Helping hands: Tides partners with local school districts for grief support programming

Tides — a grief support organization for children, teens and adults — is partnering with local school districts to facilitate school-based grief support programming. These peer support groups are provided to schools free of charge and offer a safe space for students who have experienced loss to come together, support and encourage one another. Students read books, create art, play games and have a safe space to share their feelings and individual experiences with other students who have experienced loss.

Tides offers peer support groups in the Bald Eagle, Bellefonte, Penns Valley, Philipsburg-Osceola and State College area school districts, with over 150 students participating.

The need for these support groups has been overwhelming. Approximately one in 12 children will lose a parent or sibling by the time they reach 18 years of age, and the majority of children will experience a significant loss by the time they complete high school. While response to grief is individual, all grieving children and teens are at an increased risk of facing decreased academic performance, behavioral problems and social withdrawal. Research shows that children who have experienced loss are positively impacted by supportive services, such as grief and loss peer support groups, which give them the opportunity to learn healthy coping strategies, share their experience and learn from others.

“(Tides school-based programming) allowed her to see that she was not the only child in the world grieving,” a mother of a kindergarten participant said.

Tides is a local organization that provides a grief support system to children, teens and adults in Centre County. We provide free programming and grief support to individuals of any age who have lost a loved one, because we believe no one has to grieve alone. In addition to school-based programming, Tides offers bi-weekly support group meetings at Mount Nittany Middle School, provides crisis response support, presents grief education events, and distributes books and resources to serve our community. Tides Nights are held the first and third Thursdays of the month at Mount Nittany Middle School at 6 p.m.