Contributed
Bereavement therapist Andrea Hopwood faciliating a discussion on loss with children 6-16 at the Friends of the Kingston and St. Andrew Parish Library's monthly story hour last November.
Sixty small hands are raised in response to the question, "How many of you have lost someone you love? The same sixty hands are raised again when asked, "How many of you lost that person as a result of a tragic event?"
Seventy children participated in the Friends of the Kingston and St. Andrew Parish Library monthly story hour in November 2005; the month's topic bereavement therapy. The event was co-sponsored by Chichibud Ltd., an educational non-government organisation, which partners with the 'Friends'.
Guest speaker, Andrea Hopwood, "Auntie Andrea", one of Jamaica's few trained bereavement counsellors, read a story to the children about coping with death and, by sharing her own experiences, facilitated a discussion about death. Her solutions were to understand and begin to make sense of what has happened, learn how to identify, come up with constructive ways to react, commemorate the life of the loved one who was lost, and learn to go on with living and loving.
ready to share
"The children were more than open to sharing their stories so eager were they to speak that one wondered if they had simply been waiting for a chance to put their feelings into words. They were then asked to 'draw out' their feelings. Their pictures were poignant filled with flowers, tears, angry faces, coffins, crosses and guns. Interestingly, few children mentioned religion as a panacea for their loss", she explained.
Chichibud Ltd. is dedicated to promoting emotional growth through facilitating play, creative expression, reading, cultural awareness, and, where necessary, bereavement counselling, among basic and primary school-aged children.
The NGO used the opportunity to hand over picture books dealing with grief therapy and self-esteem, to the Jamaica Library Service. Chichibud chose books such as "When Dinosaurs Die" and "I'll Miss You" in an attempt to increase access by teachers, parents and children to 'simple guidelines' to help children cope with grief. "These picture books will help to facilitate validation and self-expression aspects of bereavement therapy that are critical in the face of epidemics like our crime situation, our HIV/AIDS status and the devastating effects of this and last hurricane season", the Chichibud pamphlet said.
This project is part of a larger outreach effort by Chichibud Ltd to raise awareness of this crucial mental health issue. Each summer the NGO organises its 'Soul Power' project, which includes annual summer camps and term time field trips for inner-city children. It also includes occasional workshops for guidance counsellors and donations of bereavement therapy books to teachers colleges, and parish libraries.
