Grief Support for Surviving the Holidays

(Honesdale, October 30, 2019)…A free support group designed to help people cope with the

grieving process particularly during the upcoming holiday season will be offered at Wayne Memorial Hospital. The six-week session will provide support and focus on grief as a normal part of an individual’s transition through life. The sessions will be held Monday evenings from 6:00pm – 7:00pm from November 25 through December 30 in the David Katz Conference Room on the second floor of Wayne Memorial Hospital, 601 Park Street, Honesdale.

“We want to recognize that for many people, Hanukkah is not always happy. Christmas is not always merry and Kwanza is not always bright,” says Reverend Edward Erb, a chaplain at Wayne Memorial Hospital and one of the group’s facilitators. “The holidays are often difficult when a loved one is gone. Decorations aren’t as beautiful, food is not as joyful, and songs can seem flat.”

“Grief is experienced by each individual very differently,” explains Anna M. Walsh, Father Erb’s co-facilitator and a social worker with Wayne Memorial Hospital and Hospice Department. “There is no ‘right or wrong’ way to engage in that experience,” says Walsh, “and the process for each person is encountered in different ways. Sharing the experience often helps us understand our own losses more clearly. It makes us aware we are not alone in our feelings.”

Acknowledging that grief is a very individual process, the support group will encourage

participants to explore their own solutions to the challenges of living without their loved ones and dealing with the many changes that follow a loss. The group will provide a safe place in which individuals can sort out their feelings and share as they are able and willing. No one will be required to share.

The group is non-denominational. The facilitators say each participant’s experience would be enhanced by attending all sessions; however, it is understandable if someone cannot attend every one. Participants may enter or exit at any time.

A registration form can be found at www.wmh.org. For more information, email edwardkerb@aol.com.

Registration Form Grief Workshop Registration