National Children’s Grief Awareness Day is Thursday, November 21st this year. It’s the perfect opportunity to help spread awareness about children’s grief and bereavement. Did you know that 1 in 12 children in the U.S. will experience the death of a parent or sibling by age 18? The goal of this day is to help shine a light on this reality, so children do not have to feel alone while grieving.
Every year in the month of November we honor our loved ones by having the children and their caregivers decorate a blue butterfly in remembrance of their loved one. We spread these special butterflies throughout the house as a dedication of the love families have for their special person. It’s a beautiful way to show love doesn’t end with loss but lives on.
This year we are also doing a special tribute on Children’s Grief Awareness Day. We had the families decorate a luminary in honor of their loved one. They were able to write their names, write touching messages or draw pictures. The children and caregivers worked together to allow them a chance to show their shared love for their special person. We will use these luminaries to spell out the word HOPE on Children’s Grief Awareness Day. All of our Monday families will make up the letter H, Tuesday families will make up the letter O, Wednesday families will make up the letter P and Thursday families will make up the letter E. We want to spread hope and awareness as a community and remember those who are bereaved.
We want to encourage you to find time to honor the people in your life who are no longer here. While thinking about them, include others in your life who are grieving that same person. Decorate your own butterflies, light a candle, eat their favorite food, and hold space to talk about them. Allowing yourself to grieve and share that emotion with others will give them permission to share their grief as well. We hope you will join us this month in our mission to ensure that no child will ever have to grieve alone.
If you are supporting a grieving child in your life, we encourage you to visit the National Alliance for Children’s Grief website for great resources and support.
