Memorial for the Unborn to be 
unveiled, blessed at Sturbridge shrine tomorrow

By Tanya Connor
The Catholic Free Press

STURBRIDGE – People who have lost an unborn child – whether to miscarriage, stillbirth or abortion – have a new place to honor him or her.

St. Anne and St. Patrick Parish is inviting the public to the unveiling and blessing of the Memorial for the Unborn at St. Anne Shrine on the parish grounds. Bishop McManus is to celebrate Mass at 7 p.m. June 26 in the outdoor pavilion. The unveiling and blessing of the memorial, to the right of St. Anne Gift Shop, follows.

The memorial’s statue by sculptor Sondra Jonson, called “Rachel Weeping,” depicts an Old Testament matriarch of Israel. A plaque beneath it adds a Scripture reference: “A voice is heard in Ramah, Rachel weeping for her children and refusing to be comforted because they are no more” (Jer 31:15).

Mt 2:16-18 applies this to Herod’s massacre of children after Jesus’ birth.
The statue is of Rachel kneeling in prayer, with a blanket draped over her empty arms, which represents “the eternal bond between parent and child,” according to a parish press release and flyer. The flyer says the rose at her side is “a symbol for confidence in God and hope for the future.”

Benches face the statue, and a wall behind it offers privacy and a place to display memorial tiles.

“It’s a quiet place ... where people can come, sit, pray and just reflect,” said Assumptionist Father Luc Martel, the parish’s temporary administrator. “We want this to be private ... for people who have not been able to bury their child. It’s a place to honor their children. ... It gives to the unborn child a place of dignity and respect and a place where they will be remembered.”

He said it is also “a place for healing and hope for anyone who has experienced the loss of an unborn child” no matter how long ago.

Anyone can visit the memorial and purchase an engraved 2” x 6” tile for it for $50.

Among inscriptions on tiles already ordered are the following: “To our unborn: We will hold you in our hearts ’til we meet you again” and “For all the forgotten unborn, we pray for you.” Another tile gives a child’s name and death date and adds, “Love always, Mom and Dad.”

“These tiles will be put on that wall” behind the statue, Father Martel said. “There’s room for hundreds.”

This memorial differs from the shrine’s Angel of Hope statue, at which parents have honored on an inscribed brick their children who died at whatever age after birth.

The idea for the memorial for the unborn began more than 10 years ago, says the press release. Assumptionist Father Peter R. Precourt, then pastor of St. Anne and St. Patrick, saw the Rachel Weeping statue at a parish in Kentucky and thought that having one at the shrine would benefit parishioners and visitors.

A copy of the statue was purchased several years ago, and stored while the memorial was being built. Parishioners helped the designer and contractor with the project, delayed by the coronavirus pandemic and changes in parish leadership, Father Martel said.

“The funding was taken care of pretty easily,” he said; the memorial was entirely paid for with donations from parishioners and others, including Knights of Columbus. He said donors were sent invitations to the unveiling, and new materials might be printed to direct visitors to this memorial at the shrine.

– Editor’s note: Those wanting more information or to purchase a tile for the Memorial for the Unborn can contact St. Anne Gift Shop at 508-347-7461.