Sometimes the easiest way to stay connected isn’t through email or forms—it’s simply through familiar, everyday spaces.

Our Executive Director, Michelle Cramer, and Director of Support, Michelle Slavens (affectionately called “Michelle Squared” by many of our recipients), are both available to connect with you on Facebook. 

There is never any expectation to engage, respond, or share. You are welcome to simply follow along quietly, or reach out if and when it feels right.

 

As a journey family, you qualify for free annual photo sessions for as long as your child is with you.

These sessions are a way to:

• Capture your child’s growth and milestones
• Preserve meaningful moments in the midst of a complex journey
• Celebrate your family’s strength, love, and resilience

They do not have to be at the same time each year, but you do only get one a year (with the exception of medical milestones below).

Whenever possible, we will match you with the same photographer to create a sense of comfort and familiarity.

If your child is facing a major surgery or invasive treatment, you may qualify for an additional photo session.

Many families have shared how meaningful it is to have images from these moments—capturing their child’s strength and the love surrounding them before significant medical events.

Our Grief Recovery Program is available whenever you feel ready—whether that’s now, months from now, or years down the road.

This program is designed to help you:

• Process the weight of your loss in a healthy, supported way
• Navigate the complexities of grief that others often don’t understand
• Build life around your grief while still honoring your child

There is no pressure to participate. It will always be here when you are ready.

Through our Legacy of Hope Program, we offer support for children navigating the emotional weight of this journey.

This includes:

• Support for medically fragile children who are aware of and processing the limitations of their diagnosis
• Support for siblings experiencing anticipatory grief and the impact of having a medically complex brother or sister
• Children’s Grief Day Camps & periodic programming designed to help kids express and process their emotions in healthy, supported ways

Children often grieve differently—and sometimes quietly. This program is designed to meet them where they are and give them tools to carry both their grief and their love forward.

No one understands this journey quite like another family living it.

If you would like, we can:

• Connect you with another family facing a similar diagnosis or experience
• Help foster relationships that provide encouragement, understanding, and shared perspective

Many of these connections become lasting friendships—built on the simple but powerful truth: they get it.

In many of our service areas, we offer opportunities to connect in person through family-centered events, including:

• Making Memories Day (Annual Carnival) – A day of fun, connection, and community in Springfield, Missouri
• Holiday Mini Sessions – Seasonal photo experiences for your family, including Santa minis on larger service areas
• Recipient Picnics & Gatherings – Relaxed opportunities to meet other families who understand your world

These spaces are designed to feel safe, welcoming, and free of explanation.

Caring for a medically fragile child is filled with love—but also exhaustion, fear, and uncertainty.

You may feel:

• Overwhelmed by the constant medical demands
• Isolated in an experience few truly understand
• Grief for the life you imagined for your child and your family

This kind of grief is real. And it deserves to be acknowledged.

There will be days when you feel strong. And there will be days when everything feels like too much. Both are part of this journey.

You are not expected to:

• Hold it all together all the time
• Stay positive for everyone else
• Carry this without support

You are allowed to feel everything that comes with this. And you don’t have to carry it alone.

We are here. Whether you need:

• Someone to talk to
• Help finding resources
• Encouragement on a hard day
• Or simply a reminder that you are not alone

And if we don’t have the answer, we will do everything we can to help you find it.

This journey is not something you chose—but it is one you are navigating with incredible love and strength. And you don’t have to do it by yourself.