9th – 15th October
Baby Loss Awareness Week provides the opportunity for parents and whānau around New Zealand to come together and remember the lives of their babies who have died. We acknowledge the lives and deaths of all babies, no matter what their gestation, length of life or how they died.
It is also a chance to highlight the work done by Sands around New Zealand. The aims for the week are:
- To promote 15th October as International Pregnancy and Infant Loss Remembrance Day.
- To promote the Annual Global Wave of Light and other events or services where parents can publicly acknowledge their babies.
- To raise awareness and increase understanding of the impact of baby loss amongst the wider community.
- To invite all Sands parents, whānau and friends to our Annual Remembrance Day and other events. See event details below.
Annual Remembrance Day – Sunday 12th October 2025
The service this year was beautiful, offering warmth and hope, and was well attended. It was wonderful to see families we had not seen for a while, and also to be able to welcome newly bereaved parents. Thank you to the amazing volunteers from Good Bitches baking who kindly provided us with some yummy treats, and also to Dean Anne Mills and Celebrant Kelly Townsend who lead our beautiful service.
Global Wave of Light – Wednesday 15th October
International Pregnancy and Infant Loss Remembrance Day is recognised across the world, where families gather and take part in the Global Wave of Light from home or at organised services. This involves lighting a candle at 7pm to burn for 1 hour in memory of all the babies who lit up our lives for such a short time. We begin the wave of light in Aotearoa, setting off a continuous wave of light and aroha that wraps around the globe.
We encourage everybody to join in from the comfort of your own home or to attend one of the following events:
Candle Lighting Ceremony for the Global Wave of Light
Celebrant Kelly Townsend and Pip from Auckland Memorial Park & Cemetery, are proud to host a free Wave of Light Remembrance Ceremony with those who are grieving a baby lost during pregnancy or after birth. This will be a special evening of peace, love and remembrance to honour and remember all loved and longed for babies gone too soon.
Wednesday October 15th 2025 – 6:30pm
Settler’s Cottage, Auckland Memorial Park & Cemetery – 2163 East Coast Road, Silverdale, Auckland
The ceremony will start at 6:30pm with candle lighting at 7pm, followed by refreshments.
This is a free event, but an RSVP with numbers is required for catering purposes. RSVP to Pip 022 353 4241.
Sands NZ Online Global Wave of Light Service
Sands NZ are again providing an online service this year, with Sands Canterbury and Canterbury Memorial Gardens as hosts. Please use this link if you would like to join the service: https://shorturl.at/DSsMD
Join from 6:50pm, with the service starting at 7pm.
Light Up Aotearoa
For the past few years, Sands NZ has organised for landmarks across Aotearoa to be lit up in blue, pink and purple for Baby Loss Awareness Week. We thank the councils, organisations, and businesses who participate to raise awareness of pregnancy and baby loss and acknowledging the whānau in their area who have suffered such a heart-breaking loss. The participating landmarks are:
