Eagle Scout Raises Funds For Special Memorial In Norman

A Boy Scout in Norman is dedicating his Eagle Scout project to an issue he will never experience personally, but rather an issue that affects thousands of pregnant moms: miscarriages and stillbirths.

The 16-year-old Eagle Scout dedicated the memorial to the unborn Saturday morning at Sunset Memorial Park. Community members and church family came to the dedication and one minister and former nurse tells News 9 the memorial will help many grieving parents in the community.

Oree Wyatt has already earned the highest rank a Boy Scout can get.

"I wanted to do something that was above and beyond what people would expect," Wyatt said.

Wyatt is a busy teen. He doesn't know yet, all it takes to be a parent or lose a child. But for his Eagle Scout project, Wyatt made a $21,000 memorial to the unborn possible. He collected money from donations and got the granite for the memorial at cost.

The cemetery and funeral home also wanted to help because they know some parents don't feel they have anywhere to grieve a miscarriage or stillborn baby.

"I wanted something that would last and I wanted something that would have a big impact on the community, even if it's not seen straight on the outside," Wyatt said.

Of course, like all good scouts, Wyatt studied the topic and statistics. But after talking with therapists and doctors, he found out many parents suffer in silence or don't know how to cope a loss like this.

"At the end, when they have a miscarriage or stillbirth, there's really no place they can go to find healing," he said.

The teen is just now learning and saw Saturday how big an impact his memorial is already having.

"It's a place where someone can make a concrete time to turn loose of something that's very hurtful in your lives," WWJD minister and former RN, Sandy Lynn Patton said.

Patton has helped a lot of grieving parents. She has also experienced the loss of a child.

"Well, having lost a child that we named ‘Ceyla', it's a hard struggle you know," said Patton. "You don't get to bury your unborn baby in most cases, this is very needful. That's why I had to come."

Patton says this new memorial will have a profound impact on the entire community.

"This is wonderful," she said.