"After reading her child’s obituary in disbelief, she could not help but wonder “What if my child is forgotten?”"

Angels Island was envisioned to make sure this never happened, but it enveloped into so much more. Grief is an emotion that takes control of every ounce of our body, mind, and soul. Comfort is what we offer the grief-stricken after the most tragic loss imaginable, the death of a child.

Angels Island first memorialized the death of the three Milberg children who died tragically at the ages of 5, 5, & 11 in a horrific automobile accident. We began reaching out to other families whose children were ushered home by God at an exceptionally early age. It started with one piece of equipment; a wooden pirate ship hand-built by one man from Tennessee. The park was now on the map. It gradually grew with donations from all over the five-state area. 

Today Angels Island is abundant with flowers, shrubs, memorial spaces for each child, a garden that honors babies who were never granted the opportunity to grow into toddlers. There are swings, and slides, climbing structures, playhouses, a gazebo and picnic tables. The community utilizes the space for birthday parties, graduations, wedding receptions, and family pictures. There is a plethora of amazing public activities that transpire at the playground. The Sheriff’s department was there one day training K-9’s how to “sniff out” their target. The village holiday festivities are held there, along with “Kids Night Out”. The Special Olympics holds their Bocce Ball Tournament there, as well. Events too numerous to mention.

Angels Island has a brick walkway and a gazebo with an entrance path all paved with memorial bricks. People will often come for miles to physically see that memorial brick with their loved one’s name on it. Somehow seeing a brick or a metal plaque with their child’s picture, allows a part of that child to come alive again. The bricks and plaques are permanent, so no child is ever forgotten. The joy a family will absorb as other children play on their child’s memorial piece is an amazing transfer of grief to hope. The soil that lies under this amazing playground, is sometimes almost sacred land. The park is treated with respect and filled with love. There are three doe that frequent the park in the night. We do not think that was a coincidence. Birds land inches from you without fear. The night sparkles with lights and only God knows what goes on after dark in this place filled with splendor.

We live in an economically depressed area according to the graphs and maps put out by the government. This park sits adjacent to the Milltown Community Center and was once a large piece of vacant land. It has been utilized to make a safe haven for children, families, out-of-town visitors, and parents & siblings that have a personal reason to walk the grounds…. to listen for that light breeze that whispers their child’s name. We have all been through grief, just maybe not at this capacity, but hope is meshed in with the laughter and the joy this park amplifies. 

Something that is hard for the community to address is the validation of Child Suicide. It is more prevalent than any of us know. I spoke with a woman whose young child jumped off a water tower, another who turned on the car with the garage door shut, one who inflicted a gunshot to the head, and another who used the rope for his horse, to take his own life. These are awful events to address. We do not want to talk about it. We want to shake our head, cry our silent tears, and then pray for peace for the family and friends of the child. Our next reaction is to move on to a more pleasant thought or place. We do not want to stay “there”. Angels Island has addressed this issue and have plans to erect a structure dedicated to God’s children who had no choice. They did not choose to end their life, but it was the only way to end the pain. Most of us will never get to the point of understanding, but we realize it is real, and we honor each and every child that fell victim to this unimaginable pain.

Our latest dream is to build a playground area for children with Special Needs. Our first visualization is to install a Wheelchair Swing, which will accommodate the child, the wheelchair, and a trip to the stars. Conventional swings are not equipped to handle the needs of every child. We, at Angels Island realize this and we want to be “the change” that will fill a child’s dream of gliding through the air, reaching for the sun, and gleefully feeling the breeze as the swing accommodates every positive emotion in that child.

Positivity is what we strive for, a pleasant emotional experience, and a yearning to return to do it all over again. The wheelchair swing we found to be best suited for Angels Island is manufactured in New Zealand but is marketed in the United States. I guarantee if we install “one”, we will be installing another at a later date, as people will travel miles for their child to experience the exhilaration of this structure. From what I understand, it will be the first of its kind in a large circumference of counties. We can only imagine the number of children that will be impacted with this first piece erected in a growing, special needs playground area.

Together, we will continue to work tirelessly to keep kindness in the world, and respect and dignity present in the life of every child ……….remembered.