The annual Butterfly Run goes Saturday at Westwood Lake in Nanaimo, solidifying a support community for those experiencing enormous loss related to childbirth or fertility. (Submitted photo)

By Alex Rawnsley

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NANAIMO — The message ahead of an event on Saturday is very clear: no one should suffer alone.

Hundreds are expected at Nanaimo’s Westwood Lake on Saturday, Oct. 5 for the third annual Butterfly Run Vancouver Island, bringing together those who have experienced or are experiencing pregnancy or infant loss, miscarriage or infertility challenges.

Erin Sowerby Greene said it’s a topic not openly talked about enough, leading many families who go through it to think they’re alone.

“It’s incredibly isolating…it’s a lifelong heartbreak that you are carrying and finding your community, finding the people who get it and can look you in the eyes and say your children’s names without pity or shying away from it, it’s so valuable in figuring out how to move forward.”

Registration to take part in the walk and run is available online, and on the day of the event beginning at 8 a.m.

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Funds raised through the event will go towards creating additional support for parents experiencing loss.

Participants will get going around 10 a.m. for a three-kilometre walk or five-kilometre run at the lake.

In addition, several businesses and service providers will be on-site with information and self-care opportunities such as acupuncture, physio and other treatments.

The annual event is designed to bring together people who have experienced loss or challenges related to childbirth or fertility. (Submitted photo)

Sowerby Greene’s involvement stems from her own loss, of her daughter Briar in October 2022.

Briar was stillborn at eight and a half months, a situation which “rocked our world” according to Sowerby Greene.

“Because of her death, I went searching for resources and Butterfly Run was one of the first that I found. I accessed a virtual support group and it felt like the first time I was able to take a breath, it felt like a life preserver that allowed me to come up for air and find other people who know this pain.”

The situation also led Sowerby Greene to find, research and ultimately fundraise for the purchase of a cuddle cot for Nanaimo Regional General Hospital.

The devices extend the time parents can spend with their stillborn children to around 48 hours, instead of one to two hours without.

Fundraising efforts through the Nanaimo Regional Hospital Foundation and other partners have allowed another four cots to be purchased which are currently deployed in Port Alberni, Comox, Cowichan and Saltspring Island.

More information on the Butterfly Run is available on their website.

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