Butterfly Moon

In 2014 a group of friends founded Butterfly Moon in 2014. Butterfly Moon is a Not for Profit 501 (c)(3) organization that was created in loving memory of our founder’s daughter, Isabella Moon and all babies gone too soon. We are a dedicated group of bereaved parents, friends and volunteers that want to ensure that bereavement programs in our area (WNY) hospitals are fully funded and able to support the families that are forced to live through the devastating, life altering event of loosing a child.

Who

We are made up of a group of bereaved parents, friends and family members. A group of nine founded and created this group in 2014.

why

On a small but meaningful scale we want to make a difference and have an impact in easing the pain of families who are faced with this tragedy. We know first hand the pain of loss and we want to walk beside those who experience it.

where

We are partnering with local hospitals in Western New York. Starting with the highest impacted hospitals in the area and working our way out. Our goal is to provide support to all hospitals in Western New York and it’s surrounding areas.

"Our human Compassion binds us the one to the other--not in pity or patronizingly, but as human beings who have learnt how to turn our common suffering into hope for the future" ~Nelson Mandela

beginnings

Hello, I’m Vivian the founder of Butterfly Moon. After my loss I needed something to make my life feel worthwhile again. I had family and friends rallying for me, the person who I was died along with my daughter and I needed to rebuild myself. After some time it was time to turn my grief into action, I assembled a group of friends to try and make an impact. We are tied by the bond of grief. We each have a different story, tied to (our) babies, who we still and will always continue to love and remember. We know first hand how important it is to have the right resources available for support when tragedy strikes unexpectedly. We aim to help provide resources to hospitals, organizations and families through our fundraising efforts, so that they can provide a more nurturing and peaceful experience to families faced with devastating of loss.

We Remember

"the babies born sleeping. those we carried but never held, those we held but could not take home, those who came home but could not stay." October is Pregnancy & Infant Loss Awareness Month.

Events

The month of October is Pregnancy and Infant Loss Awareness Month. Each year during the month of October we host a fundraiser. All proceeds are used to fund and support the bereavement programs across Western New York as well as directly impacting our bereaved families. Our very first event took place in October of 2014.

Other Events

Besides our basket raffles we host a multitude of other events throughout the year (meat raffles, greeting card sales, comedy club nights, etc). We’ve partnered with business such as Barnes and Noble (wrapping gifts for the holidays) and restaurants such as Panera's, these businesses donate a portion of the proceeds earned during these events to us.

Butterfly Moon's Bottles for Books

Butterfly Moon has partnered with Bottle Junction. You can help the earth by recycling and help Butterfly Moon raise funds to support families at the same time. Butterfly Moon uses the funds from recycling to purchase books for local hospitals, schools and care facilities. Visit us on Facebook to find out locations.

What is our money used for?

Our goals are simple, they are to serve and to ensure that grieving families are taken care of and that hospitals are able to adequately support families through their grief. To date the funds we have raised and the monies that have been donated to us have been used to purchase cuddle cots and all accessories to date we have placed cuddle cots in Oishei Children's Hospital of Buffalo (2), Millard Fillmore Suburban Hospital (2), Niagara Memorial Hospital (1), United Memorial in Batavia (1) and Eastern Niagara Hospital (1). We also purchase supplies to create memory boxes, purchase all the items to go in memory boxes, purchase books for hospitals and care facilities. We have provided for families that were struggling to find the means to give their children a proper burial or service. We are striving to be present as much as we can in people's lives in order to make sure that they know they are not alone and that they are cared for.

Second Cuddle Cot Donation to Millard Fillmore Suburban Hospital, June 2021.

Women and Children's hosptial of Buffalo presentation of cuddle cot.

Eastern Niagara Hospital cuddle cot presentation.

Millard Fillmore Suburban cuddle cot presentation.

Niagara Memorial Hospital presentation of cuddle cot and Moba basket.

for more information on our basket raffles and other events like and join our FB page at

https://www.facebook.com/butterflymoon2014/

Butterfly Kiss Fund

The Butterfly Kiss Fund was established in 2016. It was established to provide financial support to families in Western New York who have experienced the loss of their child. That can mean providing funds for burial, cremation or memorial expenses. If you are interested in more information or an application please email us at fundraising.gals@gmail.com.

Butterfly Wings Fund

This fund was created in January 2020 in order to help WNY schools address the impact of grief on their students. Grief can be devastating and debilitating and our children need to be supported. We can help provide resources to help students understand how they can navigate these intense emotions. School officials can email us for an application at fundraising.gals@gmail.com.

Donate/Contact Information

We are so grateful for all of the support we have received. We cannot do this without your donations and partnerships. Whether you choose to donate to a specific event or donate or our overarching goals, your donation will be put to good use. You can also earmark the monies you are donating by indicating how you would like us to channel those funds.

To donate you can send a check to:

Butterfly Moon, inc

PO Box 823

Getzville, New York 14068

Contact us:

fundraising.gals@gmail.com

https://www.facebook.com/butterflymoon2014/