Red Nose is encouraging Australians to help reduce the deaths of nine children a day to zero, by supporting Red Nose Day on Friday, June 30.

Now in its 29th year raising funds and awareness for the critical lifesaving work of Red Nose (formerly SIDS and Kids), saving the lives of babies and children during pregnancy, infancy and childhood and supporting bereaved families.

Since Red Nose’s inception, over $16.7 million has been devoted into researching stillbirth, neonatal death, Sudden Infant Death Syndrome (SIDS), and other causes that contribute to the 3200 unexpected infant deaths that devastate Australian families each year.

The pain of losing a child never goes away.

But for Taree’s Mandy Heaslip her pain became a drive to do good.

Fourteen years ago Mandy lost her son Baylee to sudden infant death syndrome (SIDS).

What was a devastating time in the life of Mandy and her family was eased by Red Nose (then known as SIDS and Kids), who contacted her in less than 24 hours after losing her son.

Mandy said the plaster hand and footprints the charity organised of Baylee are something she still “treasures” in memory of her son.

“Red Nose Day is so vital to raising money for research, support services and monuments to any family that is faced with the loss of a child, be it early pregnancy loss right through to teenagers, there is nothing excluded in their support efforts,” Mandy said.

“The importance of their services is something that could only be truly appreciated or understood by the people experiencing the loss and I’m not sure I could even put it into words what it means to me.

“Supporting Red Nose Day means you help all of the above and hopefully one day there will be an answer as to why my baby died suddenly and unexpectedly at two months and two days old.”

So on June 30, don’t forget to put on your red nose to support this great cause, get a nose for your car or even an enormous one for your truck.