Victoria Renken, M.S., LPCC, NCC
Victoria Renken, M.S., LPCC, NCC
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Lily's Library at Medical City Dallas

On April 19, 2022, Lily's Library was donated to the Medical City Dallas Maternal Fetal Institute to honor Lily's first birthday and the International Congenital Diaphragmatic Hernia  (CDH) Awareness Day. 


Lily's Library was created by Victoria Renken. As both a counselor with advanced training in perinatal mental health and perinatal palliative care and as a loss mom herself, Victoria's whole heart is in this library. Family and friends contributed to the collection which is made up of books for families who have lost a baby. Included in the library are books that provide the opportunity to make a memory with your baby before your final goodbye, books to support siblings as they process their grief, and books to support parents as they navigate their grief journey once they leave the hospital. 


Lily's Library continues to be sustained by the Renken Family (and friends) with the hope to bring Lily's Library to additional hospitals in the future. As of 2024, we have been honored to donate over 500 books to support the ongoing efforts of Lily's Library at Medical City Dallas.


"We hope that Lily's life and legacy will comfort other families from the program who end up saying goodbye unexpectedly and those who know they will say goodbye due to a life-limiting diagnosis"

Books included in Lily's Library

Books for Grieving Parents

Books for Grieving Siblings

Books for Grieving Siblings

  • Getting Grief Right by Patrick O’Malley
  • Holding on to Love After You’ve Lost a Baby by Gary Chapman and Candy McVicar
  • Grieving the Child I Never Knew by Katie Wunnenberg
  • It’s Ok That You’re Not Ok by Megan Devine
  • How to Carry What Can’t Be Fixed by Megan Devine
  • Welcome to the Grief Club by Janine Kwoh
  • A Brave Lament by Andrew Bauman
  • From Father to Father: Letters From Loss Dad to Loss Dad by Emily R Long
  • I Will Carry You: The Sacred Dance of Grief and Joy by Angie Smith
  • Shattered: Surviving the Loss of a Child by Gary Roe
  • Grieving Dads: To the Brink and Back by Kelly Farley and David DiCola
  • The Unspeakable Loss: How Do You Live After a Child Dies? by Nisha Zenoff

Books for Grieving Siblings

Books for Grieving Siblings

Books for Grieving Siblings

  • Learning to Say Goodbye by Cassidy Hitchcock 
  • The Invisible String by Patrice Karst
  • A Hug From Heaven by Anna Whiston-Donaldson
  • Tear Soup: A Recipe for Healing After Loss by Pat Schwiebert  and Chuck DeKlyen 
  • The Memory Box: A Book About Grief by Joanna Rowland
  • Perfectly Imperfect Family by Amie Lands
  • Fly High by Michelle Medlock Adams
  • You Could Have Been by Ann-Maree Imrie

Books to read with your Baby

Books to read with your Baby

Books to read with your Baby

  • Guess How Much I Love You by Sam McBratney
  • I Love You Through and Through by Bernadette Rossetti Shustak
  • And if You Can’t by Sydney N Hatcher
  • I’ve Loved You Since Forever by Hoda Kotb
  • What Matters Most by Emma Dodd
  • I Love You All Ways by Marianne Richmond
  • Wherever You Are: My Love Will Find You by Nancy Tillman
  • You Are My I Love You by Maryann Cusimano Love
  • Love You Forever by Robert Munsch
  • I’ll Love You Forever by Owen Hart
  • I Love You Just Like This by Sesame Workshop
  • The Runaway Bunny by Margaret Wise Brown
  • If Animals Kissed Goodnight by Ann Whitford Paul
  • You Are My Happy by Hoda Kotb

Additional Recommendations

Books to read with your Baby

Books to read with your Baby

  • Resilient Grieving: Finding Strength and Embracing Life After a Loss that Changes Everything by Lucy Hone
  • Grieving Is Loving: Compassionate Words for Bearing the Unbearable by Dr. Joanne Cacciatore
  • There was a Baby: A Book for Siblings After a Miscarriage, Stillbirth, or Infant Death by Laura Camerona
  • Something Very Sad Happened: A Toddler's Guide to Understanding Death by Bonnie Zucker
  • The Good Mourning: A Kid's Support Guide for Grief and Mourning Death by Seldon Peden II 
  • We Had To Say Goodbye Before We Even Met: A book for children who have lost a sibling through pregnancy or early baby loss  by  Irene Teague and Grainne Knox
  • From Mother to Mother: On the Loss of a Child by Emily R Long
  • You Are Not Alone: Love Letters From Loss Mom to Loss Mom by Emily R Long
  • Bearing the Unbearable: Love, Loss, and the Heartbreaking Path of Grief by Joanne Cacciatore and Jeffrey Rubin
  • At a Loss: Finding Your Way After Miscarriage, Stillbirth, or Infant Death by Donna Rothert
  • The Baby Loss Guide: Practical and compassionate support with a day-by-day resource to navigate the path of grief by Zoë Clark-Coates
  • Saying Goodbye: A personal story of baby loss and 90 days of support to walk you through grief by Zoë Clark-Coates
  • Beyond Goodbye: A practical and compassionate guide to surviving grief, with day-by-day resources to navigate a path through loss by Zoë Clark-Coates

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