How One Mother’s Grief Became A National Support Network: In Honor Of Pregnancy And Infant Loss Remembrance Day

A biology graduate with a deeply analytical and scientific mind, Bernice has always been fascinated by the connection between emotional, mental, and physical well-being. Before founding Chasing the Rainbows, she built her career as a P&C licensed insurance broker, working in multiple states with a focus on medical malpractice. That role offered her a unique understanding of the complex relationships between doctors, medical systems, and patient care teams. 

But no degree, no training, no professional background could have prepared her for the personal journey that would ultimately redefine her life and ignite a movement for others like her. 

A Journey No Parent Should Walk Alone 

Bernice and her husband, Steven, began their family journey facing the challenges of PCOS and endometriosis, conditions that made conceiving difficult and uncertain for years. After they endured early pregnancy loss, and just when hope seemed out of reach, they were overjoyed to learn they were expecting twins. 

At 27 weeks and 5 days, complications arose during a routine ultrasound. Bernice was immediately placed on hospital bed rest, hopeful for six more weeks of stability. But just two days later, an emergency C-section changed everything. 

Brooke Marie entered the world at 28 weeks, tiny but mighty, breathing and fighting from her very first moment. For weeks, she grew stronger in the NICU, reaching milestones that gave her parents hope they would soon bring her home. 

They were just days away from that moment when, at five and a half weeks old, everything shifted again during the stillness of a 4 a.m. phone call. Brooke had become ill; she had vomited breastmilk, her belly had hardened, and the medical team needed them at the hospital immediately. Despite every effort, within hours, Brooke’s fragile body could no longer fight. 

She passed away in her mother’s arms. 

When the System Fails the Brokenhearted 

In the days that followed, Bernice was handed a list of grief resources: a single, once-a-month support group and a few phone numbers. She called 15 therapists, offering to pay privately if insurance wasn’t accepted. Her message was simple: “My daughter died in my arms. Please, call me back.”

No one did. 

The silence that followed that loss was deafening, a silence that thousands of grieving parents still experience every single day. 

And when Bernice became pregnant again, a “rainbow pregnancy” after loss, the emotional turmoil resurfaced. Birth trauma, medical anxiety, and the constant fear of history repeating itself compounded an already heavy grief. “Reliving trauma without support is not okay,” she says. “Parents like us deserve better.” 

From Grief to Growth: The Birth of Chasing the Rainbows 

Out of that pain, something extraordinary took root. 

Bernice founded Chasing the Rainbows, a nonprofit organization dedicated to supporting families through infertility, pregnancy loss, infant loss, and pregnancy after loss. The mission is simple but revolutionary: to ensure that no one navigating these storms ever has to do it alone again. 

What began as a small support effort quickly evolved into a nationwide community of healing and hope, one that operates with compassion, flexibility, and accessibility at its core. 

Support When You Need It, Not When the Calendar Allows 

Unlike traditional grief groups that meet monthly, Chasing the Rainbows offers 17 support groups every week, up to 4 groups a day held morning, afternoon, and evening, giving grieving parents the freedom to connect when they need it most. 

Each volunteer and mentor is trauma-informed, trained to recognize the nuances of complex grief and trauma responses. Parents can be paired with a peer mentor, someone who shares a similar lived experience, for daily check-ins that offer comfort, understanding, and connection. 

The organization also provides a variety of free, holistic support options: 

• Cry It Out Loud Podcast – Honest, heart-opening conversations on grief, healing, and hope.

• Trauma Therapy Partnerships – Access to specialized counseling. 

• Coping Care Packages – Thoughtful bundles of comfort delivered to families navigating loss.

• Mindful Movement Sessions – Live and recorded yoga, breathwork, and nervous system regulation exercises. 

• Private Online Communities – Safe, private spaces for connection and conversation.

• Awareness Events & Resource Referrals – Connecting families with additional grief and trauma support without the burden of searching during a crisis. 

It’s not about forcing healing into a schedule. It’s about meeting people where they are.

Every Loss Matters, and Every Baby Does Too 

Today, Chasing the Rainbows has grown beyond what Bernice once imagined, now reaching families in all 50 states, uniting a powerful community of survivors, advocates, and healers. Every October, the organization leads the Every Baby Loss Matters campaign, breaking the silence surrounding pregnancy and infant loss. On October 15th, Pregnancy and Infant Loss Remembrance Day, over 70 landmarks across the U.S. light up in solidarity, creating a breathtaking symbol of love, remembrance, and collective healing. 

As Bernice often reminds others: 

“This is the only time in life someone says, ‘You can have another one,’ or other insensitive comments in response to losing someone. When you lose a parent, no one says, ‘At least you have another one.’ Babies do not replace babies. 

Miscarriage makes you feel like you misplaced something like it was a mistake, a mishap, words that often carry blame, shame, and guilt. We’re changing that language to early baby loss, because this was a baby lost. When you lose a parent, you lose your past. When you lose a baby, you lose your future.” 

Chasing the Rainbows movement is rooted in empathy, education, and empowerment. Hope grows here. Healing grows here. 

And as Chasing the Rainbows continues to expand, the organization is calling for volunteers, supporters, and partners to help sustain and grow its free, life-changing support programs ensuring that no grieving parent is ever left in the dark again. 

Because when we chase the rainbows together, we light the way for one another. Join the movement or learn how to get involved at: BabyLossAwareness.org