. ~ , ,} ' 7 HENRY intelligencer Tina Hay is still trying to come to grips with every new parent's worst nightmare -- the loss of a child through Sudden Infant Death Syndrome. "You never get over it. It's something you just have to learn to live and deal with," she said of this past winter's tragedy. Part of Hay's healing process was joining the Canadian Foundation for the Study of Infant Deaths in hopes of mak- ing more people aware of SIDS. This past May, she organized the first-ever "Stop SIDS One Step at a Time" walk in Belleville that drew more than 100 partici- pants and raised $3,315. It was the largest amount of money ever collected through a walk for \ the national foundation. For her efforts, Hay was presented with the founda- tion's Volunteer of the Year Award during the SIDS International Conference held July 2-5 in Edmonton. She attended the conference to learn everything she could about SIDS and the award came as a shock. "I am impressed I received this award after only a short time with the foundation. I am very honoured," said Hay, proudly showing her plaque, statue and doily bearing the foundation's Baby's Breath flower symbol. She will soon be busy planning for next May's walk but is always available "to support other families who need some comfort and maybe a listening ear." The Belleville native and Quinte Secondary School grad- uate worked for a shoe store in Picton and the Wine Rack at Ultra Food before deciding in 1996 to start her own small day care in her old East Hill home. She has two children in the day care program. She and her husband, Stephen, have two sons as well, 10 and 13 years old. Life as they knew it changed that one afternoon this past winter. Hay put her almost-four month-old son to bed for his usual afternoon nap. "There was nothing unusual. He was a happy, healthy baby," she recalled. "I went to get him because he was sleeping longer than usual and I wanted him to sleep the night." She went into his room "and he was gone. It was like a nightmare. I screamed his name and he didn't respond." Hay started CPR on her infant son. They called 911 and an ambulance arrived almost immediately. Further efforts to revive the child failed at Belleville hospital. "It was just after that I knew other people out there have gone through the same thing as me." Her sister found the national foundation for the study of infant deaths on the Internet. "I didn't know anything about the foundation. But I decided to get involved. I wanted to make people aware that it can happen to anyone."