Imagine Offers Popular Community Webinar on "How to Talk to Kids about Death and Dying"

“We want them to stand beside us, not trying to fix what cannot be fixed, not trying to rush us out of our grief. We want them to stand there, without flinching, and acknowledge what is true: this hurts. This hurts. I’m here.”

— Megan Devine, refugeingrief.com

These words beautifully capture the essence of what children and teens need most when they are grieving the loss of someone close to them. Yet, for many adults, "standing there" is the hardest part.

At Imagine, A Center for Coping with Loss, staff members frequently hear from caregivers who are struggling to find the right words to talk to their children about death and dying. Often, the fear of saying the wrong thing leads to saying nothing at all, leaving children to navigate their grief in isolation. Imagine is committed to changing that narrative by providing caregivers with the language and confidence to engage in honest, life-changing conversations.

Back by popular demand following overwhelming community feedback, Imagine is proud to host its educational webinar, "How to Talk to Kids about Death and Dying," on Wednesday, June 17th, from 12:00 PM to 1:30 PM.

Created to provide practical support for parents, caregivers, and professionals, those attending the webinar will learn to:

• Recognize that grief begins at diagnosis
• Describe how children grieve at different developmental stages
• Develop tools for creating a safe space where children can share their feelings
• Discover ways to navigate conversations about diagnosis, illness and death

“The relief and gratitude we receive from community members after sharing this information is a testament to how needed these tools are,” says Imagine’s Training and Education Director, Veronica C. Ortiz, LPC. “Our goal is to ensure caregivers and community members feel supported and know they are not alone in having these difficult conversations with the kids in their lives."

You’re invited to be a part of a grief-informed community and join Imagine in their effort to ensure that no child grieves alone. By attending this session, community members can learn how to best support the children in their lives through some of life’s most difficult moments.

Interested participants can register by visiting www.imaginenj.org or by scanning the QR code below. Upon registration, a Zoom link will be provided for the June 17th session.

For more information or questions regarding this webinar, please contact Veronica C. Ortiz at veronica@imaginenj.org.

Imagine, A Center for Coping with Loss is a 501c3 that offers training and education on loss and grief to the community and free year-round grief support groups for children ages 3-18 and young adults 19-30 who are coping with a loss due to death. Concurrently, support groups are available for the parents and caregivers of the children in the groups and offered in English and Spanish. Imagine has centers in Newark and Mountainside and offers virtual groups as well. For more information, please contact Imagine at 908-264-3100 or info@imaginenj.org or visit our website at www.imaginenj.org