NEWS RELEASE
BEREAVED FAMILIES OF ONTARIO - MIDWESTERN REGION
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COVID-19 has resulted in more than a year of losses, and grief is what many people are feeling right now. Whether they have experienced the death of someone they know, are mourning the loss of a job, social connection or the usual routines of daily life, grief is having an impact on people’s lives.
“There is a common misperception that you can only grieve if someone dies,” says Melina Pearson, Outreach Coordinator at Bereaved Families of Ontario – Midwestern Region (BFO-MR). “The truth is grief is a natural and normal response to any type of loss.”
With its upcoming education session “Grief During a Pandemic” BFO-MR will acknowledge the varied and complex losses people may be experiencing during COVID-19. The session will also address the stigma associated with COVID-related deaths and how this is impacting individuals’ grief journeys.
Two virtual sessions are being offered:
- Tuesday May 25, 2021, 7 p.m. – 8 p.m. In partnership with Idea Exchange
- Thursday June 17, 2021, 7 p.m. – 8 p.m. In partnership with the Kitchener Public Library
Register here: Education – Bereaved Families of Ontario (bfomidwest.org)
“Our hope with these sessions is that we can encourage a greater understanding of grief and that we can validate what people might be experiencing right now. It’s completely normal and they’re not alone,” says Pearson.
About Bereaved Families of Ontario – Midwestern Region
2021 marks BFO-MR’s 25th anniversary providing peer grief support in Waterloo Region and Guelph & Wellington County. BFO-MR currently offers support groups for Parents Grieving the Death of an Infant, Parents Grieving the Death of a Child, and Healing Little Hearts - a professionally-run program for children ages 4-12 and their caregivers. Good Grief, a support group for teens coping with grief launched this year.
We also offer Living with Loss (a mixed-loss support group) and Living with Loss for adults grieving a death by substance use. Grief literacy is an important part of our work and we provide a variety of education sessions throughout the year. All programming and education initiatives are being offered virtually due to the COVID-19 pandemic and all our services are free-of-charge. For information about programs, grief education and memorial events, visit www.bfomidwest.org.
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