Families are Forever

Today I found out that my lovely friend from BYU, Britian Soderquist, lost her tiny baby boy. He was in the NICU immediately following birth with heart and lung problems and passed away a few days after he was born. The picture is of her husband's hand, her hand, and baby Frederick's hand. Her strength and faith is astounding. I have to believe that she will see her little boy again, I know she will. Here is what she said about what happened:

Dear Friends and Family,

Thank you so much for all the prayers, fasting, love, and support you have given us this past week. We feel truly blessed to have such wonderful people in our lives.

Little Frederick returned home to his Heavenly Father on Friday afternoon. We now know that he was an especially valiant son of our Heavenly Father, because all he needed out of his mortal life was a physical body. As Joseph Smith taught: "the Lord takes many away, even in infancy, that they may escape the envy of man, and the sorrows and evils of this present world; they were too pure, too lovely, to live on earth; therefore, if rightly considered, instead of mourning we have reason to rejoice as they are delivered from evil, and we shall soon have them again."

We wish we could have kept him here with us, but we feel very privileged that Heavenly Father would send us such a choice son. We feel very grateful that he was willing to stay with us in his adorable little body for a whole week so that we could get to know him a little better. We love him and miss him, but we know that he is sealed to our little family and that we will have the joy and satisfaction of raising him in the resurrection. Until then, he will go about the Lord's will on the other side, and we will strive to live worthy to join him there someday.

We have received several messages offering help in the last few days. We are grateful for your thoughtfulness and are touched by your concern. An account has been set up with America First Credit Union for those who wish to help provide a nice headstone for Frederick's grave. We would ask that this be used in lieu of sending flowers or other gifts. You can contact any America First and tell them that you wish to contribute to the Frederick Soderquist Memorial Fund.

Once again, thank you so much for your prayers and support. We have felt your love over the last week and are so grateful to each and every one of you.

We love you all,
Andrew and Britain