot of work to be done. That is why Berrefonds continues to dedicate itself with great love to all those families who lose a child throughout Belgium.
“Thanks for this great support. These are challenging times with Covid-19 and this support really makes a difference for us. It also felt good that team LEWIS immediately recognized where our pain point lies. We really look forward to working together”. – Christine Vandehole, founder of Berrefonds