Erin's House Peer-Support Program Nights provide children and teens who are grieving the opportunity to be surrounded by others who have also experienced a death. The program serves children ages 3 to 18, is free of charge, and led by trained facilitators.
With groups of less than 10 participants, it creates a safe space for sharing feelings and memories with kids going through a similar experience. The program adopts a preventative approach to address unresolved grief and its negative consequences in adulthood.
96%
of kids say that after coming to Erin's House, they now look forward to doing things that are fun.
95%
of parents state that since coming to Erin's House, their child is again looking forward to their usual interests and new activities.
80%
of kids state that because of coming to Erin's House, they now can identify people who they can talk to about their person who died.
90%
of families state that after coming to Erin's House, they feel their entire family has adequate support for their grief.
WHAT TO EXPECT
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Program Nights at Erin's House begin with a pizza dinner and birthday celebrations for families. After dinner children and teen join their respective age-appropriate groups. Caretakers then have the option to attend an adult group focusing on supporting their children through grief. Program groups for kids engage in activities, open conversation, crafts, and reading to explore feelings associated with grief. Special rooms like the Volcano Room and Quiet Room offer diverse outlets for processing grief that each group has the opportunity to play in. The night concludes with a closing circle, leaving families with enhanced skills and confidence in their grief journeys.
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Programming is available in Spanish upon request.
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Because grief can often cause children to feel isolated and different, peer support in itself helps youth in the grieving process. Knowing that they are not alone in their thoughts and feelings helps them cope in this strange new world of missing someone.