Parents hope to keep stillborn daughter’s ‘memory alive’ through decorated rocks
The project was started in July and has seen rocks placed in locations including Ireland and France.
Parents whose daughter was stillborn hope to “positively keep her memory alive” by spreading rocks bearing her name across the globe.
Lexi Peters, 30, and her 29-year-old partner Sean Chamberlain’s daughter Hallie was stillborn on November 21 2023 – a moment they said “shattered our world”.
“We went to Broomfield Hospital two days past due date and they couldn’t find a heartbeat,” Ms Peters, a deputy manager of a children’s nursery who lives in Chelmsford, Essex, told the PA news agency.
She said the hospital’s maternity bereavement team – who are called The Blossom Team – have been “literally amazing” and “the best team imaginable” at helping the couple at the time and to this day, and while they were at the hospital, the pair were encouraged to place rocks in a bereavement garden at the facility.
This experience – as well as a support group session with the Essex branch of the Stillbirth and neonatal death charity (Sands) – sparked the creation of a Facebook group called Hallie’s rocks in July, to raise awareness for stillbirth and keep Hallie’s memory alive.
“We decided to create rocks as a way to positively keep her memory alive and I thought a lot of friends and family would want to join in with that because it may be an uncomfortable thing for them to talk about, but this would be a fun and easy thing they could do.”
The couple bought a huge batch of rocks from Amazon and Ms Peters drew various things on them, including purple and pink flowers, Hallie’s name and the date of her passing and the name of the Facebook group.
So far, more than 20 rocks have made their way to places including Anglesey in North Wales, Dublin in Ireland and Suffolk and have even gone global, reaching Center Parcs Le Bois aux Daims in France.
“We’ve had people saying they will take rocks to Spain and have got family going to Japan and Korea later, so we know they’re going to go far,” she added.
“There’s one place in France where we took a reveal photo to show we were pregnant with a baby girl in front of the Disney Paris castle.”
The couple’s two-year-old son Alfie has been a key part of the initiative too.
“We all got to spend some days with her after the stillbirth, so I think for him he knows Hallie and he loves the page and when rocks get found, he always says – ‘Oh look, Hallie’s rocks’.
“He’s even placed some in locations, and decorated some himself.”
She said it has “meant everything” to see people supporting the project.
“I believe this will keep going for years and years and we’re just happy to see where it goes and how many places we can get them to go to.
“It’s really lovely and we really take comfort from the two we’ve had back so far as it’s been strangers who have found them and it’s been so overwhelming to see that someone found the rock and took the time to read the story and then cared enough to help the onward journey.”
