Losing a child is unspeakably painful and perhaps the most devastating ordeal a parent could have to encounter.
Tyler and Jessica Cripps of Alexandria know what that’s like. Their daughter Paislee Cheyanne Cripps was stillborn on May 3, 2013. Their hearts were broken. Their world was shattered. But during their grief they received the love and support of family, friends, church, and the community in such a way that it inspired Tyler and Jessica to help other parents mourning infant loss. As a result, Paislee’s Foundation was formed by the Cripps’ along with their friend Wesley McCubbin.
“It’s a non-profit organization that Wesley and my wife and I started. We take up money through donations and fundraisers and we donate that to families who are going through stillbirth and infant loss up to three years of age,” Tyler Cripps told WJLE .
“It started on May 3, 2013. Tyler and I lost our little girl. She was stillborn. Paislee’s death was very unexpected and we were completely unprepared to deal with this type of situation. But our family, friends, church, and community lifted us up, supported us, and took care of everything we needed,” said Jessica Cripps.
After some time passed, Tyler said he got the idea for starting the foundation. “I was riding through work one day and the idea popped in my head. I talked to Wesley about it and we furthered the idea until it’s turned into what it is today,” he said.
An approved 501c3 non-profit organization, Paislee’s Foundation was formed in October 2013 and the first official fundraiser was held in January 2014.
“We have three main fundraisers which are all held at the Kenneth Sandlin Center at the fairgrounds in Alexandria. A chili supper will be held on February 6 along with a corn hole tournament. We have a 5K in May and a craft show in the fall. They have all generated pretty good amounts of money. At the 5K we have even had some of the parents (served by the Foundation) actually come to help. To see that come full circle has been great. We’ve had such big responses from the start and we thank our whole community for supporting us,” said McCubbin.
There are no paid staff in the Foundation and all money raised is given to parents. “One hundred percent of it goes to the foundation. No money goes to anyone’s pocket,” said Tyler.
“We got money given to us when we lost Paislee. At the end of it all we had to buy her headstone and that was $400. We had $400 exactly left. So that’s what we give people $400. They are welcome to use it for whatever they need including bills, food, groceries, headstone, burial expenses, etc. We have already served roughly 20 families,” said Jessica.
Families needing support may contact Paislee’s Foundation through Facebook. ” They can come to us. We have a facebook page. It’s already up and going. Its Paislees Foundation on facebook. The website is now online at www.paisleesfoundation.org. It has our story and how you can donate, all of our contact information, and different resources. If you want to donate a wedding dress for a burial gown for a child that link is there. Photographers who do sessions at the hospital for keepsakes, that is on there. We recently did a hoodie sale with a logo on it and that is on the website too. If you want to make a donation Paislee’s Foundation has an account at Liberty State Bank. We’re also working on Paypal. It’s coming soon. We don’t want to just be about the money. That’s a big part of it. To alleviate financial stress but we also want parents to be able to have someone to talk to. We would like to eventually be able to put them in touch with grief support groups,” said Jessica
“We want to thank Scott Koffman who designed our logo and our 5K shirt; Ashley McCubbin who is right there with her camera every time we need her for an event; and Nikia Vensel who has designed all our flyers and posters. They have all done this free of charge,” said Tyler. Also a special thanks to the Foundation’s CPA Kathy Finley.
“We want to thank everybody who has gotten behind us and given us the push to get to where we are now. That’s the main thing about our foundation. It could not run without the support that we have gotten,” said Tyler.
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