If you are reading the information on this web site, it is most likely because you want/need to find ways to support a grieving child/teen.  There are three key ways in which this web site will support you in your work with maternally grieving children, teens and their families:

1. Understanding the Needs of Maternally Bereaved Children and Teens.  The information contained in the Children, Teens and Family/Friends sections will help you build, increase or reinforce your understanding about the nature and needs of maternally bereaved children, teens and their families.  Please read these materials. 
2. Resources for your Students and their Families,  Mommy's Light's Programs - Tradition Fulfillment_sm and Bereavement Education and Outreach - will provide additional resources to those you serve.   
3. Your Role is Supporting Maternally Bereaved  Children, Teens and their Families.  The information that is tailored to your profession will assist you in determining your role in supporting maternally bereaved children, teens and their families.  "There is no shame in grieving; the shame is in grieving alone."  Darcie Sims, PhD, CHT, CT, GMS

In the pages that follow, the focus is on what happens when a mom dies.  Much of the information, though, also applies to people who have experienced the death of someone they loved, such as a dad, a brother or sister, a grandparent, another family member, or a good friend.  Definitions - Grief refers to the strong emotions that happen when someone dies.  Bereavement is a life long process of adaptation to the death of a loved one.

These materials were made possible by a grant from the Robert and Joan Dircks Foundation.  Special thank you to Mimi Mahon, PhD, RN, FAAN, and Darcie D. Sims, PhD, CHT, CT, GMS, Mommy's Light's Director, for their work in creating these materials.