Grieving teens ages 13 - 19 can find comfort and support in a newly added space in Alabama's Healing Place Center. Grief-stricken teens, who have lost somebody close to their hearts, will be given guidance or support in dealing with sorrow linked with the sad loss.
The idea of adding a space for grieving teens was brought up after a statistic showed that one out of five kids is going to experience loss of close kinship by the age of 18. The center already sheltered grieving children but did not have space for teens.
Sarah Schmidlkofer, the Healing Place's teen program coordinator, noted that the center has been in need for a while for a space for this older age group of children to come and feel at home. She added that they have great space for kids, but they did not have anything for the older children, where they could feel connected.
So they decided to remodel their attic space and give space for weeping teens. The space was painted white and left with blank spaces where teens can draw anything that depicts their current emotions, whether grief or healing.
Right now, some teens have already drawn bright artworks that portray either grief or healing. One example is Gracey Weatherford, who sketched a huge colorful owl throwing up colors.
"The owl is throwing up because grief can cause that," DecaturDaily quoted Artist Lynn Weatherford as interpreting the portrait of Gracey, who happens to be her daughter. She added that in another scene, a child is sleeping, another reaction to grief. The walls of the space really highlight the emotions that the teenagers feel while managing grief.
The center also has teen support groups which meet four times a month. Melissa Bailey, the executive director of the healing center, said this is a time of giving those kids skills to cope with their grief, and the environment is so crucial.
Meanwhile, 1.9 million teenagers below age 18 or more than 2 percent of American children have lost one or both parents, says U.S. Social Security Administration, according to Grief Speaks. Research likewise show that a death of loved ones makes an awful impact on a kid, the Grief Speaks highlighted.
