November News From Jeff’s Place

Children’s Grief Awareness Month

November is Children’s Grief Awareness Month, and November 21st is Children’s Grief Awareness Day.

When someone dies, it can be challenging to find the right words. Friends and family often turn to familiar phrases meant to comfort, but sometimes these fall short, and leave the grieving person feeling even worse.

Throughout November, Jeff’s Place is teaming up with grief centers nationwide for the “Flip the Script” campaign, sharing simple, practical tips on supporting grieving children, teens, and adults. Follow us on Instagram and Facebook and share our posts to help raise awareness.

We are also honoring the month by inviting our families to join in our butterfly project. We asked adults, teens, and children in our program to write what they wanted the world to know about their grief, alongside a message to their person. Their responses will be turned into a beautiful butterfly installation at the end of the month – stay tuned!

Thanks to the advocacy efforts of our friends and colleagues at The Children’s Room, Governor Maura Healey has officially proclaimed November as Children’s and Teens’ Grief Awareness Month in Massachusetts!

Memory Walk and Move

Last month, despite the crisp autumn air, the warmth of the morning was palpable as we held our largest Memory Walk and Move yet, with over 180 participants. Friends and families gathered from nearby towns—and even a few from out of state—to support one another. A special shout-out goes to a grandmother who, though miles away, joined us in spirit and walked in solidarity at the same time.

With your generosity, we raised over $29,000, surpassing our fundraising goal! This incredible achievement wouldn’t have been possible without YOU— our families and friends, amazing sponsors, supporters, volunteers, and board members.  Your support means the world to us.

Please check out the photos from this memorable morning!

Coping with the Holidays

The holiday season can bring added challenges, especially after a meaningful loss.  For support and guidance on navigating those celebrations – or giving yourself permission not to – explore our guide, Coping With The Holidays While Grieving.

Grief on Campus

For many participants in our program, advocacy goes hand-in-hand with their work in processing grief—often a role that, like grieving itself, is thrust upon them.

Last month, thanks to an invitation from one of our former teen participants who has embraced the role of advocate on her college campus, our Executive Director had the opportunity to lead several workshops at Dartmouth College focused on supporting grieving students within their community. We look forward to this new partnership as we strive to create grief-sensitive and supportive spaces for students of all ages.

Great NonProfits

GreatNonprofits’ 2024 Top-Rated Nonprofits are endorsed by clients, volunteers, and their community. We have received the top non-profit status for 10 years! Please help us maintain this status by including your testimonial about Jeff’s Place. Reviews must be submitted by December 31st!

The Reading Corner

We are excited to introduce the Reading Corner! Each newsletter, one of our team members will feature a book from our library. Stories open up wonderful ways to connect with kids, gently touching on themes of grief in a safe and comforting way, and play a valuable role in our group activities. We hope you enjoy these new resources!

Jeff’s Place clinician, Jenny Silverberg, recommends Why Do We Cry?, written by Fran Pinadera and illustrated by Ana Sender. “This is a beautiful book for people of all ages who have ever wondered why we cry. In this story, you will learn ways to explain what happens when we cry and some cool science about the three kinds of tears”.  So, go ahead and have that good cry… there’s a good reason for it!