Wayne and Kristi Hummer and son Calan are working to turn their family’s loss into a comfort to others.
In the fall of 2017 the Hummers were expecting the arrival of a baby girl. Tragedy struck and their baby girl, Lynnley Rose, was stillborn just four days before her scheduled delivery date. The hospital was equipped with a “Cuddle Cot”, which allowed the Hummers to have time to spend with their little girl, in their hospital room, as they said goodbye.
A Cuddle Cot is a machine that allows families that have suffered the loss of a child, more time to form a bond with their child as they grieve and say goodbye. Not all hospitals are equipped with Cuddle Cots. It is an expense that is often cut from a tight budget.
In an effort to turn their loss into a comfort to other families, the Hummers started a GoFundMe campaign to purchase additional Cuddle Cots for the hospital. Supported by family, friends and coworkers, the GoFundMe raised nearly $19,000.
After learning that there are roughly 24,000 stillbirths per year in the United States, Wayne and Kristi decided to continue their effort to help other grieving families and started a non-profit organization, Lynnley’s Light.
The goal of Lynnley’s Light is to provide Cuddle Cots to hospitals and other birth care facilities that do not have the resources to provide them to all families that suffer from such a devastating loss. Unfortunately, many families are not afforded the gift of time with their child, due to a lack of devices in the local area, high cost, or challenging maintenance needs. “We had one (Cuddle Cot) when we lost Lynnley and I personally can’t imagine what it would have been like not to have that time with her,” Hummer explained.
Adding, “Lynnley’s Light allows us to provide some form of comfort to other grieving families in our little girl’s name”.
The first major fundraiser for Lynnley’s Light was “LAX gives Back” in cooperation with the Lancaster-Lebanon League Lacrosse teams. At the time Hummer was also a lacrosse coach in the Lancaster-Lebanon League.
Using funds raised after Lynnley’s death, the Hummers and Lynnley’s Light donated one Cuddle Cot to Reading Hospital, Reading, PA, in June. Lynley’s Light has since raised enough to provide three more for Penn State Health St. Joseph, UPMC Pinnacle Lititz and WellSpan Good Samaritan Hospital in Lebanon.
If you would like to support Lynnley’s Light, please contact Wayne Hummer at wghummer@elagroup.com.