Webcast Held in Recognition of Children’s Grief Awareness Month
WHAT: Halifax Health – Hospice and the Stetson University Department of Counseling Education and Boundless Learning will present the Fall Conference Webcast on Children’s Grief hosted by the National Alliance for Grieving Children
WHEN: Thursday, November 12, 2015
2 p.m. – 5 p.m.
WHERE: StetsonUniversity – Stetson Room
421 N. Woodland Blvd.
DeLand, FL
DETAILS: In recognition of Children’s Grief Awareness Month, the National Alliance for Grieving Children (NAGC) will host the Fall Conference on Children’s Grief. This first-time event will feature thought leaders from the field of childhood bereavement who appeal to diverse audiences, including funeral service, hospice care, health care, education, mental health, child welfare, and bereavement support professionals.
Featured presentations will include:
Session One (12 p.m.-1:30 p.m.)
Helping Children and Adolescents Cope with Grief and Loss: A Hospice Perspective. Presented by Kenneth J. Doka, Ph.D., College of New Rochelle
Session Two (1:14 – 3:15 p.m.)
Helping Children, Teens and Families after a Sudden or Unexpected Death. Presented by Donna Schuurman, Ed.D., FT, The DougyCenter
Session Three (3:30 – 5:00 pm)
“OMG! You Actually Took a Child to a Funeral!?”
Re-childing death memorialization in a busy, ritual “lite” multicultural society. Presented by Harold Ivan Smith D.Min., FT, St. Luke’s Hospital, Carondolet Medical Institute
Members of the community interested in learning about children’s grief are invited and encouraged to attend this free webcast event.
Counseling professionals (LMHC, LMFT and LCSW) and nursing professionals will receive 4.5 hours of continuing education. Stetson students will receive 1.5 cultural credits for each session attended.
For registration information call 386.822.4852.
BACKGROUND: Since 1979, Halifax Health – Hospice has compassionately provided care and services to Central Florida communities, with the non-profit organization’s bereavement program for children recently recognized with a 2015 Award of Excellence for program innovation by the Florida Hospice and Palliative Care Association.
Halifax Health-Hospice’s BeginAgain Lawrence E. Whelan Children’s Grief Center has gained national recognition for its successful programs that allow children the opportunity to process their grief with the assistance of licensed, master’s level counselors who specialize in children’s grief along with a specially trained and supervised team of volunteers.
One of the center’s most popular programs is CampBeginAgain, which helps children and teenagers, ages 6-18, heal following the death of a loved one. Held at various times throughout the year, the weekend retreat combines recreational and sharing activities to create common bonds among campers who are experiencing similar emotions. Campers share in grief support groups to learn how others cope with emotions and discover ways to positively express themselves.
