Pink and blue lights shine on the Limestone County Courthouse in honor of those affected by pregnancy and infant loss. The courthouse will be pink and blue again Tuesday to mark Pregnancy and Infant Loss Remembrance Day.

Parents who have experienced pregnancy or infant loss can honor their child’s memory at a special ceremony Tuesday at the Limestone County Courthouse, hosted by the Alabama Chapter of The TEARS Foundation.

October is Pregnancy and Infant Loss Month, and Oct. 15 is the Pregnancy and Infant Loss Remembrance Day. Alabama chapter leader Amber Robinson said parents never forget their lost child, which makes events like the one at 7 p.m. Tuesday so important.

“It’s a chance to recognize our babies who are lost and let them know they’re never forgotten, and let people who never got the chance to have their baby’s name spoken,” Robinson said.

Parents can submit their child’s name to alabamachapter@thetearsfoundation.org to be honored during the ceremony. The TEARS Foundation will light a candle for each name submitted, and the name will be read aloud. The courthouse will also be lighted in pink and blue.

“The world recognizes our living children, but not everyone recognizes the children who are not with us,” Robinson said. “Nights like this let us come together and remember those babies and feel united together.”

Robinson’s daughter Sadie was stillborn in February 2015. At the time, there was no TEARS chapter in Alabama, so Robinson started one.

“I just knew there was something I had to do to honor her and make her very short life mean something,” Robinson said.

This year will be the fourth annual pregnancy and infant loss event for the Alabama chapter. The chapter is also running a “31 Days of Sharing” series on its Facebook page, “Alabama Chapter Of The TEARS Foundation.” Parents may submit a photo and a story about their child to be shared. They can also read stories from other parents who have experienced a stillbirth, miscarriage, SIDS or other pregnancy or infant loss.

“We never forget we lost a child,” Robinson said. “To have someone mention that baby’s name or even talk about them if they don’t have a name means so much more than you could ever imagine. That’s what the awareness campaign is for, what the month of October is for — to spread how bereaved parents feel and break that taboo of pregnancy and infant loss.”

The Alabama chapter also hosts regular support group meetings at the Athens-Limestone Public Library. Parents and family members who have lost a child at any age may attend. The Alabama chapter encourages participants to bring with them to the meeting a support person or a linking object, such as a picture, stuffed animal, bracelet or other item that links the grieving person to the child.

The support group will meet again 6 to 8 p.m. Tuesday, Nov. 5.

Visit https://thetearsfoundation.org/alabama/ to learn more about the Alabama chapter and The TEARS Foundation.