Currently at HHA, our team is in the process of establishing the Eric Elliott Memorial Scholarship Fund, which will offer grants for those pursuing our Infant & Pregnancy Loss Support Certificate Program. Eric Elliot was a 15-month-old who tragically lost his life to a drowning accident on August 28, 2022.
Our scholarship team recently had the privilege of meeting with Eric’s parents, Ryan and Amanda Elliott. Their words left us profoundly moved and emphasized the urgent need for emotional, practical, and spiritual support for families navigating such devastating loss. This meeting also underscored the importance of initiatives like the Infant & Pregnancy Loss Support program and the Eric Elliott Memorial Scholarship Fund, ensuring that no family has to endure the grief journey alone or in fear of being misunderstood, vilified, or abandoned.
For Amanda and Ryan, a crucial part of Eric's legacy is raising awareness about water safety. They emphasized how quickly tragedies like Eric's unfold – taking only seconds for an infant or child to drown - and the shocking frequency of such incidents. In Ontario, drowning ranks as one of the primary causes of unintentional injury-related deaths among children under five years old. Their hope is to help educate and prevent future drowning-related deaths, sparing other families from enduring this unimaginable heartache.
Eric on the day he died. Photo taken by his Dad.
Collaborating with HHA to provide training opportunities in Eric's memory, Ryan, Amanda, and grandmother, Tammy (who serves as a Board Director at HHA), aim to inspire more people to become compassionate companions for grieving families across Canada. Their ultimate goal is to guarantee that families confronting the loss of an infant or child have access to meaningful guidance and resources, including non-medicalized support services tailored to addressing the complexities and messiness of grief.
If you're grieving the loss of a baby and need support, please visit our "Our Babies, Our Grief" program page. We're here for you.
If you’re a caregiver who wants to support individuals and families experiencing these losses, visit our Infant & Pregnancy Loss Support training page.
If you feel moved by Eric's story and would like to support his scholarship fund, visit our Donation page.