Every November offers an opportunity for our Center to join in a targeted effort to bring attention to our youngest grievers through Children’s Grief Awareness Month, with a specific day designated as the 3rd Thursday – November 16th.

This year’s Children’s Grief Awareness Month theme set by  the National Alliance of Children’s Grief is titled Flipping the Script. It provides the opportunity to learn how to shift a perspective, take a different approach, and flip common grief scripts (reactions/responses) to improve how we talk about death.

Understanding the magnitude of childhood bereavement is key to driving necessary action that ensures adequate resources are available to those needing care. Often overlooked, childhood bereavement continues to grow in importance as a national priority. Here are some staggering facts.

Through our Center’s counseling sessions and peer support group programs like Camp Millie and Nello’s Corner, which annually serves approximately 150 children, our staff listens attentively to challenges that grieving children and teens face in being recognized as well as the struggles others have in offering meaningful support and comfort.

There are often assumptions that have been made that hinder the ability to truly understand and honor our youth. We have learned that sometimes traditional expressions of sympathy can be unhelpful or even hurtful to grievers.

Our Center will be sharing tip sheets, thoughts/words/pictures from the children of our programs, and launch a new Center initiative to reach out to the community.

We will be reflecting the voices of grieving children and teens so we can better support and encourage individuals in their journey with loss. 

We have an obligation to learn how to be our best, not just for grieving children and teens, but all who are touched by grief and need to hear empathy and hope from others.