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"Spring is far more than just a changing of seasons; it's a rebirth of the spirit." —Toni Sorenson | | Hope Report: Spring 2025 Newsletter | | | |
Dear Community,
At the Centre for Grief and Healing, we witness firsthand the profound impact that compassionate support can have on those navigating loss. Grief can feel isolating, overwhelming, and at times, impossible to carry alone - but no one should have to. This is why we are deeply committed to providing accessible, peer-based grief support, ensuring that no one in our community has to walk their grief journey alone.
We cannot do this work without you. Our programs are sustained by the generosity of donors, sponsors, and community members like you. Every dollar donated directly supports the individuals and families who turn to us for help, providing spaces where grief can be shared, understood, and held with care.
We are also thrilled to share that registration is now live for our 2025 Walk to Remember on Saturday, September 20, 2025! This special event is more than a fundraiser, it’s a day to honour those we have lost, to stand together in remembrance, and to raise critical funds that ensure our grief programs remain accessible to all who need them. You can now create a team, register, and start fundraising on our website. Every step we take together strengthens our ability to support those grieving.
As we look ahead, we remain dedicated to expanding our programming for youth and young adults, recognizing the unique grief experiences they face. We've launched new peer support groups for youth and young adults grieving a suicide loss, overdose loss, and traumatic loss. These specialized groups provide a safer and understanding space for those who have lost someone under difficult circumstances, ensuring they are met with the support and connection they need. For more information, please reach out to info@bereavedfamilies.ca.
If you have ever been touched by grief - or know someone who has - we invite you to be part of this journey with us. Whether through a donation, joining us at the Walk to Remember, or simply sharing our mission with others, your support makes all the difference. Together, we can ensure that no one has to navigate loss alone.
With gratitude,
Julia Duz
Executive Director
Centre for Grief and Healing
| | Turn Your Passion Into Purpose | | | |
Memorial Bike Ride 🏍️
It's almost riding season!
Host an “In Memory Ride” where bikers meet up, ride together, and donate $10–$20 to participate. Many motorcycle rides already support charity, and this can be a powerful way to ride in honour of someone who loved the open road—or who was lost in a motorcycle accident.
We know many in our community have been touched by these kinds of losses, and an event like this offers space for remembrance and solidarity.
Click Here to Start Your Own Fundraiser!
| | | Support Updates: February 2025 | | | |
In February, we:
Saw 109 group visits through...
19 grief support group sessions.
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In February, we:
Facilitated 84 one-to-one peer support sessions.
Welcomed 33 new members to the organization.
| | | Click on the 2024 Wrapped image or follow this link to discover the impacts we made throughout 2024. | | January-April 2025 Grief Support Groups | |
Click the photo to view our frequently asked questions, how to register for group, group guidelines, and Winter 2025 groups, topics, and dates. This document comes attached to every group registration and can also be found on our website here.
Upcoming and Current Support Groups (ages 18+ unless otherwise noted):
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Virtual Friends and Family Loss Group: every Tuesday, 6:30pm-8:00pm.
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Virtual Parent & Guardian Loss Group: every Wednesday, 6:30pm-8:00pm.
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Virtual Partner Loss Group: every Thursday, 6:30pm-8:00pm.
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In-Person Friends and Family Loss Group: every Thursday, 6:30pm-8:00pm, until April 24th.
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Virtual 8-Week Overdose Loss (ages 18-24): every Tuesday, 6:30pm-8:00pm, until April 30th.
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Virtual 8-Week Suicide Loss (ages 13-17): Starts May 7th. Wednesdays, 6:30pm-8:00pm, until June 25th.
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Virtual 8-Week Overdose Loss (ages 13-17): Starts May 8th. Thursdays, 6:30pm-8:00pm, until June 26th.
Click the photo for more information on our groups and stay tuned for future email updates about new and current support groups, their eligibility, and how to register for them. Please email us at info@bereavedfamilies.ca if you have any questions about the above groups. May-August 2025 support groups will be released in April.
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Volunteer Appreciation
On March 8th, we had a wonderful celebration event for our beloved volunteers who contribute so much of their time and themselves to supporting the grieving community.
We are so honoured to have an opportunity to celebrate all of them and for all they do! Volunteers make an incredible difference by the work they do and the support they provide. Our organization would not be able to provide the support we do without our volunteers.
