In a three-day series exploring our community’s deplorable infant mortality rate, Misti Crane told the stories of 16 of 81 families who lost a child in the first six months of 2014. She wrote to all 81 families, asking if they’d share their stories and a photo of the child they’d lost. She mapped the losses and highlighted the socioeconomic struggles in areas of Franklin County where infant deaths are more than triple the county average. Crane explored the greater toll that infant death takes on the African-American community and explained what is known about stopping these deaths. She spent time with those already working to help in her community and visited Baltimore, where significant strides already have been made. The stories that emerged put a face on a public health crisis, illustrated the role that race and place play in infant death rates and offered examples of work that can change our community for the better.
