Rebecca says grief isn’t something people should process alone, especially not children. That’s why she brought her two daughters to Centrica Journeys, the Centrica Care Navigators grief support program designed specifically for children, teens, and their parents.

Rebecca’s husband Mike died of cancer in January 2020. It was his second bout with the disease; he first had it in 2017. Rebecca and Mike’s twin daughters were just 7 years old when he died. Rebecca had already built a strong support group of neighbors and friends, and though she asked her network for a child grief counselor who could help, she didn’t find anyone at first. But she kept looking.

When she discovered Centrica Journeys, she thought the group might help her daughters, by connecting them with other children who had lost a parent, and were living with their own kinds of grief. At the time, though, her children weren’t yet asking if there was anyone else like them, if there was a community of other grieving children to help them explore their feelings.

It was also during the COVID-19 pandemic, and Rebecca says she wasn’t interested in one more video call in days full of them. She felt it simply wasn’t time to turn to other people to help her daughters understand their grief.

A few years later, Rebecca’s daughters, now 11 years old, did start asking for people who might have some idea of how they’re feeling. In September 2023, Rebecca and her girls started attending in-person Centrica Journeys meetings.

“Every week, they ask, ‘Is this a Journeys week?’” Rebecca says. “When I get home from work, they have their coats on, they’re ready to go. They want to be in that community.”

For kids, teens, and adults

Centrica Journeys meets twice a month. During meetings, kids and teens age 5-17 gather in age-appropriate groups to work on activities that give them different ways to talk and think about grief. Sometimes it’s making a craft project where they use words that reflect their emotions; sometimes it’s reading a book about grief out loud and discussing it.

“I appreciate that Journeys tailors material to all levels,” Rebecca says. “Everything is based around an activity or a craft, not just sitting around and talking.”

Rebecca attends a separate meeting for parents at the same time, learning what children experience in grief, if it’s “normal,” and how she can support them. She says she appreciates hearing from other adults who have their own types of grief. While her daughters are grieving the loss of their dad, other children in the group are grieving a grandparent or another loved one. Some of the parents in the group lost their own parent at a young age.

“It’s good to get insight for people in different circumstances,” Rebecca says. “Centrica Journeys is interested in taking care of the family, not just you as an individual.”

A variety of activities

Rebecca says she is glad to see the variety of activities and discussion topics at each Centrica Journeys meeting. The program continues to grow, and at the same time the Centrica Care Navigators staff and volunteers make an effort to support each and every participant individually.

“I appreciate that Journeys is about sharing,” she says. “It’s a safe environment to express emotions.”

Rebecca has been able to grow the Centrica Journeys community herself, too; the mom in a neighborhood family died, and she encouraged that family to visit Centrica Journeys for support.

You can learn more about Centrica Journeys on our website, and register to become a volunteer.