Parents Jenna Gassew and Dan Haley garnered national attention by completing a bucket list for their unborn son with a rare birth defect. Now they are preparing for his burial.
Shane Michael Haley died just four hours after he was born Thursday Oct. 9 due to complications from a rare condition where babies are born without major parts of their skull and brain known as Anencephaly.
His parents found out about his diagnosis back in April while Shane was still in utero. They created a Facebook page, asking for prayers.
The young couple then began filling up their summer with visits to the Jersey shore, Lancaster and many Philly-area attractions like The Franklin Institute, checking off each trip and using the hashtag #shanesbucketlist.
"It's nice and it's a blessing that they're with you for the whole thing," Jenna said of her pregnancy.
Support poured in for Gassew and Haley and their "Prayers for Shane" page grew to more than half a million likes since NBC10 first reported on the story in August. People from around the world were following the updates on the page the day of his birth and soon-after death.
The Facebook community has stuck by the young couple’s side. They continue to offer condolences and helped alert NBC10 this past weekend when the Prayers for Shane page was compromised by hackers and flooded with inappropriate images. NBC10 worked with Facebook to restore the page.
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Gassew and Haley post frequently on the page as they mourn the death of their son.
On Wednesday, which was Pregnancy and Infant Loss Remembrance Day, the couple invited everyone to light a candle from 7 — 8 p.m. to create an "International Wave of Light" in memory of Shane.
"I wish more than anything I could kiss those cheeks one last time but I find comfort in knowing that he, along with all the other beautiful babies that left Earth too soon, will be forever remembered,” the Gassew’s Facebook post read.
A viewing for the "cherished son, grandson, great-grandson, nephew and cousin" will be held Friday from 6 — 8 p.m. and Saturday 8:30 — 9:45 a.m. at The Donahue Funeral Home in Upper Darby.
His funeral Mass is at St. Laurence Catholic Church off West Chester Pike at 10 a.m. followed by his burial service at SS Peter and Paul Cemetery in Springfield.
In lieu of flowers, the family is asking that contributions in Shane Michael’s name be made to the J-Foundation, a nonprofit corporation supporting children facing life-limiting illness and their families.
"Shane spent his entire life in the arms of people that loved him unconditionally," Haley said of his son’s passing. "I don’t think you could ask for a more beautiful life than that."
