When we lost my daughter, [my son] would have loved to have something to hold onto, because he just would cry himself to sleep after she passed. It will be nice to have something to help other families.
Jen Clayman, mother of Emberly Rose Clayman and founder of Emberly's EmbraceJust in time for Thanksgiving, a Monadnock Region family showed their gratitude to Dartmouth Health’s Cheshire Medical Center with a generous donation. Jen and Dan Clayman, of Rindge, presented the hospital with a check for $6,000 on Tuesday, November 25, in memory of their daughter, Emberly Rose Clayman.
In 2023, Emberly was stillborn at 39 weeks gestational age, at another New Hampshire hospital. Jen Clayman, who also has an older son, Jax, would then go on to have another baby boy, Anthony, delivered at Cheshire. Moved by the sensitivity and compassion shown by Cheshire staff, the Claymans hosted a charity concert over the summer to raise money for Cheshire, through their organization Emberly’s Embrace.
The Claymans’ donation will be used in multiple ways to help families bringing home new babies from Cheshire or who are grieving pregnancy loss, stillbirth and infant death. Resources will include:
• Bereavement training for Cheshire nurses to help grieving families
• Patient education resources for patients, immediate and extended family members
• Educational books on child loss
• Custom stuffed animals designed to be the same weight as the child who has passed
• Seed packets for patients to plant in a dedicated garden inhonor of deceased children
• Newborn car seats for families who cannot afford them
“When we lost my daughter, Jax would have loved to have something to hold onto, because he just would cry himself to sleep after she passed,” Jen said. “It will be nice to have something to help other families.”
“A few of our nurses are really interested in doing additional education and training to be that go-to person for families needing moral support,” said Jennifer E. Osborne, BSN, RNC, clinical nurse educator/perinatal safety nurse in Cheshire’s Women and Children’s Health Unit. “A lot of the money raised by Emberly’s Embrace will go toward that.”
The Claymans plan to continue fundraising for hospital maternity wards to provide support for grieving families. To donate, checks made payable to Emberly’s Embrace may be mailed to Jen Clayman at 77 Woodbound Road, Rindge, NH 03461. To learn more, visit the Emberly's Embrace Facebook page or email emberlysembrace@gmail.com.
About Cheshire Medical Center
Cheshire Medical Center (Cheshire) is a Dartmouth Health member providing the communities in the Greater Monadnock Region a continuum of care spanning primary care and specialty medicine, to surgical services and acute inpatient care. For more than 130 years, Cheshire has been a key contributor to the health and vitality of the Monadnock Region. As a not-for-profit community medical center, Cheshire is deeply committed to delivering excellent care in a safe and welcoming environment. Cheshire is dedicated to being a great neighbor and serves as an integral community resource. Cheshire is the area's largest healthcare provider and leading employer. Along with the services delivered on their Keene campus and satellite locations, the Medical Center partners with local organizations to provide vital services and programs throughout the region. To learn more, call 603-354-5400 or visit the Cheshire Medical Center website.
About Dartmouth Health
Dartmouth Health, New Hampshire’s only academic health system and the state’s largest private employer, serves patients across northern New England. Dartmouth Health provides access to more than 2,000 providers in almost every area of medicine, delivering care at its flagship hospital, Dartmouth Hitchcock Medical Center (DHMC) in Lebanon, NH, as well as across its wide network of hospitals, clinics and care facilities. DHMC is consistently named the #1 hospital in New Hampshire by U.S. News & World Report, and is recognized for high performance in numerous clinical specialties and procedures. Dartmouth Health includes Dartmouth Cancer Center, one of only 57 National Cancer Institute-designated Comprehensive Cancer Centers in the nation, and the only such center in northern New England; Dartmouth Health Children’s, which includes the state’s only children’s hospital and multiple locations around the region; member hospitals in Lebanon, Keene, Claremont and New London, NH, and Windsor and Bennington, VT; Visiting Nurse and Hospice for Vermont and New Hampshire; and more than 24 clinics that provide ambulatory and specialty services across New Hampshire and Vermont. Through its historical partnership with Dartmouth and the Geisel School of Medicine, Dartmouth Health trains nearly 400 medical residents and fellows annually, and performs cutting-edge research and clinical trials recognized across the globe with Geisel and the White River Junction VA Medical Center in White River Junction, VT. Dartmouth Health and its more than 13,000 employees are deeply committed to serving the healthcare needs of everyone in our communities, and to providing each of our patients with exceptional, personal care.