Seasons Centre for Grieving Children in downtown Barrie hosted its Autumn Gratitude reception on Thursday, marking 28 years of community generosity that has raised more than $10 million.
There were dozens of attendees, including Barrie Mayor Alex Nuttall, who said a few words of support for the group.
Officials at the centre, located at 38 McDonald St., say it provides “grief education resources and peer support groups for children and families who are grieving the death of a loved one.
The group is funded through community support and all of its programs are offered free of charge. They say they are continually evolving their services to meet participants where they’re at in their "grief journey."
Paige Greschuk, a past participant and volunteer grief facilitator with Seasons Centre, spoke to BarrieToday at the event, describing the importance of their work.
“I think it’s so important for the community to have access to free and accessible grief facilitation for children, specifically peer-to-peer, as kids need to know they are not alone in their grief, and I think Seasons Centre provides exactly that,” she said.
“Following the loss of my mom, I felt completely alone,” Greschuk added. “And I felt a therapist wasn’t for me, and an office space wasn’t for me, and I didn't have any friends who had gone through the same loss, so having Seasons Centre come into my life when it did was imperative to the ability to connect with somebody who had felt the same loss, and around the same time as me.”
Thursday's event took place on Children’s Grief Awareness Day, which aims "to instill hope and healing in the hearts of children who are grieving."
The day is recognized by similar organizations around the world, with Children's Grief Awareness Day observed every year on the third Thursday in November.
Organizers invite the community to participate in their Light the Town Blue Campaign, “reassuring children they are not forgotten in the midst of their grief.”
They say the campaign shows support for children who are grieving: “Blue symbolizes children’s grief and lighting establishments with blue lights can show children who are grieving that we care about them.”
For more information about the campaign, visit the centre’s website.
