'Sam's Church Service'

Andrew and I held our angel Samuel in the car on the short drive to the Church...  Sophie & Ben beside us too...  We arrived and our Vicar Chris Newlands met us outside...

Samuel was in his Moses Basket and I carried him into the Church with Andrew right by my side...  There at the top of the Church was a little table where I laid our Samuel down, and 2 chairs right beside where Andrew and I sat...  Family, friends and our wonderful Midwives had gathered into the Church...

The song we had chosen to be played on the entrance to the Church was 'The Prayer', (the MIDI of this you can hear playing), by Celine Dion, and it sounded so beautiful...  We first had this song bought into our lives by a friend of ours, 'Heidi Schwabe' who played this on the piano for our angel Jack's 1st Birthday Memorial Service back in November, and it was just so important to us to have this playing in memory of our Jack also on this day...

Everything in our Church was just as it was when we had our angel Jack's Funeral Service 15 months earlier...

Throughout the service, Andrew and I were right beside our Samuel...  I was holding his tiny hands in mine and gently touching his beautiful little face...  Our tears and pain just 'flowed', as did everyone else in the Church...

'Just as Samuel~Jack was throughout the Church Service'...  

The 'rose' and 'carnation' flower were laid to rest with Samuel in his casket shortly after, Surrounded with his pictures from Sophie & Ben, photographs of us all and special little Teddies from family...

Chris began the service with our 'Prayers, then our first 'Hymn', 'All Things Bright and Beautiful'...  The 'reading' was...

~

 Matthew 18.1-5,10

At that time the disciples came to Jesus and asked, "Who is the greatest in the Kingdom of Heaven?" He called a little child and had him stand among them. And he said,
"I tell you the truth, unless you change and become like little children you will never enter the Kingdom of Heaven. Therefore, whoever humbles himself like this little child is the greatest in the Kingdom of Heaven. And whoever welcomes a little child like this in my name welcomes me. See that you do not look down on these little ones. For I tell you that their angels in heaven always see the face of my father in heaven".

This was followed by our last Hymn:~  'Morning has Broken', and... 

'THE FAREWELL'  

Heavenly father,
Justine and Andrew have named their baby Samuel~Jack,
- a name to be treasured in their hearts for ever.
But it was you who formed him in the womb;
You knew him by name before time began.
Now we commit Sam into your ever-caring and gentle love;
He brought the promise of joy to many lives for so short a time;
Enfold him now in eternal life,
In the name of our risen Saviour who was born and died
And lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit for ever.
Amen

Chris did an absolutely wonderful tribute to our precious little angel...  His tears fell too and we knew this was hard for him as well...  It was only 15 months previous that he had conducted the funeral service for our other little angel, Jack, and here we were again, going through another, almost unbelievable' 'loss' in our lives...

The service ended and I carried Sam in his Moses Basket, back out of the Church, to our waiting car, ready to go to the 'Chapel~of~Rest, where it would then be time for Andrew and I to lay Samuel~Jack into his 'casket' and then take the short drive to the 'Crematorium' for the last part of Samuels Funeral...

The organist played 'Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Star' as I carried Samuel out, and friends and family went ahead of us to the Crematorium, whilst Andrew and I went to the Chapel to lay our Samuel in his last resting place on earth...  'His Casket'...  This was the part that I knew I had to find every ounce of strength I had in me to do!  I just didn't want to go ahead with this part, but we knew we had to, and so we then took the short drive to the Chapel...

Please Click below to take you to Samuels Last Journey here on earth.

The Chapel~of~Rest & Last Journey of Samuel's Funeral