Ele’s Place, a healing center for grieving children and teens, will open its Grand Rapids branch on Thursday, June 27, at Third Reformed Church on Michigan Street, which will host the nonprofit organization’s programming and office.
The twenty-one-year-old Ele’s Place, with branches in Lansing and Ann Arbor, is solely devoted to providing support for children coping with the death of a parent, sibling, or other close family member or friend.
"After a year of planning, building our Community Board, recruitment and training of staff and volunteers, promotion, fundraising, and preparation of our program site and offices, we are ready to support families!” said Gerilyn May, managing director.
Key components of the program are:
- Weekly support groups throughout the year.
- Unlimited participation time.
- Five separate children’s groups for age-appropriate activities (ages three to eighteen).
- Groups for parents/guardians run concurrently.
- No cost to families.
Before coming to Ele’s Place, many grieving children feel alone and keep their feelings inside, not wanting to burden their parents or other family members. Often, friends don’t seem to understand if they haven’t had a similar experience. But each week at Ele’s Place, grieving children and teens will find a warm and welcoming place to meet new friends who really understand how they feel, while they begin to heal after the death of a loved one.
For program information, parents or guardians can call (616) 301-1605, or visit www.elesplace.org.
Source: Ele’s Place
