Relief Society Makes “Angel Gowns” for Deceased Infants to Comfort Grieving Families
Contributed By Kelly Foss, Church News contributor
Sisters from the Nottingham Country Ward in the Katy Texas Stake gather to hand make “angel gowns,” or little burial gowns, for babies who pass away prior to or shortly after birth. Photo by Abby Keesler.
Article Highlights
- The Nottingham Country Ward made more than 150 “angel gowns.”
- The little burial gowns were created from donated wedding dresses.
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When the Relief Society presidency of the Katy Texas Stake were planning their fall social held in conjunction with the broadcast of the general women’s session of October general conference, they turned to the JustServe.org site to find meaningful service opportunities.
They selected a project for the Angel Gowns Foundation organization. The sisters would create from donated wedding dresses little burial gowns for babies who pass away prior to or shortly after birth.
Then Hurricane Harvey hit and the service project was canceled, allowing LDS members to help with the more immediate needs of hurricane disaster relief in the community. But one of the congregations had already started working on these service projects.
Angel gowns
The Nottingham Country Ward took this service request and made it personal. They had two families who had each lost a baby within the past year, and both families had been recipients of the beautiful angel burial gowns at the hospital.
Daisy and Seth Page lost their daughter, Isabel Rose, October 2016, at 25 weeks. She had lived for only four days. Abby and Wesley Keesler lost their son, Oliver David, February 2017, at 33 weeks, in utero. In honor of baby Isabel and baby Oliver, the Nottingham Country Ward Young Women and Relief Society organizations set a goal of sewing 50 baby burial gowns.
Daisy Page shares a display of mementos from her daughter Isabel Rose, who passed away only four days after birth. Photo by Lindsay Harper.
Cutting out the little patterns for the gowns took time, and many donated wedding dresses were needed. Keesler, the mother of baby Oliver, took on this challenge. The Emmanuel Episcopal Church, where Angel Gowns Foundation meets each month, donated seven bridal dresses for the goal of 70 baby burial gowns. But as it turned out, that was not enough for what Keesler, an experienced seamstress, had in mind. The project became a very tender and personal opportunity.
“This was a way to give back and serve those who had served me and my family and share my talents in the process,” she said.
With her sister-in-law, Tiffany Hansen, and other sisters, including Daisy Page, Keesler cut patterns out of additional wedding gowns donated by members of the ward.
Page recalled, “When I heard about doing the baby gowns project, I was excited and grateful. After my baby passed away I wanted to do whatever I could to support the charity that had donated the beautiful baby angel gown to our daughter, Isabel Rose. I donated my own wedding dress and a few extra ones from friends and family. But having the opportunity to not only donate the wedding dresses but to actually make something beautiful out of them was a privilege and a blessing.”
Abby Keesler displays memories of her son Oliver David, who died in utero at 33 weeks. Photo by Lindsay Harper.
Wedding dresses
After hundreds of hours of preparation work and cutting out the tiny patterns, the kits were prepared for a sewing day, hosted at Abby’s house. More than 30 sisters of the Nottingham Country Ward came that day and on additional days. The goal of 50 burial gowns was quickly met, but the efforts did not stop. There were still more donated wedding dresses to cut, and the work continued.
Barbara Salt, the Relief Society president for the Nottingham Country Ward, shared her thoughts when donating her own mother’s wedding gown, “I have been holding onto my mother’s wedding dress for all of these years. I couldn’t part with it until this opportunity came to donate it to this great cause. What joy fills my heart to see her dress bless a grieving family.”
A display shows an “angel gown” made by the Nottingham Country Ward. Photo by Lindsay Harper.
When Hurricane Harvey hit the Houston area, shortly after the big sewing day, some sisters who had taken extra kits home with them kept sewing as the storm brewed. Houston resident Michelle Schmidt sewed 15 gowns during the four-day storm. Michelle exclaimed, “We still had power and were not in danger of initial flooding. But everyone was still nervous, especially with all the tornado and flash flood warnings. I just kept sewing to calm my nerves and focus on something positive.”
Keesler and her sister-in-law, Hansen, had to evacuate during the storm but took gowns with them and hand sewed the gowns with buttons, bows, and embellishments as they waited to return to their homes.
In total, the sisters of the Nottingham Country Ward sewed 152 baby burial gowns. These gowns were on display during the broadcast of the general women’s session in a spirit of handiwork and reverence for the sweet souls being served. Most of the gowns were delivered to the Angel Gowns Foundation organization at the Emmanuel Episcopal Church, while Abby and Daisy took some to the hospitals that cared for them when they lost their babies.
A display shows “angel gowns” made by the Nottingham Country Ward. Photo by Lindsay Harper.
With all the service rendered during Hurricane Harvey, these tender acts of service complimented all the Mormon Helping Hands efforts. Katy Stake Relief Society president, Kim Higbee, said, “It is hard to imagine what it must be like to lose a baby. … But our sisters have derived great joy in knowing that something quite small … might bring a measure of peace and joy to someone else.”
A display shows “angel gowns” made by the Nottingham Country Ward. Photo by Lindsay Harper.
A display shows “angel gowns” made by the Nottingham Country Ward. Photo by Lindsay Harper.
A display shows an “angel gown” made by the Nottingham Country Ward. Photo by Lindsay Harper.
A display shows “angel gowns” made by the Nottingham Country Ward. Photo by Lindsay Harper.
A display shows an “angel gown” made by the Nottingham Country Ward. Photo by Lindsay Harper.
The Nottingham Country Ward made more than 150 “angel gowns” to be donated to families who have lost an infant prior to or shortly after birth. Photo by Abby Keesler.
A display shows an “angel gown” made by the Nottingham Country Ward. Photo by Lindsay Harper.
