Dec 10, 2019
How do you talk to kids about death? Author Caroline Wright wondered the same thing when she was diagnosed with an aggressive, terminal brain cancer as a mother to her young sons. Now, having lived a year past her prognosis and written a children’s book to help children know the undying love of a parent, Caroline joined us at Town Hall with a mission to help other parents find hope and agency with similar diagnoses. Wright was joined by a panel of leading experts in the fields of children’s bereavement and cancer to discuss the complicated issue of what to say to our kids to comfort them when facing loss. They outlined strategies for talking about tragedy with children, and highlighted the importance of building community during times of loss. Wright offered us tools for helping our children navigate grief—tools which we can use to face tragedy in our own lives and overcome grief ourselves.
Caroline Wright is a cook, author, and terminal brain cancer patient. After her diagnosis she focused her career on her two sons and the connection that comes from telling her story. She’s written three cookbooks and is the author of Lasting Love, her children’s book about the enduring love of a parent. Caroline lives in Seattle, Washington with her family.
PANEL:
Jim Cubbage is a co-founder, trip leader, and treasurer for Wild Grief, a non-profit that runs several programs to merge the healing power of nature and peer grief support. He facilitated grief support groups for Sound Care Kids through Providence Hospice for 11 years.
Dr. Lamont Green DSW, LSWAIC is currently the Lead Youth and Young Adult Homelessness Planner for King County. Green has worked for the past seventeen years to serve homeless youth within the region, and is deeply invested in his belief for social change.
Heidi Howard, MA, LMHC, CDP is a Licensed Mental Health Counselor who has been in the mental health field for almost 30 years working with adolescents and families. She has worked with many clients affected by grief in schools, hospitals, residential treatment programs, and private practice.
Juliana Perez, MSW was the Executive Director of Safe Crossings Foundation for almost seven years, raising money and awareness to help children cope with grief. Recently she became a Spiritual Health clinician (chaplain) at Seattle Cancer Care Alliance.
Amy Thompson, MA, LMHC is a Counselor with Providence Hospice of Seattle and Program Coordinator for Safe Crossings, a program that provides free support for children, teens, and families in King County who are anticipating or have experienced the death of a significant person in their lives.
Presented by Town Hall Seattle. Recorded live in The Forum on November 9, 2019.