Better Not Bitter

Since Kathy and Shawn Spradley tragically lost their son Holton to SIDS on March 28, 2007, they have worked everyday to be, “Better, not Bitter.” It is with this motto that they have tirelessly worked to raise $160,000 for First Candle in Holton’s memory.

This year the Spradley family is gearing up for their 5^th Annual Holton’s Drive for SIDS. The golf tournament will be held at Texas Star Golf Course in Euless, TX.  This larger venue was selected because the Spradley family hopes that in it’s fifth year, the tournament will be even bigger then in years past.

The tournament has become an incredibly important piece of the Spradley’s lives. The entire family, Kathy, Shawn, Hudson, and Nash take the time not only to commemorate Holton’s short life, but also to raise funds and awareness in Holton’s memory. This event and the lives it has touched is part of Holton’s legacy. Kathy Spradley shares, “I can proudly say that his short 5 months mean more to this world than my 38 years. It is our hope that we help take this away from people and help ease the pain for those who have experienced it.”

Holton’s Drive for SIDS starts with a golf tournament. The tournament uses the 4-player scramble format where each team of four starts at the same time at different holes. The day’s golfing is followed by a banquet dinner with live and silent auctions. Once the meal is complete, Shawn Spradley takes a few moments to appreciate all who have worked to make the tournament possible, to remember Holton’s life, and to recognize as a group the impact that he’s had across the country.

The golf tournament is just one way that the Spradley family works with First Candle to fight SIDS. In 2009 they spoke to members of congress in Washington, DC about legislation for SIDS funding. They’ve also donated their time to appear in First Candle’s promotional video, “Who We Are.”

As many of First Candle’s families will attest, the loss of your baby changes you forever. The Spradley family’s journey is forever different. Each step along the way they give to others, work to keep Holton’s memory alive, and always look back on their motto of, “Better not Bitter.”

To learn more about the 5^th Annual Holton’s Drive for SIDS and to view photos and footage from past tournaments, go to http://www.holtonsdriveforsids.com/

In The News

• First Candle teams with the Lancet Medical Journal
• Sudden and Unexpected Death Training
  
• The Certificate of Stillbirth Bill Passes in New York
• Certificate of Stillbirth Bill Passes in Pennsylvania Senate
• First Candle will host the 2012 International Conference

Counselor Corner

Through the Counselor’s Corner section of our website, we hope to provide a place that will offer some additional support in your grieving. It includes ideas and suggestions from our Bereavement Specialist, Lori Simmons as well as contributions from families that have been effected by these types of losses.  We look forward to your comments and contributions to make this as helpful as possible. In having the privilege to hear from families, we understand that having a connection with other grieving families can be very helpful. Readers will be the greatest resource and asset as this area continues to develop. You can email Lori Simmons at lori@firstcandle.org.

Health Education Specialist Corner

First Candle launched a Health Education Specialist Corner on our website. It features information on infant health and safe sleep practices across the nation. Training for professionals and the community is a key component of the educational outreach efforts of First Candle and the National Sudden Unexpected Infant/Child Death and Pregnancy Loss Program Support Center (PSC). Our Health Education Specialist, Hanan Kallash, RN MS will lead topics and encourage discussion, feedback and interaction amongst our professionals. Please contact Hanan if you have specific questions or topics you would like to see addressed Hanan.Kallash@firstcandle.org.

Highlighted Researcher

Dr. Mana Parast received her Ph.D. in Cell Biology and her M.D. from the University of Virginia, Charlottesville, VA. During that time, she held the prestigious Medical Scientist Training Program fellowship. Dr. Parast then completed residency training in anatomic pathology at Emory University, Atlanta Georgia. In July 2005, Dr. Parast moved to Brigham and Women’s Hospital in affiliation with Harvard Medical School in Boston. There, she completed additional clinical training in the area of Gynecologic and Perinatal Pathology, and later combined subspecialty sign-out with laboratory research, initially as a fellow and later as an instructor at Harvard Medical School.  In 2008, she moved to University of California San Diego.  Her clinical research interests include stillbirth-associated placental pathology, in particular umbilical cord accidents.

Mana Parast, MD will be presenting at the Stillbirth Summit 201, October 6-8, 2011 in Bloomington, Minnesota. She will present on Placental Pathology in Obstructive Lesions of the Umbilical Cord.

http://www.starlegacyfoundation.org/Roundtable%20Agenda.php