In the quiet moments when grief meets hope, when loss transforms into lasting love, something extraordinary happens. Each year, the Milk Bank WGL community comes together for Poppy’s Dream Annual Candle Lighting Ceremony—a sacred gathering that honors the babies gone too soon and celebrates the incredible legacy they leave behind.

A Community United in Love and Memory

This year’s ceremony held special significance as we gathered for the first time in our new facility at 560 Bonnie Lane. The space, filled with families, staff, and volunteers, became a sanctuary of remembrance as we honored over 640 precious babies whose brief lives continue to make an extraordinary difference. As candles flickered in the gentle light, each flame represented not just a life remembered, but a love that continues to nourish and heal.

Candles in honor of the 640+ Star babies.

The numbers tell a powerful story: these star babies have contributed over 282,000 ounces of donated breast milk, providing life-giving nutrition to premature and sick babies throughout Wisconsin and Illinois. But beyond the statistics lies something even more profound—the strength and generosity of families who, in their deepest grief, chose to help others.

The Power of Choosing Hope

For the families who attended in person and those whose candles were lit by caring staff and volunteers, this ceremony represents the beautiful intersection of memory and mission. Each donation of breast milk becomes a bridge between loss and life, between saying goodbye and saying “your life mattered.”

The courage it takes to make this choice—to donate breast milk after losing a baby—speaks to the incredible resilience of the human spirit. These families transform their pain into purpose, their loss into a lasting gift that continues to nurture other babies in need.

Poppy’s Enduring Legacy

This meaningful program exists thanks to the Babinski family, who honor their daughter Poppy Delphine through supporting all families who donate breast milk after loss. Poppy’s legacy lives on not just in name, but in every ounce of milk that provides comfort and nutrition to babies fighting for their lives in NICUs across the region.

Poppy’s Mother Christie Babinski, mural artist Garrick Cline, and Executive Director Summer Kelly

Art That Speaks to the Heart

The ceremony is made even more special by the beautiful artwork that serves as a permanent tribute to these precious lives. Mosaic artist Francine Gourguechon and mural artist Garrick Cline have created visual representations of love and memory, while the woodworking by Keegan Cline and Kimberly Capes provides lasting elements that families can touch and connect with.

Each star in the memorial carries the name of a baby whose milk was given to nourish others—a constellation of love that will shine forever.

Carrying Light Forward

As we reflect on this year’s ceremony, we’re reminded that grief and gratitude can coexist, that endings can become beginnings, and that love truly is stronger than death. The families who participate in milk donation after loss show us what it means to carry light in the darkness.

To every family who has walked this difficult path, to every parent who has made the generous choice to donate, and to every baby whose brief life continues to make a difference: your courage inspires us, your love heals us, and your legacy lives on in every life you help save.

We carry their light and memory with us always—not just on ceremony day, but in every act of compassion, every moment of hope, and every life that’s touched by their extraordinary gift.

The Milk Bank WGL is honored to facilitate this program and grateful to serve families during their most difficult times. For more information about milk donation or support resources, please contact our compassionate staff.

For more information about donation after loss – click here Milk Donation After Loss – Mothers’ Milk Bank WGL

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