Meet Lindsay Kay of Treasured In Heaven

Today we’d like to introduce you to Lindsay Kay.

Lindsay, let’s start with your story. We’d love to hear how you got started and how the journey has been so far.
On April 23rd, 2019, our lives were forever changed—a large piece of our hearts now directly tied to Heaven. At 38 weeks gestation, our second daughter was killed during a medically indicated induction. Sophia bled out inside of me, her blood on the very hands of the doctors and nurses that were supposed to bring her into this world safely. Though she was finally delivered via emergency c-section, it was too late for our sweet Sophia Joy. Doctors & nurses did all they could to bring her back to life, but the injuries she sustained were severe & catastrophic. She only lived on this Earth for 12 difficult hours. We were all so very shocked, crushed & confused. It was so hard to tell Emerson, Sophia’s big sister about it. To be honest, the weight of it all was so heavy, I didn’t know how I was ever going to carry on.

For a while, I struggled to do life’s most basic tasks. My mom helped me get groceries, do laundry, and play with Emmy. The sadness of my baby’s sudden and tragic death was the heaviest, most devastating reality I’ve ever had to face. Over and over, I prayed for God to minister to my soul because that’s the only prayer I could formulate. I was so weak but it was of utmost importance to me that my daughter Emerson still have a joyous childhood. I didn’t know how though, and I didn’t have the strength to figure it out. I was so covered in despair. As one of my favorite worship songs says: “My heart needed a surgeon, my soul needed a friend.”

Looking for comfort & strength, I turned to the Bible and my relationship with God. Listening to the Bible started to become medicine for my gaping wounds. The Word of God has an incredible way of speaking to our circumstances. I was supernaturally comforted when I heard this verse: “Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moths and vermin destroy, and where thieves break in and steal. 20 But store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where moths and vermin do not destroy, and where thieves do not break in and steal. 21 For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.” One of my greatest treasures, Sophia Joy, is now in heaven, and nothing can hurt her, no sickness or virus can touch her, she won’t even have to feel the pain of a stubbed toe or scraped knee.

I am comforted by God, who treasures my baby girl in heaven, and one day, I will be with her again, in a place where there are no tears and no pain. Until then, it is easier for me to have a heart focused on things above, because I have this precious person there, and it makes it feel so much more real. My faith for eternity is a healing belief that produces Hope in me. This is the hope I need every day to carry on to be my absolute best for both of my daughters. I feel so compelled and comforted by this Hope of Heaven that I wanted to tell others whose babies are also being raised with the angels.

When I heard the treasures in heaven verse, I also felt God place the desire in my heart to share this healing belief to others who are in similar circumstances. In the first few months of our baby dying and going to heaven, a few of my friends showed up in very thoughtful ways and that really helped me feel less alone, they always came bearing gifts. It’s amazing how healing gifts are when you feel remembered and cared for by people in your life. When I was still in the hospital, empty-armed, my friend Kelley brought me a bunch of thoughtful goodies, and a little something for me to give to Emmy when I returned home. Another friend named Jen left a big and generous gift basket on our front porch. My other friend Jess sent a care package with a beautiful painting of Jesus holding a baby, Sophia, I presumed. They didn’t ask if they could do something, they just did something. God used all of the gifts I received to spark healing for me, and so when I felt God asking me to use my resources for Treasured In Heaven, it was gift baskets, like the ones I’d received, that He put on my heart. Gift baskets that I found comfort in during the worst of the worst of times. So it was gift baskets we started making and sending.

Being able to form this charity in the name of Sophia Joy has been an absolute honor. Shopping for the baskets and giving them away brings us joy as we prepare them and pray for the people’s homes they will enter. Our mission gives us a little bit of purpose for our pain. It is a way for us to keep our baby girl’s memory alive with us on this Earth. It has also been a way we’ve been able to cope with hope and share this with our three-year-old Emmy. She too enjoys helping assemble and shop for our Treasured In Heaven baskets.

Now we hope our gifts point people to the loving Heavenly Father that we know is holding on to our babies until we get there. Jesus is our peace, The Holy Spirit our power, God the father our true comforter. It is this comfort and healing belief that we hope to share with others through our charity Treasured In Heaven.

Has it been a smooth road?
No it has not been a smooth road at all. Just getting out of bed was a struggle at first, so every day is a battle. I am often sad and depressed. I had to take a lot of time away from social media because of how hard it was for me at times in the last year. Treasured In Heaven most definitely gave me an outlet for coping, but my grief would hit me at very unexpected times and cause mayhem. I am still a person with a body and a spirit, so I am still fighting a spiritual battle. I believe the enemy wants me to be sad, depressed and overcome with despair. I constantly have to check in spiritually to make sure my days are spent working for heaven and not for the enemy. Of course, some days are better than others. Experts also tell you not to make any big decisions in the first year of a traumatic event, and I made a bunch of them, which added a bit to the chaos. I’ve doubted myself and wondered if I shouldn’t have done it so soon. However, I don’t think this was ever an option. When the idea was downloaded into my mind, I was going to make it happen, and quickly, because it felt so, well, heavenly.

So, as you know, we’re impressed with Treasured In Heaven – tell our readers more, for example what you’re most proud of and what sets you apart from others.
Treasured In Heaven sends gift baskets to families facing baby loss at any gestation. We’ve partnered with local churches, family members and strangers to send the baskets. Our ministry is mostly just by word of mouth, as we don’t exactly go out looking for a business. However, we are always looking for companies to partner with if they feel compelled by our mission as we fundraise for future baskets and their contents. Treasured In Heaven exists for families to know they are not alone, and most importantly, that there is still hope in the midst of horrendous pain. It also provides a way for family members to acknowledge and respond to this kind of loss by sending one of our baskets. With the help of generous donors, we have been able to send them out all over the world, as pregnancy and child loss seeps into more people’s lives than anyone would like to imagine. Our baskets have made their way to South Africa, Canada, Switzerland, Georgia, California, Utah, Denver, and of course, to our home city of Colorado Springs.

Let’s touch on your thoughts about our city – what do you like the most and least?
I love Colorado Springs because so many great organizations are here, like Compassion International and Save the Storks, just to name a couple. I love our mountain views and how close we are to God’s beautiful creation. I am not loving all of the growing traffic, but this too is a good thing about our city and businesses.

What role has luck (good luck or bad luck) played in your life and business?
I have been very lucky that so many friends and family have supported my mission. It’s incredible just how many people have lost a baby themselves, or know someone close to them who have. Luck would also have it that I was given a table at the first ever Stork Fest in Colorado Springs, and thanks to my generous friend Stephanie, I was also blessed to be featured as the honorary nonprofit this year at The Fine Art & Crafts Market. There I raised money for TIH, met incredible vendors who donated items for baskets, and unexpectedly connected with people also sharing the need to believe their loved baby is Treasured In Heaven too.

Contact Info:

• Website: www.treasuredinheaven.org
• Phone: 7192174076
• Email: treasuredinheaven42319@gmail.com

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