Where did the summer go? How can it be September already? Before summer started, the thought process included, “oh, I can catch up over the summer.” Yikes, I still have more catching up to do. All in all, it was a great summer and we got so much done at Jeff’s Place. We are loving welcoming our families into our beautiful home and have been busy with the start of groups!
281 Pleasant Street in Framingham is looking AMAZING. Our landscapers are putting the finishing touches on our outdoor space, creating meaningful and inviting opportunities for connection. We added new insulation to the building through the MASS Save program, as well as other home improvement projects like new windows and gutters. We truly appreciate the generosity of Innuwindow in Natick for donating window treatments for our entire building, Bacon Street Farm is once again donating seasonal outdoor plants, and Trader Joe’s continues to donate gorgeous flowers to brighten our space each week. We are grateful.
At the end of June, we bid farewell to Cameron who had worked at Jeff’s Place for several years. We will miss him and wish him the best in his new chapter. We were lucky to hire Robby, our intern from last year, to join us as a full-time clinician.
We just launched a 2-year research initiative with 15 national organizations participating in the first year. Our Founder, Dr. Jenny Kaplan, developed the Inventory of Youth Adaptation to Loss (IYAL) through the support of dozens of children’s bereavement centers across the US and Canada over the past 10 years. The IYAL is a strength-based measurement tool to assess a child’s grief and growth factors, and it is the only tool of its kind to help providers of children’s grief centers and therapists determine how their services impact change over time. For more information, email Jenny. We have exciting program expansion efforts on the way too. More to come down the road. And we are hard at work revamping our website and are excited to share the launch with you shortly….
And as always, we are so very appreciative to have your support. More than ever, especially as we see more and more new families, we need your help to continue to provide FREE support services to our kiddos and families. There is nothing more impactful than seeing them come to Jeff’s Place with a smile on their face. They know Jeff’s Place is a safe and comfortable space for them to share and be part of a group “who gets it.” Please consider a donation, every dollar makes a difference. Click here to support us.
Our Memories & Milestones event in June was a big hit. We showed off our new house and property and are incredibly grateful for the funds that were raised that evening.
Program Update
Last week we welcomed our families back with the first group meetings of the year, and finally, we brought back pizza dinners!
We welcomed our new interns from Lesley University Graduate program, Jessica and Mike, who will be with us this academic year.
This past weekend, we hosted a facilitator training session with our largest group to date. Saturday and Sunday were filled with a great deal of learning and emotion. Welcome to our new group of facilitators, we are excited to have you joining us this year.
We are thrilled to begin our next Grandparent Support Group for grandparents supporting a grandchild who is grieving. This group runs virtually, allowing grandparents near and far to attend and connect. Participants have shared resources, learned more about the grieving process, and offered support to one another. We are currently accepting applications for the fall session.
Join us for our 2022 Memory Walk
On Sunday, October 30, we will gather in the parking lot of 281 Pleasant and walk together to the Village Green, Framingham Commons and then walk back to Jeff’s Place and enjoy activities, snacks, music, and games.
Help us continue to meet the needs of our community.
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Invest in our future
As our services expand, Jeff’s Place is dedicated to continuing our support of families who are grieving. But we need your help to make that happen. We invite you to invest in the future of Jeff’s Place. Over the next two years, Jeff’s Place plans to raise $1,000,000 through Phase II of our capital campaign. These funds will allow us to pay down our mortgage, maintain our new home, complete our outdoor oasis and fund our national research initiative.
GreatNonprofits’ 2022 Top-Rated Nonprofits are endorsed by clients, volunteers, and their community. Please help us attain the top non-profit status by including your testimonial about Jeff’s Place by clicking here.
