Thursday, November 15th is Children's Grief Awareness Day...supporting kids who have experienced a death in their family. That happens too often for kids these days, but there are good people in town helping them out. In a little room inside Sepulveda Elementary School in Sparks, 5 kids share their grief with 3 adults. Little Anan lost his uncle: "He was in the hospital for about 5 months, and died."
One lost a parent. One little girl lost her sister. But all children often feel very alone in the journey of grief they travel. As one little girl said at the round table: “I get nervous, and sometimes I, I don't know how to do it."
Leading the session, which also involved a butterfly-coloring activity is Emilio Parga, the executive director of The Solace Tree, a nonprofit organization based in Reno that works with children, teens and adults who are grieving a loss or struggling emotionally. Parga told me, "We bring kids together and say, 'Hey you can talk about it if you want, but we just want you to know you're not the only ones going through it.’"
Emilio has been helping kids get over family tragedies for 15 years now, from when he started the charity. He says things are very different now. "We've had more phone calls because of the epidemic in opioid addictions, because kids are having their parents die because of it." The national rate of opioid-related deaths has increased by more than 13.3% since 2010. Today, 1 in 20 children under age 15 has had one or both parents die, while 1 in 5 will face the death of someone close to them. 60,000 children endure the death of a sibling every year.
That all adds to other top causes like suicide and disease. 9-year-old Will says his dad died from a heart attack caused by smoking. His dad gently eased Will in, to what was going to happen. Will told me, "One day we were driving in the car, and he told me that he wouldn't live as long as I would think he would."
He was home the day his dad passed away: Â "I was sitting there and I tried to stay strong. And I did. And I help my mom a little bit sometimes." Today, and every day he carries the bracelet his dad always wore:Â "I tied it on my wrist and I didn't take it off, for like ever. For maybe 2 months. It helps me to remember my dad, to know that he's still in here. I might not be able to see him. But I know that he's with me."
He says it’s a great help, talking it all out. That's what he tells the other 4 in his group...like sharing happy memories of the ones they lost. He doesn't want to forget the special times he had with his dad. As he told the other kids, "One day my dad wanted to take me to mini golf, and we spent the whole day over there..." And he proudly shares his dad's bracelet with the others. Will told me after the get together, "It's good to know that there are other people, who are feeling what you're feeling."
The Solace Tree is asking you to wear blue in support of kids dealing with loss tomorrow (Thursday), and for messages on a Children’s Grief Awareness Day Facebook page. We have a link to it and the website below:
