About

Why Project Akiva?

When our baby Akiva passed, two family friends approached us and offered to send us to Florida. We had mixed feelings. Our four living children, who had been through so much, certainly needed the time away and the quality time with their parents, but how could we go on a pleasure trip mere months after our baby died? Ultimately, it came down to this: our children needed it, so we would go.

It was in Florida that we began to heal. On a private beach, our children played, collected seashells, and wrote Akiva’s name in the sand. Being near the calm of the ocean brought us the most peace we had experienced since Akiva’s death. We felt so close to Akiva, so connected. For the first time, we allowed ourselves the thought that we could heal. Our children would heal. Our family would heal, and Akiva would always be our son and brother. There will never be enough words to describe the impact of that trip on our family.

In Akiva’s memory, we would like to give families who have suffered the devastating loss of a child the same opportunity to reconnect and begin to heal. There are already many wonderful organizations for families with hospitalized children and many resources for grief and loss. Project Akiva fills the unique need of making it possible for grieving families to “get away” and experience the healing powers of nature. We want to do for others what was done for us: bring families to a healing environment, so they can process their loss and begin to heal from it.

Why the Lion?

Akiva’s bubbie brought him a small stuffed lion as a gift. It was the perfect size to prop up his tubes and Akiva loved holding the lion’s arm. Since Akiva's middle name was Leib, which means lion, it caught on quickly with all his medical staff and became a symbol of his struggle to survive.

One day, his lion fell on the floor. In his room, everything needs to be sterile, so the lion was whisked away to be washed and dried on a high temperature. Once removed from the dryer, its mane went from pristine to wild! The name Electrocuted Leib was born.

We felt it very appropriate for a lion to be the face of Project Akiva. The strength that Akiva Leib showed can only be compared to that of a lion, and his Electrocuted Leib stuffie will always be synonymous with Akiva's fight for life during his short time here with us.