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HOW WILL WE USE YOUR GIFT THIS YEAR?

To protect something highly unusual in today's world: free service for families. Free service, without time limits.


Sky-high bills and lost income are frequently among the results of illness and death. On a daily basis, the Center receives calls from families facing alarming financial challenges at the same time they're enduring painful loss and grief.

It costs the Center $2,500 to serve a family receiving peer support for a year. Yet we remain committed to free service -- to make sure there are no barriers when people need us.

  • We will provide peer support, outreach, and education to over 4,000 children and families as they discover their resilience recover their hope
  • We will provide immediate grief support by phone to more than 1,000 callers
  • We will train, supervise, and support at least 200 volunteers who will give the Center more than 20,000 donated hours of service
  • We will provide education and grief support -- sometimes in the immediate aftermath of a sudden death -- for an estimated 100 schools, businesses, and other organizations. 


Questions? Call (207) 775-5216 or emailcgc@cgcmaine.org.

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"The Center renewed us and helped restore hope for our family and community."

Thanks to Nancy Thompson and her family for so generously sharing their story.

 

At this time of year back in 2004, my family’s life was extra busy. Two kids were in college for their junior and senior spring semesters, and two others were in middle school, involved with sports and other activities. But the busiest child of all was our son Timmy, a high school senior and a kid known for always being in motion ever since he could crawl. A lot of people knew Timmy. They knew him for his outgoing personality, his love of lacrosse and other sports, and his involvement with friends and the community.

But that spring, something started going wrong. Every day seemed to get longer and longer for Timmy as he approached final exams, spring prom, and graduation.

My husband and I knew we needed to get Timmy help from mental health professionals, and we set up appointments, with the first one scheduled for Monday, July 26.

But Timmy never made it to this appointment. He took his life, in our home, on Saturday, July 24. His father and I and all of his siblings were there. We were shattered.

THAT'S WHY FAMILIES NEED THE CENTER.

When Timmy died, I knew about the Center, and I called for help fast. My family was in trouble. Our whole community was in shock. Because of people like you, the Center was there.
 
My children got help as they experienced the shocking, painful loss of their brother. Our whole family got help from Center staff and volunteers trained to listen to us and care for us, without judgment of any kind. They offered the loving support we so desperately needed. The Center also had the resources to reach out to Timmy’s stunned, distraught friends and the other young people and adults in our town devastated by this tragic loss.
 
At a gathering of nearly 300 teens, children, and adults at our local community center, the Center led a session that gave everyone the chance to write remembrances of Timmy, and to learn about ways of coping with loss, moving through the grieving process, and finding help for people at risk of suicide.

TODAY, I BELIEVE THAT THIS GATHERING RESULTED IN SAVING LIVES IN OUR TOWN.

There is so much more I could tell you about how the Center got us through “picking up the pieces.” Grief support helped our family emerge from our tragedy still able to face challenges and experience joy, while keeping our memories of Timmy with us, always.

That’s what your financial gifts to the Center make possible. The Center renewed us and helped restore hope for our family and community.

I thank you for your past support of the Center, and ask you today to renew your commitment to this unique, magical place, funded entirely by individuals and the community. Please help make sure the Center can be there with free service that guarantees no family is ever denied help because they can’t afford to pay for it.


In my son’s memory, I am proud to ask you to continue your active support of the Center.


Thank you,

Nancy E. Thompson
President, Board of Directors
The Center for Grieving Children