For families in our HIE community who have experienced the unimaginable loss of a child, July—recognized as Bereaved Parents Month—is a time to honor their grief, their love, and the children they carry in their hearts each and every day.
Grief cannot be erased—but it can be carried together. Whether you are a bereaved parent yourself or someone who wants to support a grieving loved one, showing up with presence, compassion, and remembrance can make a lasting difference.
Our Child Life Specialist has created a collection of resources—some specifically for bereaved parents as they navigate life after loss, and others for friends, family members, and fellow parents who want to offer meaningful, heartfelt support. Whether you're carrying grief or walking alongside someone who is, we hope these tools help you feel more seen, supported, and connected.
Hope offers a range of resources to support, honor, and remember loss.
Annie Gunning, our on-staff Certified Child Life Specialist and Grief Counselor, is trained to provide coping strategies and suggestions for making memories through the bereavement and grief journey for the whole family—parents, siblings, and extended relatives.
We are able to connect you to resources worldwide, tapping into additional individualized and local programs to support your whole family along the way.
The HIE Loss Support Group is a worldwide peer support network designated for parents who have lost a child to HIE to express their feelings, support one another, and share their stories.
Hope's Peer Support Mentor program matches up families new to HIE loss with experienced, compassionate, trauma-trained peer parent leaders who provide emotional peer support to families through a 1:1 or on-call mentorship experience.
Led by Hope for HIE’s social worker, HIE loss families come together through a video support group that takes place on the second Thursday of every month to find community and discuss their journey with others.
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Connect with families, read inspiring stories, and get helpful resources delivered right to your inbox.
Jen Schaefer, our on-staff social worker, provides families with a compassionate and caring starting point by connecting them to a range of resources for bereavement, grief, and loss.