In continued celebration of our volunteers, we are sharing some beautiful moments captured in photographs from the event!
| | | If you are interested in volunteering and would like to learn about the opportunities available, please reach out to Irish Dhindsa (she/her), Volunteer Manager, at volunteering@bereavedfamilies.ca. | | | Fundraising, Events, and Workshops | | | |
Our much-loved fundraising event, Walk to Remember, is back and is less than 6 months away!
Join us on Saturday, September 20 at Lakeside Park in Mississauga (2268 Lakeshore Rd W) for a powerful day of connection and remembrance. In partnership with Bereaved Families of Ontario - Toronto, we invite you to walk alongside others who understand and find comfort in community.
Grief can be an isolating journey, but no one should have to navigate it alone. The Centre for Grief & Healing provides free grief peer support to individuals and families in Halton/Peel - but we can’t do it without you. Your donation directly impacts the sustainability of our programs. For every $8,230 raised, we can run a support group, creating a safer space for healing. Just $207 trains a new volunteer, equipping them to provide compassionate care to those in need. Every $20+ donation is eligible for a charitable tax receipt, making it easy to give while making a difference.
Your support is vital to ensuring that we can continue offering these essential services to our community. By donating or fundraising, you are helping us make sure no one in Halton/Peel has to grieve alone. Give today and join us while we honour those we have lost.
Registration is FREE! You can register, learn more, and fundraise by visiting https://raceroster.com/events/2025/100909/walk-to-remember.
Please stay tuned for more details!
If you have any questions, or are interested in sponsorship opportunities at Walk to Remember 2025, please email Fundraising Manager, Kelly Price (she/her): fundraising@bereavedfamilies.ca.
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GriefTalks: Educational Webinars
GriefTalks are free, 1-hour webinars (via Zoom) designed to explore the many dimensions of grief, loss, identity, mental health, and wellness. These sessions aim to deepen your understanding of grief, including how it uniquely manifests in different communities and contexts, while providing a compassionate space for learning, reflection, and connection. Each GriefTalks features a unique topic and speaker, offering diverse insights, tools, and perspectives to support both individuals and professionals in navigating grief with greater awareness, empathy, and healing. Past topics have included Grief and Disabilities, Yoga, Breathwork, and Meditation, Grief and Complicated Relationships, and Grief in Indigenous Communities, among many others. We host GriefTalks throughout the year, with new and engaging topics offered regularly.
Upcoming Talks:
- Grief Is Like a Tidal Wave...
- Permission to Grieve: Rebecca's Grieve Leave Story
- Motherhood and Grief: Navigating the Heart's Deepest Wounds
- Navigating Grief and Relationships After Loss
- Rediscovering Ourselves: Grief, Identity, and Life After Loss
- Grieving Through the Holidays
While these webinars are free to attend, we encourage donations when registering to help us sustain this programming, which is not funded. Your support allows us to continue offering these valuable opportunities for connection, learning, and growth.
Join us for a GriefTalks to expand your understanding of grief and discover new ways to support yourself and others.
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Get to Know Us!
We've recently had some wonderful meetings with other organizations in the Halton and Peel regions, and we're excited about the opportunity to collaborate with them this year.
We are also excited to offer and virtually host a free 30 to 45-minute "Get to Know Us" meeting with organizations and professionals interested in learning more about us and the work we do. If you are from an organization and are interested in inviting us to a virtual meeting, please contact us at: outreach@bereavedfamilies.ca.
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We're On TikTok!
Samantha (she/her), our Admin and Outreach Worker, is excited to share that we are now officially on TikTok! 🎉
It’s a great platform for us to reach a wider audience, raise awareness about the Centre for Grief & Healing, and share important resources in a more engaging way.
Please take a moment to follow us on TikTok at @cfgh.bfohp, (or click the 'follow us' button) and feel free to engage with our content by liking, commenting, and sharing! This will help us spread the word even further.
Thanks for your support in helping us grow our online presence!
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As the demand for our free grief supports grows, your support becomes invaluable. Every donation helps us continue providing essential services to those facing the challenges of grief.
Transparency is our commitment, and your contribution makes a significant impact:
- $35,023+: minimum investment to run individual grief support sessions
- $33,652+: minimum investment to run grief support groups
- $15,660+: minimum Administrative costs
- $3,320+: minimum investment to run GriefTalks, our free TedTalk-like webinars featuring subject matter experts on grief and healing themes
You can donate today through our official donation channels here.
