Bridget’s Cradles is honored to host their annual Wave of Light event that will be held on Tuesday, October 15th, 2024, on Pregnancy & Infant Loss Remembrance Day, at Beech Lake in Wichita, Kansas. This year’s event is presented by Ascension Via Christi . Bereaved families can participate in this community candlelight vigil along with their friends and family.
Families will walk along a path featuring a light display of 50,000 pink, blue, and white lights in memory of their babies in Heaven in the Hope Walk sponsored by Christ Church. The event will conclude with a beautiful water lantern release on the lake sponsored by Trinity Sales.
This year Bridget’s Cradles is excited to announce that Wave of Light 2024 will feature live music by Josh Sanders. Josh competed earlier this year on Season 25 of NBC’s The Voice, finishing the competition as first runner-up.
Josh will be singing in memory of his baby boy, Leelynd Thomas, who went to Heaven just hours after his birth on March 27, 2020. Josh and his wife, Kendra, received a Bridget’s cradle for their son which was a blessing to them in the midst of their grief.
The Wave of Light will be a special night of hope and healing in remembrance of babies gone too soon.
EVENT DETAILS
When Is It?
Tuesday, October 15, 2024
6:00-8:30 PM | Beech Lake | Wichita, Kansas *You will receive a map with instructions when you register here.
Who is Invited?
This is a FREE event for families who have experienced pregnancy or infant loss, and their family and friends. Community members who want to support the cause are welcome to attend as well.
How Do I Register?
Everyone who plans to attend the Wave of Light event should register on Bridget’s Cradles’ website in order to receive a confirmation email with a map, specific driving instructions, and additional details about the event. You will also be given information on how to have your baby’s name read at the event. Please register here.
Order Wave of Light Apparel
Wave of Light “FEARFULLY AND WONDERFULLY MADE” shirts and hoodies are also available for purchase online. This apparel has been designed to be worn at any time during the year, especially during October Pregnancy & Infant Loss Awareness month. They can be purchased by anyone, including those who cannot attend the event on October 15th in Wichita, Kansas.
Bridget’s Cradles wants these shirts to remind grieving parents that their babies are fearfully and wonderfully made by God and never forgotten. The 2024 Wave of Light shirts are available in pink, blue, or gray and in short sleeve, long sleeve or hoodies. You can order yours here!
(Note: In order to receive your apparel in time for the event on October 15th, you must order your shirts by October 1st).
Sponsor Lights in Memory of a Baby
A donation of $100 to Bridget’s Cradles will allow you to sponsor a “Wave of Light” (a cluster of 5 light poles each 10 feet high) in memory of your baby. A personalized sign will be displayed in front of your baby’s light cluster at the event. Your baby’s name will also be included in the event program.
In addition, if you’d like to donate more than $100 or host a fundraiser to support the mission of Bridget’s Cradles, you can participate in the Shine Their Light fundraising campaign and sponsor the event in memory of your baby.
You will receive additional benefits depending on the amount you donate/raise (e.g., free t-shirts, your baby’s name on the shirts, website, etc). Memorial sponsorships are due by September 27th and the fundraiser closes on October 31st.
Please visit the Bridget’s Cradles website to find more information on sponsoring lights and the Shine Their Light fundraising campaign. There, you will also find a helpful FAQ section.
“We look forward to lighting up the night in memory of our babies in Heaven and sharing a night of hope with you!”
– Ashley Opliger, Founder + Executive Director of Bridget’s Cradles
Bridget’s Cradles is a nonprofit organization founded in Wichita, KS after Matt and Ashley Opliger’s daughter, Bridget Faith, was stillborn in October 2014. The ministry provides knitted and crocheted cradles to over 1,400 hospitals in all 50 states to hold babies who were born into Heaven during the second trimester of pregnancy.
Bridget’s Cradles also has a local support ministry called Hope Gatherings and provides online hope-filled resources for families grieving the loss of a baby including a podcast called Cradled in Hope.
