Now I Lay Me Down to Sleep

I received the horrible news, "I'm sorry but your baby is incompatible with life" during my pregnancy in 2013. I was carrying twins.
I contacted NILMDTS prior to delivery to get on their "radar" and explain my situation on the advice of a labor and delivery nurse.
We called Mark Sweeney, the photographer while I was in labor as we knew that there would only be a very short window to capture my babies both alive and together since they would be born premature.
Mark came to the hospital and waited patiently for delivery and captured some incredibly beautiful pictures. Pictures that truly captured the moment. I only had 10 minutes to enjoy both of my babies. Time I will never have again.
I will never again be able to hold both of my babies together. I look at these pictures everyday. Along with a few trinkets, they are all I have to remember my precious baby. These pictures have provided me more comfort than any therapist ever could!
I live in Vermont, where there are only 2 NILMDTS photographers to cover our entire state. I'm a nurse at the hospital which I delivered and I have seen Mark here several times since to help other familes cope with their loss. Such a caring person to offer his talent during such a difficult time! An amazing heart!
To anyone who would benefit from NILMDTS, please, ask! You will not regret it! And to potential donors, please, please, donate!

We absolutely loved our pictures. The photographer was wonderful. He arrived at the hospital to take pictures of our daughter. He had the opportunity to interact with my family. They all said great things about him. The photographer, Stuart, had to come back 2 days later in order to take our family pictures. I was too sick to have any pictures the day of delivery. Again, he was wonderful because he did not have to do this. This says a lot about NILMDTS. They have only the best working for them. We are beyond happy with the pictures. Stuart did such an awesome job capturing everything we wanted in our pictures. We will be forever grateful to Stuart, NILMDTS and our pictures. Our daughter is now an angel and all we have left are our memories of her and these touching photographs. Thank you so much!

This organization was an incredible help to me as I was coping with the impending birth of my son that we knew was unlikely to be with us for very long. It was incredibly reassuring to know that we would have beautiful photographs to remember our treasured son. Although his time with us was limited, our memories will always be clear. I have also become a donor to the organization to try to make it available to every parent facing a poor prenatal diagnosis, stillbirth, or other early infant losses.

As both a staff member of a non-profit and a recipient of the incredible services of NILMDTS, I know this organization is a shining example of the value of philanthropy. As a global non-profit, managed and run by a very small staff, the reach of their program is breathtaking and truly life changing for bereaved parents. I encourage you to review their 990 to see the amount of program provided on a modest budget of less than $300,000 per year. This lean staff manage everything from attending healthcare conferences, creating and sharing literature with caregivers across the world, coordinating photographer recruitment and training, coordinating thousands of volunteers, managing the brand so that families are comfortable with a stranger joining them at a most vulnerable time, and so much more. I'm confident that my dollars are put to strong, meaningful and ethical use and will continue to give for years to come.

While my greatest wish is that there wasn't a need for bereavement photography for families of infants, I do hope to see their success grow as there are thousands of families that do not receive this amazing gift due to their limited reach. With more money, quite simply, they can reach more families through the caregivers and communities.

This is an amazing non-profit that surely deserves everyones donation! They capture *last of life* moments for sick and dying children and contribute hundreds of pictures for memories. Excellent photography in a very emotional and turbulant climate. They were there with just one phone call when the decisions were made about my premature grandson. I highly recommend this non-profit! 5 stars!