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September 2023
ERICSHOUSE
September 2023
Dear EricsHouse Community,

Welcome to September 2023! Just as the seasons change, so does grief. Autumn reminds us that layers shed, leaves reveal colors, and the trees drop their leaves again to prepare for new growth. Everyday grief brings up different emotions, ideas, and sensations. Gently acknowledging how your grief feels in each passing moment creates space for identifying what promotes healing for you. As we enter each new season we carry the love for those who left us too soon and hold our cherished memories tightly.

-EricsHouse
Connect With Us:
A Letter from our Founder-
Marianne Gouveia
September and October Are Important Months

Across the globe, people everywhere join their voices in September to raise awareness of suicide for Suicide Prevention Awareness Month. At EricsHouse, we also honor October 10th – Mental Health Awareness Day. Everyone can play a role in not only preventing suicide, but also reducing the stigma around mental health.   

The rate of U.S. deaths due to alcohol, drugs, and suicide climbed 11 percent in 2021. While an all-time record, 209,225 Americans lost their lives due to alcohol, drugs or suicide during the year, these deaths continued a two-decade trend of sharply increasing fatalities due to substance misuse and suicide in the U.S.

Suicide is a leading cause of death among young people in the U.S. Suicide deaths for adults (35-64) are highest of any segment of the population, accounting for nearly half the total suicides in the US. The suicide rates for youth and young adults (ages 10-24) are also alarming – suicide is the second leading cause of death in this segment, and suicide rates for these young people have increased by over 50% since 2000.   

EricsHouse supports many initiatives, especially those that work to prevent and reduce both suicide and substance abuse. And, because of the increases that we see, we know that more postvention support is needed to provide safe and compassionate grief care for those living in the aftermath of devastating loss.

It’s That Time of Year Again

Since 2018, EricsHouse has provided 4,877 one-on-one and group sessions. We have held 52 peer-led groups supporting individuals from all walks of life with a total of 3,308 sessions. We average 50-60 appointments per week. EricsHouse Support Groups and one-one peer support provide a safety net for our clients – we give them hope and we help them see that they are not alone in their journey. 

Please join us for our live broadcast on October 14th. We have special guests and activities planned during an interactive and insightful afternoon at the EricsHouse facility as we raise necessary funding to expand and continue our services. Be ready to have your heart and mind filled with amazing stories and conversation about the restorative love of this special community.  

Can You Help?

The October fundraiser is our primary source of funding each year. EricsHouse only exists through the generous support of our donors. We need to add people to our fundraising team. Would you help by creating a personal fundraising page on our fundraising platform? It’s easy to do and by sharing a bit of yourself and your loved one, you encourage others to support EricsHouse too.

If you are interested in supporting our mission and would like to contribute your time and talent, please contact Marianne or Madi for details. You are amazing! And your help would be appreciated.

With love and gratitude,
Marianne Gouveia
Founder & Chairman
Life is Too Short by Greg Eckerman
I’m approaching one of those decade birthdays, my 7th one as a matter of fact.  

They always put me in an introspective mood, looking at where I am, where I’ve been, and, most importantly, where I’m going.

My Dad died in 2002, of lung cancer. I miss him. He is my role model . . . for how to be a man, a dad, and a husband. I wish I’d paid more attention and was a better student. I’ve gotten distracted and lost perspective far too often. When Dad encountered nonsense in the world, someone trying to pull him off his track, bury him in BS, or compromise his principles, he had a favorite expression:

“Life is too short for . . . .”

Life is too short, and it’s getting shorter.

When our kids were young, I spent a lot of time working on the road as a consultant. I was good at it. I sought validation and fulfillment there, but it never really sustained. Too much time away, missing too many of the small things – the everyday connections. But there would always be time to make it up, to live my real priorities...until there wasn’t.

I have spoken of my belief that we receive gifts in our grief if we are open to them. I’ve gotten much from Eric’s death, including a reset on my priorities and a new sense of perspective, not to mention the gift of EricsHouse – especially the connections with the guys in our Men’s Groups and all I’ve learned from them. 

I look forward to thanking Eric in person, but not too soon. It seems I have a lot of work to do before then.

Marianne and I have had our share of trials and tribulations – like all of you. We don’t know what the future holds, or how much of it we get. My greatest ambition at this point is to live each day based on an understanding that life is too short. I’m probably going to need a lot of help.
Our Love is Alive by Jackie Cole
featuring Cody and John
Cody fell in love with John when she was only twelve years old.

It was a special time in her life that she remembers with a smile. 

“When John married my mom, he really made an effort to show my brother and I that he wanted us to be as big a part of his life as my mom.”

Although the marriage lasted only a short time, Cody maintained a close, 20-year friendship with John. 

“John was truly one of my favorite people. I’m so thankful for our relationship”. 

Cody, a talented hair stylist and artist, credits John for encouraging her creativity. 

“He made his living as an over-the road truck driver but when he was home, he would draw and paint. He created promotional posters for local bands and I would sit next to him and watch for hours as he drew.”

She describes him as a very intuitive and spiritual man who encouraged her to be curious about and aware of her own inner voice. 

“He wanted me to connect with the things that excited me and to know that I could achieve the things that I imagined.”

Cody remembers that John loved life. 

“He had an infectious, vibrant personality and he was very much a live-in-the-moment person. I wish I were more like that and not always so preoccupied with tomorrow or next week,” she told me.

Because John was so full of life, the suddenness of his death sometimes overwhelmed Cody. 

“One day when I was going through a particularly rough time I asked him for a sign. Immediately, I had a vision of him smiling. And that was so reassuring to me because, finally, I knew that he was happy.”

“Now when I miss him, I go to him in my mind. I feel his presence, feel him around me. That is so comforting to me.”

When Cody told me that she was at peace with John’s death, she was careful to explain what that means to her.

“I can say that I am at peace because I can bring him to me. And because I know that’s what he would want me to feel. And I know that he also is at peace. That’s very comforting to me. I talk to him and feel his approval and presence.”
Grief Relief Retreat in Scottsdale, AZ!
If you are at least three months from losing your loved one, our team of certified healers wants to guide you through some unique experiences to help continue the healing process of losing your loved one. Our one-day retreat is from 1-8 pm on October 14th in a slice of nature in Scottsdale, Arizona. 

  • Breathwork and movement
  • Witness a transformative equine therapy session
  • A river ceremony to honor your loved one 
  • Licensed professional counselor Jill McMahon, on-site facilitator
  • A delicious catered meal and a campfire in nature
  • Leave with new tools, a new community, and a fresh perspective

This retreat is hosted by a partner of EricsHouse and was not created by the EricsHouse team. If you would like to see more details and meet the horse and healers please visit them at bit.ly/GriefReliefRetreat.
We don't "move on" from grief. We move forward with it
TED Talks with Nora McInerny
EricsHouse coins are a tangible way to hold space for the analogy of love and loss. None of us would ever willingly reduce the pain of our grief if it meant losing any of the love behind it.

EricsHouse facilitators, Greg Eckerman and Matthew Burg plus the Men’s support group members collaborated on designing this unique coin. A special thank you to all of them!

Two inches in diameter, these coins are substantial and tactile. One side has the infinity heart, symbolizing eternal love. It includes the phrases: “The only way past the pain is through it” and “You are not alone”. The other side has a stylized representation of Melancholy, a sculpture created by Albert Gyorgy, and the phrase: “The Greater the Love, The Greater the Pain”.

We are using the EricsHouse coin as a fundraiser to help us to continue providing integrative grief care support to loss survivors. Please let us know if you would like one for yourself or someone else on their own grief journey. 

We are asking for a $20 contribution for each coin.