Photo credit: Provided to The Permian Press

What happened: What began with one Midland mother’s pregnancy loss has grown into a ministry reaching grieving families across the country. Hunter’s Hope Ministry has provided care packages to more than 250 hospitals across all 50 states, offering resources, keepsakes, handwritten encouragement, and Christian support to mothers who have experienced miscarriage or stillbirth.

For founder Connie Perrin, the ministry began with her own son, Hunter, whom she lost 13 years before Hunter’s Hope was established.

The big picture: Perrin created the ministry to celebrate her own baby’s life. Finding out she was pregnant at 43 years old was a shock, she said.

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“My initial thought was, ‘Lord, what are you thinking?,’” Perrin said. “We had a senior in high school and a seventh grader.”

After a few days, the shock wore off, and the family got excited. Their love for mission work was followed by the hope that this baby might follow in those footsteps and become a preacher or missionary one day. Unfortunately, at 16 weeks, they received the news no family wants to hear.

“The doctor couldn’t find a heartbeat,” she said. “My hopes, my dreams were crushed. There wouldn’t be a precious baby to hold. There wouldn’t be a trip to Africa together.”

At that moment, there was no more hope for the missionary they had imagined, but they had no idea the plan Perrin believes God already had for this baby.

“What I did not realize, though, was that our little Hunter’s mission field would begin five months before his projected due date when God opened the door for the gospel to be shared with a nurse named Doris. God opened her heart on that day. She accepted Jesus Christ as her Lord and Savior.”

Hunter’s impact was not finished. Thirteen years later, Perrin said God opened another door.

“In 2018, we began Hunter’s Hope Ministry, where the gospel, the love, the hope, and the comfort of Jesus Christ would be shared with hurting families all across the country,” she said. “He opened the door through which not only Hunter, but hundreds of other babies would also become little missionaries.”

Go deeper: Each Hunter’s Hope care package contains the gospel in three forms and a dedication card with the name of a baby who was lost. Because each package includes the gospel, Hunter’s Hope presents the baby on each dedication card as a little missionary, sharing the hope of Jesus Christ with another hurting family.

“We have provided packages to all 50 states, in over 250 hospitals, meaning that a baby could potentially be a missionary all over the country,” Perrin said.

The ministry hopes its message will help families through the grieving and healing process while showing them this does not have to be the end of their baby’s story.

Each Hunter’s Hope care package includes:

  • A letter from Connie Perrin to each mother
  • Hunter’s Story: A Missionary at 16 Weeks, the story of Hunter Perrin
  • A handwritten note of encouragement from another mom who has experienced the loss of a child
  • “The Lord” encouragement card proclaiming who the Lord is and all He can and will provide
  • A pocket-size New Testament to have as a keepsake or for the nurses to place the baby’s footprints in
  • Dedication cards honoring children who are with the Lord
  • Mommy, Please Don’t Cry: There Are No Tears in Heaven by Linda DeYmaz, a tender book that assists mothers with their grieving
  • A dedication request card giving each mother the opportunity to have their child become a missionary with Hunter’s Hope, and to have an item made in memory of their baby and included in a future Hunter’s Hope care package

Mothers with pregnancies over 17 weeks may also receive swaddles or crocheted cradles for nurses to wrap the babies in before they are taken to the family to say goodbye, Gospel blankets explaining the hope of Jesus and providing Scripture references, and baby gowns for mothers to keep as a keepsake or use for their baby.

Zoom out: Throughout my interview with Connie, not 10 minutes went by without her expressing her gratitude to God. In everything, she gives God the power, honor, and glory.

“I am only His worker. Connie cannot do all of this but through Him. He gets all the credit and all the glory for every aspect of this ministry, for we can do nothing apart from Him,” Perrin said.

Perrin said Hunter’s Hope hopes that with every care package distributed, the mother will feel the Lord by her side and know that He is suffering with her, weeps with her, and carries her through today and the days that follow. Perrin also wanted to encourage anyone reading who has experienced pregnancy or infant loss.

“If you have suffered a loss through miscarriage or stillbirth, I am so sorry,” she said. “My heart aches for you. We want you to know you are not alone, you are loved, and you are in our prayers. We would love to hear from you. This is not the end of your baby’s story.”

What’s next: You can contact Hunter’s Hope through its website or by email at [email protected].