NORTH TONAWANDA, N.Y. (WKBW) — What began as a promise between a mother and her daughter has grown into a heartfelt legacy of compassion, now blooming across Western New York.
Deborah Hastings lost her daughter, Erin Grace, in 2015. Born with cerebral palsy, Erin was nonverbal, used a wheelchair and faced health challenges from the moment she entered the world.
Doctors did not expect her to live past her first birthday but she defied all odds and lived 14 years.
"Erin was 14 when she passed away, so it was 14 years that were very tough for her at times," Hastings said. "She was a beautiful little girl with an amazing smile and loved to laugh."
Every spring, Erin would bring home a sunflower seedling from school. Hastings would plant them.
"And every year I would plant the plant in the garden, and for some reason, it would never grow," Hastings said.
On May 17, 2015, exactly one week after Mother's Day, Erin passed away. The sorrow hit Hastings but something peculiar happened soon after.
"I dug a hole, I put the plant in the ground right outside of her bedroom window, and I will tell you, it grew into the strongest, most beautiful sunflower that I've ever seen," she said.
That sunflower has since inspired "The Sunflower Promise," a new initiative Hastings launched this year alongside her sister, Jeanette Carver. It is aimed at supporting grieving mothers.
"Our goal is to put together these care packages for other mothers that have lost a child," Hastings said. "Mother's Day can be a very, very, very difficult time, when you wake up in the morning and your child is not there. The memories are there, the emotions are there."
Thirty mothers throughout Western New York will receive sunflower-themed care packages in the first year of the program. The packages include small gifts from local vendors and sunflower seeds from the same batch Erin brought home.
"Yeah, we all get a little piece of Erin," said Carver, who co-founded the project with her sister. "Spreading some joy, hopefully happiness into people's lives."
Through tears and smiles, Hastings said her daughter's memory continues to guide her.
"She taught me so much," she said. "She truly made me the person that I am today."
This year's launch of The Sunflower Promise coincides with the 10th anniversary of Erin's passing, as well as Mother's Day weekend. The sisters plan to deliver the care packages and hopefully, expand the initiative in future years.
Those who would like to nominate a grieving mother for next year's care packages can click here.
Follow The Sunflower Promise journey on Instagram.
