Nothing speaks sadness and grief louder than the loss of a child. Those parents who have ever experienced this unbearable pain only have the memories of their loved ones to remind them of the happiness and the precious moments they once shared.

One bereaved mother named Melissa Carter shared some devastating news and is pleading the public for help after her son’s ashes were stolen during a burglary.

Speaking to Today Parents, heartbroken Melissa said how the incident took place on 29 December. She explained how she came to a smashed window that night and simply knew something was wrong.

Many of her belongings were stolen, among which the heart-shaped urn of her little Jacob.

“My living room was still kind of chaotic from Christmas, but it appeared nothing had been touched,” Carter told Today.

“My computer was still here, my TV was still here, but I noticed that all the bedroom doors were open … I turned to my left and I saw that [my] son’s door is wide open, and I see his bedroom door completely smashed in. I immediately realized someone broke into my home.”

She shared a photo of what the urn looks like hoping those who took it would feel her pain and bring it back to her. It has the inscription “Jacob Carter, April 13, 2012” on it.

“I immediately noticed that someone had gone through my dresser,” Cater explained to Today.

“The urn of my son, Jacob, was in there, along with all of my jewelry, and I noticed that the lid was off. All but a couple small necklaces were gone, and so I start looking around, trying to see if maybe someone realized it was an urn and dropped it, and I couldn’t find it anywhere.”

The ashes are all she has from the baby she lost when she was just six months pregnant and they mean so much to her.

“I am so heartbroken that someone broke into my home while I was gone and took his urn. That’s all I had of my baby.”

Authorities are doing all in their power to track the burglars down, but despite a fingerprint they found in Carter’s home, they have no other leads.

Carter’s mom is optimistic that her grandson’s urn would be returned and she believes the social media would have its impact on a possible positive outcome.

“I am a realist and an optimist, but I will never give up hope that someday, Jacob’s urn will find its way back to our family,” Jeanette Guddat Haggerty said.

“We are a strong family, and there are so many wonderful people in this world that have reached out.”

Please spread this story and help one heartbroken mom get her boy’s ashes back!