Fall Program Update
This fall brings some new and exciting ways of doing things at The Children’s Room. We have learned a lot over the past two and half years during the pandemic. We have been so successful in providing all of our services virtually, and we have also realized how much many families want to be together in person. To this end, we have decided to create a “blended” model of services.
We will offer our peer support groups in person at the house in Arlington. The children and teens will be divided by grade, and there will be adult groups. We are also excited to welcome many of our volunteers back to help facilitate these groups. Our teen services will also be offered in person, including a teen-only peer group and our monthly teen events. Our Family Night, Parenting While Grieving, and adult-only groups will be provided virtually. This “blended” model allows many who are still not comfortable meeting in person or who are limited by distance to continue to have access to support.
We will continue offering in-person groups in schools and community organizations. The Children’s Room partners with schools to provide accessible, on-site grief support groups/programs to children and teens in their familiar environments, allowing them to benefit from services they may not otherwise be able to participate in. Our clinical/program staff is available to work with schools or community agencies to develop and facilitate grief support groups for children and teens ages 6 to 18. The groups are co-facilitated by a clinician from The Children’s Room and one of the mental health professionals from the school/community agency. We have time-limited group options as well as ongoing group options. Groups are hosted at a school or a community agency, allowing children and teens to benefit from services they may not otherwise have access to.
The TCR team has been working hard all summer to plan all of our services, welcome back returning families, and meet many new families. One of the silver linings of the pandemic is to put what we have learned into practice to help support others in their grieving process.
