Earlier this month, Jill Duggar shared the devastating news of the stillbirth of her daughter Isla Marie. Now, the former reality star has invited fans to join in her grieving process by sharing photos from Isla’s funeral.
On Tuesday, Jill and husband Derick Dillard hosted a memorial service for Isla at their church.
A photo carousel on Jill’s Instagram page featured a series of heartbreaking images, including a box containing Isla’s remains and a collection of books her parents had hoped to share with her.
Jill Duggar Shares Details of Daughter’s Funeral
“Isla Marie, our baby girl. We will love you forever & hold you in our hearts until we hold you in heaven,” Jill captioned the post.
The Dillards also shared a photo of a program from Isla’s service.
A quote reading, “Planted on earth to bloom in heaven” was printed on the cover.
The couple later revealed the origin of the baby girls’ name, revealing that Isla means “devoted to God,” while Marie means “wished for child and beloved.”
Jill and Derick shared the news of Isla’s stillbirth back on April 13.
Fans had not previously known that Jill was pregnant, so the news of her miscarriage came as quite a shock.
A Devastating Announcement
“It is with heavy hearts that we announce the stillbirth of our beautiful baby girl, Isla Marie Dillard,” the Dillards wrote on Instagram.
“Jill was 4 months pregnant (due in August) when we found out that our baby died in utero. From the moment we found out we were pregnant, we couldn’t wait to meet our baby,” Jill and Derick continued.
“Isla was much loved from the start, and her 3 big brothers were so excited to introduce her to their world. We appreciate your prayers as we continue to grieve and heal from the loss of our little Isla Marie.”
Sadly, this was not Jill’s first miscarriage.
In October of 2021, Jill announced that she had lost a baby named River Bliss.
Just five months later, however, Jill announced that she was pregnant once again. And in July of 2022, Jill welcomed her third child, a boy named Freddy.
It’s unclear at this time if Jill and Derick are planning to continue expanding their family.
The Duggars’ practice of holding funerals for children who were delivered stillborn is a controversial one, but the grieving process is different for everyone, and we encourage Jill and Derick to mourn however they see fit.
Our thoughts go out to the entire Duggar family during this enormously difficult time.
