First Candle

05/29/2026

Each of our NYC Marathon team members has a story of why they chose to run with us. Please meet Alex:

Hi there I'm Alex Castaneda, mama of 3 wonderful kids. I am running for First Candle because of the passion First Candle has for educating, advocating and especially supporting families in the grieving process impacted by SIDS. When I was pregnant with my first son, complications arose and I had to be induced early and he did not make it through the labor process. Going through the grief of losing a little one will never leave me, and I want to support a cause that helps families prevent feeling that loss, and also help grieving families feel supported. Running has always been a passion for me, and I can't wait to run 26.2 miles through beautiful New York and having my angel baby Noah by my side the whole time.

If you would like to support our team, head over to the link in our bio.

05/27/2026

Happy to announce that Edna Martin Christian Center Parents as Teachers team completed our Straight Talk for Infant Safe Sleep training and are now certified to educate their team members and parents in their programs.

Our Straight Talk training not only incorporates the safe sleep guidelines but our conversations approach, understanding and respecting cultural norms, social determinants of health and lived experiences. We also discuss trauma informed grief support for families who have experienced a previous stillbirth or infant loss.

To learn more on how to bring Straight Talk Training to your organization head over to link in bio.

05/25/2026

Here’s what our program Lets Talk Community Chats are accomplishing!

Learn more about our safe sleep program at link in bio.

05/21/2026

Paid leave is about safe sleep. Please take a moment to read what's happening.

Paid family leave isn’t just an economic policy. It’s a safe sleep issue — and the families who lose it most are the ones who can least afford the consequences.   A recent New York Times report confirmed what many of us in the maternal and child health field have been watching with concern: p...

05/19/2026

Was someone there to support you when you were grieving?

Now we need your help to support newly bereaved parents.

Link to sign up in our bio.

DM me with questions!

05/15/2026

Meet our amazing mother/daughter duo running on our NYC Marathon team!

We are Shannon and Hannah Salvestrin, a mother/daughter duo taking on our first marathon in honor of our son and brother Austin, who we lost 30 years ago to SUIDS. Shannon and her husband Rich found out they were expecting Hannah only a few weeks after losing Austin.
His loss changed the course of our lives, and even after all this time, he is still at the center of so much of who we are. A few years ago we came across First Candle and couldn’t help but think about how meaningful the specific support they provide would have been in those early days of grief.

2026 marks Austin’s 30th angel-versary. As we anticipate this milestone, we feel compelled to honor his life in a way that is not only deeply personal to us but also raises awareness for and brings attention to the ~3700 families who face the devastating and unexpected reality of losing a young child every single year. Running the NYC Marathon has always felt like an intimidating goal, one that pushed us out of our comfort zone, but doing it together and connecting it to Austin through First Candle gives every step that much more purpose.

We will carry Austin with us through every mile, while also running for the families who are facing this kind of loss right now. This is our way of honoring Austin and supporting an organization that shows up for people in their most difficult moments.

Please support our team! Donate at link in bio.

05/14/2026

Our Let’s Talk Community Chat facilitator, doula explains why it’s better for baby AND mom to place baby in their own safe sleep space for nap time and bed time.

05/13/2026

This National Nurses Week, we're celebrating the healthcare heroes who go above and beyond, including teaching families the safe sleep practices that save babies' lives.

Nurses are often the first to share life-saving information with new parents, and that moment matters more than you know.

Thank you for showing up, speaking up, and keeping babies safe. 💛

05/11/2026

We are thrilled to welcome and as our newest Corporate Sponsors and Safe Sleep Guardians!

Kids2, the global family of brands behind Ingenuity™, Baby Einstein™, and Bright Starts™, and ParentCo., the community-driven platform supporting parents at every step of their journey, are joining forces with First Candle to help families everywhere practice safer sleep.

We're so grateful to corporations who support our mission of saving babies' lives through evidence-based yet realistic safe sleep education that is led by community and recognizes lived experiences. It's through partnerships like this that we can amplify our messages and end these preventable deaths.

Learn more about our Safe Sleep Guardian program at the link in our bio.

05/10/2026

Mother’s Day can hold so many emotions.

Joy. Exhaustion. Gratitude. Worry. Love. Grief. Pressure. Deep tenderness. Sometimes all before breakfast.

To every mum doing her best today — we see you.

To the mums soothing babies at 3am.
To the mums carrying invisible mental loads.
To the mums second-guessing themselves.
To the mums missing children.
To the mums navigating pregnancy after loss.
To the mums trying so hard to get everything “right.”

You are not alone.

Your love shows up in a thousand small ways every single day — in the comforting, the checking, the learning, the holding, the trying again tomorrow.
And even on the hardest days, that matters.

From all of us at First Candle, Happy Mother’s Day.

 
 
 


05/08/2026

Mother’s Day can hold so many emotions.

Joy. Exhaustion. Gratitude. Worry. Love. Grief. Pressure. Deep tenderness. Sometimes all before breakfast.

To every mom doing her best — we see you.

To the moms soothing babies at 3am.
To the moms carrying invisible mental loads.
To the moms second-guessing themselves.
To the moms missing children.
To the moms navigating pregnancy after loss.
To the moms trying so hard to get everything “right.”

You are not alone.

Your love shows up in a thousand small ways every single day — in the comforting, the checking, the learning, the holding, the trying again tomorrow.
And even on the hardest days, that matters.

From all of us at First Candle this weekend, Happy Mother’s Day.