Blog Archives
For the Moms Who Live On in Our Hearts on Mother’s Day
Mother’s Day has carried a different weight for me ever since April 18th, 2005, when my mom, Melinda, lost her fight against oral cancer. My mom was smart, kind, and a social butterfly, someone who never met a stranger. Her absence has shaped so much of my life, but so has her presence, in ways that continue to surround me even now. After my mom passed, my family moved from
Childhood Grief & Mental Health: Tips On How To Help A Grieving Child
May is Mental Health Awareness Month This month, we are focusing on how to support children who are experiencing grief. Loss has lasting impacts, specifically mental health, but with support, children can develop resilience and knowledge that can help carry them through life. Grief can have a lasting impact on a child’s mental health. With proper support, a child can learn how to cope with loss, develop empathy for others,
When Graduation Meets Grief: Honoring Your Achievement While Missing Someone Special
The moment you’ve worked so hard for has arrived – graduation day! All those late nights studying or working on project, challenges you overcame, and personal growth are something to look back on with a sense of great pride and maybe even relief that it is all over. You are on to your next exciting chapter, but all you can seem to think about someone who is missing. We want
Finally Facing My Grief 20 Years Later After My Dad Died
I was six years old when my dad died and twenty-five years old when I discovered Comfort Zone Camp. Everything in between has been a complex lesson on grief. On Thanksgiving Day 2004, my younger brother and I survived a car accident that my dad did not. On the way to my grandparents’ house in Pennsylvania, a man on the other side of I-78 fell asleep at the wheel, crossing
17 Years of Love, a Lifetime of Light
Before We Lost Him Prior to my loss, if you had asked me, I would’ve considered my family perfect. My family consisted of my mom, dad, and older sister Jordyn. We were super close, doing everything together, and my parents did everything in their power to make any dream my sister and I had come true. We valued family time, prioritizing simple things like eating dinner together. My sister and
Finding Healing After My Father’s Murder: A Journey Through Grief and Community
My dad has always and will always be my first best friend. He was the person who helped me discover my love for board games, cards, and puzzles. He also introduced me to the greatest movie of all time, The Goonies. All these memories I have of my dad are from having almost 7 years with him, and every day I wish I could have had more. I remember the
Better Late Than Never: Finding Comfort Zone Camp As An Adult
I still vividly remember the day I learned my dad died, sitting in my Nana’s front garden underneath her big tree that we always climbed as kids. A place which, before June 14th, 2007, was filled with so many good memories. For a while, walking into her front door brought back those terrible feelings, unending tears, and confusion, but it has become the place I remember memories of my dad
I Lost My Best Friend At 27. I’ll Keep The Magic She Brought To My Life Forever.
In so many words, I always knew that death would touch my life as family and loved ones aged—it was the cycle of life. While I had experienced the difficult passing of all four of my grandparents in my 31 years and the sadness of losing my Uncle to cancer in high school, I was the least bit prepared to lose my best friend at 27. My entire world flipped
Moving Forward, Not Moving On: A Firefighter’s Legacy
It was a typical Saturday morning at our house. My brother Matthew had a basketball tournament, and my mom was getting things ready for us to leave. Then, I heard the fire whistle and my dad’s pager went off. In a hurry to leave, my mom asked me to grab his pager, and I handed it to him. He kissed my forehead and said, “I love you little buddy, I’ll
Grief Felt Like A Life Sentence: That’s Because It Is
I was always told that grief follows you for your whole life and has a weird way of morphing into other feelings and outlets. I was also, unfortunately, a teenager once, and I thought I knew it all and had total control of my feelings. I was convinced I was done grieving the death of my dad when I was seventeen years old because it happened when I was five.
