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Austin’s Legacy: Parents Fundraise to Give Bears of Hope

By Sophie Poredos

A loving Mother and Father have raised more than $14,000 to deliver Cuddle Cots for grieving parents, in honour of their baby boy, Austin.

In Australia, six babies are stillborn everyday, and one in four pregnancies end in loss. Taneal Pond and her husband, Bradley Pond, experienced this devastating loss with their child, Austin Jeffrey Pond.

Whilst grieving the loss of their child, the parents were able to spend more time with their son through a donated ‘Cuddle Cot’, fundraised to the hospital on behalf of another family’s child, Jesse Bowles. Cuddle Cots are an initiative of Bears of Hope, which is a charity that provides free pregnancy and infant loss support to families after experiencing the devastating loss of their baby. They are designed to keep the baby’s temperature cooler, allowing parents to spend days with their child before they have to say goodbye.

Taneal spoke about the incredible support of Northwest Private Hospital during their grieving process. Her mission to give back and offer other families hope started with a small teddy bear.

“It’s been such a wonderful experience with Bears of Hope. The first thing we were given was a teddy, donated in honour of Josiah Finn. It let me know that people weren’t alone, and that people have been through this before. I don’t know who these people are, but these people were okay, and we would be too”.

After her experience in the hospital, Taneal and her husband wanted to give back to the community and provide other parents with bears. However, they soon raised $6,500 necessary for a Cuddle Cot at Northwest Private:

“Throughout this, we’ve been so lucky to be surrounded by an amazing network of family and friends. We didn’t think that we would raise this much. We contacted Bears of Hope and within two weeks we had the Cuddle Cot at our house, [which we were able to assemble ourselves]. Bears of Hope was fantastic, and we decided we wanted to be directly involved in that process.”

Caption Teneal Pond And Bradley Pond With Their Two Children Austin’s Legacy: Parents Fundraise To Give Bears Of Hope
Teneal pond and bradley pond with their two children.

The couple continued their efforts, asking people to donate bears in Austin’s name, hoping he could offer the same comfort they received to others. Taneal and Bradley’s fundraising efforts didn’t stop there. With the support of community and friends, they were able to fundraise for a second cot, which was sent to King Edward Hospital in Perth.

“We asked Bears of Hope to put a photo of Austin in the Cuddle Cot box, so that he will never be unnoticed. Seeing Josiah’s name on that bear truly provided us hope and we really wish that seeing Austin’s name on a bear can provide hope to other families”.

The 29-year old Mother and 31-year old Father also have a 3 and a half yearold daughter, Mackenzie, which Taneal has described as her beacon of hope:

“We’ve both had to be parents for our daughter who has been such a trooper. My daughter has been such a light for us to keep on going, without my husband and daughter – I don’t know where I would be right now”.

However, Taneal also wanted to remind the community on how Dads can often be forgotten in the process of grief:

“It’s so hard for husbands to stand by and watch their wives go through that. It’s just as much our journey for both of us. My husband wanted to share, ‘I’m just sitting in the hospital thinking of all the moments I had with my Dad that I’ve lost with my son, even little things like teaching him how to drive or brewing beers together’”.

Taneal wanted her story to let other families and Mothers know that they aren’t alone in their grief.

Caption One Of The 6500 Cuddle Cots Fundraised By The Pond S Pg. 7 Copy E1728966464882 Austin’s Legacy: Parents Fundraise To Give Bears Of Hope
One of the $6,500 cuddle cots fundraised by the pond’s.

“My first advice is it’s so easy to feel so alone but it’s really important to remember that you’re not alone. Infant loss feels like your world is crumbling around you, but you need to lean on those pillars around you with your community and family. There are people that have walked this path before. I also think it’s very comforting to try and make something from such a tragedy – for us doing the fundraiser was keeping our memory of Austin alive”.

Taneal and Bradley are asking people to continue Austin’s legacy through their fundraiser;‘Make a Difference, For Austin Jeffrey Pond’ and provide other hospitals and families in need, with vital resources for grief support.

Bears of Hope also provides other support services including private counselling sessions and counsellor facilitated support groups and workshops.

If this story has raised concerns with you, you can reach out to Bears of Hope’s free grief counselling hot-line on 1300 11 HOPE.

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