Core Value Series: Introduction

By: Nick Carrington EPLA Editor

After dealing with several miscarriages, Emily Carrington, our president and founder, experienced first-hand the isolation that comes with losing a child in the womb. She had physical, emotional, and spiritual needs and myriad questions that went unanswered. The resources for dealing with this trauma were woefully lacking.

Instead of merely repining, she dreamed. Emily dreamed of a culture of comfort for grieving families where miscarried children are celebrated and the sting of medical bills is diminished. She dreamed of a community willing to listen to the laments of the tearful, to hear their stories and bear their burdens. Emily dreamed big.

And out of those dreams sprang the Early Pregnancy Loss Association, an organization committed to making sure that no family suffers miscarriage alone. Not all of Emily’s dreams have been realized, but we’ve come a long way by providing educational materials, miscarriage kits, digital space to share stories, and much more.

There’s plenty of work to be done, but we have built a foundation on five core values that guide our actions as an organization. These values form the heartbeat of the EPLA; they unite us as we seek to come alongside hurting mothers and families. These values are as follows:

Affirming Life
Early pregnancy loss is the loss of a unique and infinitely valuable life often bringing great grief to women and families as they suffer this loss.

Bearing Burdens
Women and families experiencing early pregnancy loss are carrying the weight of death. In isolation, this weight seems too great for one to bear. But together, when we carry one another's burdens, the weight is eased by making room for peace and hope.

Loving People
Early pregnancy loss brings anger, confusion, frustration, and sorrow. These emotions can lead to both emotional sensitivity and a hardening heart in order to cope with the grief. To meet their unique needs during this time, women and families will be treated in a loving, nurturing, and respectful way.

Encouraging Community
Together we can do more. To better bear the burdens of women and families, a variety of organizations and professionals can work together to meet these needs. Medical professionals, counselors, churches, and related non-profits all offer unique services to help ease the emotional, psychological, and financial burden of early pregnancy loss.​

Grieving Together
Because of the hushed culture concerning pregnancy loss, many women do not know how to understand their heartache. Everyone grieves differently, and, though common, early pregnancy loss is an intensely personal experience. Whether they choose to grieve publicly or privately, women and families need a safe environment to experience grief. By acknowledging the frequency of early pregnancy loss and recognizing it as a death, families are granted space to grieve.

These ideas have many implications, and we have plenty to say about them. So, our editors are going to dive deep into these core values in the coming weeks, discussing what these values mean to us and how we display them as an organization. We believe that the best organizations are guided by a clear desire to do good, and through this series, we hope you see the heart of the EPLA.  

If you resonate with these values and want to help our clause, feel free to reach out to us. We would love to partner with you in helping bear the burden of grief for women & families who have experienced the heartache of miscarriage.

And out of those dreams sprang the Early Pregnancy Loss Association, an organization committed to making sure that no family suffers miscarriage alone.

Nick Carrington is an Editor for the EPLA and Assistant Professor of Professional Writing at Cedarville University​​.