Your investment enables us to continue to provide free and accessible supports. Unlock the power of your compassion and invest in grief support, today.
To learn more about how we utilize your donations and where they go to, please connect with Julia (she/her), Executive Director and Kelly (she/her), Fundraising Manager, at: executivedirector@bereavedfamilies.ca and fundraising@bereavedfamilies.ca.
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Eco-Friendly Fundraising Ideas in Honour of Your Person
Looking for meaningful and sustainable ways to honour someone while giving back? Here are some eco-friendly fundraising ideas that support both community and environmental well-being:
🌱 Seed & Flower Fundraiser – Sell or distribute wildflower or native plant seed packets to encourage others to plant in honour of someone. 🌼Stay tuned... we may have something like this coming up soon! 👀
👞 Sustainable Clothing & Goods Drive – Collect gently used shoes, clothing, or furniture and partner with a local shelter or thrift store. Consider asking for small donations alongside drop-offs.
🫧 Bubbles for Remembrance – Host a “bubbles instead of balloons” event where participants can donate and take part in a symbolic, earth-friendly tribute.
🕯️ Candlelight Vigil for a Cause – Hold a memorial gathering with eco-friendly candles (beeswax, coconut, or soy wax) and collect donations.
🌳Tree Planting – Organize a community tree-planting event where participants can donate to have a tree planted in memory of a loved one.
🧹 Community Clean-Up Fundraiser – Was your loved one passionate about the environment? Rally friends and family for a local cleanup day and encourage donations.
💚 Green Giving Fundraiser – Organize a donation drive where proceeds go to a local grief support charity (like ours!) in their honour.
📚 Little Free Library Tribute – Build a community book-sharing box and invite donations to fill it with your loved one’s favourite reads, adding personal messages inside each book.
🥗 Memorial Picnic & Storytelling Event – Host a gathering where participants can donate, share memories, and enjoy a meal together in a park or green space.
These thoughtful and environmentally friendly ideas help keep memories alive while giving back to the earth and the community. Which one resonates most with you? 💚
Stay tuned! In just a few days, we’ll be announcing our very own Eco-Friendly In-Memory Fundraiser—coming soon! 💚🌍✨
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| | Inclusion, Diversity, Equity, and Accessibility (I.D.E.A) | | | |
Introducing Our New IDEA Webpage
We are thrilled to launch our new Inclusion, Diversity, Equity, and Accessibility (IDEA) webpage, a dedicated space where we share our ongoing efforts to create a more inclusive, accessible, and affirming environment for all.
On this page, you’ll find our IDEA statement, core values, goals, and accomplishments, highlighting the steps we are taking to ensure that everyone who engages with our services feels seen, heard, and valued. From increasing accessibility in our grief support programs to fostering spaces that honour diverse lived experiences, this work is deeply embedded in everything we do.
We invite you to explore the page and learn more about our commitment to meaningful change. At the Centre, we aim to build and foster a community rooted in equity, compassion, and belonging.
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Announcing Our New IDEA Committee: Strengthening Our Commitment to Inclusion
In addition to launching our IDEA webpage, we are excited to share that we have also formed an IDEA Committee! This dedicated group is working to ensure that our commitment to equity and inclusion is not just a statement, but a lived practice across all areas of our organization.
The IDEA Committee will help guide our initiatives, review policies and programs through an inclusive lens, and create meaningful opportunities for learning and growth. By centering diverse voices and lived experiences, we aim to build a more accessible and affirming space for all who seek support.
We look forward to sharing updates on our progress and ways to get involved. Stay tuned for more!
| | | Our Centre for Grief and Healing (CFGH) Team | | | Greetings to all new members joining us. | |
As we continue to welcome new members to the organization, we wanted to say hello and welcome to the Centre for Grief and Healing (BFO-H/P).
As a small yet powerful women-led team, we take pride in our unique perspectives and leadership. To learn more about us, click here, and don't forget to explore our Volunteer Recognition Wall, showcasing the generosity and dedication of our fantastic volunteers!
| | | Honoring Our Incredible Placement Students | | |
As spring unfolds, we find ourselves in a bittersweet moment—one where we must say goodbye to the incredible placement students who have dedicated their time, energy, and passion to our organization over the past several months. Around this time each year, we wrap up placements with students who have gone above and beyond in their roles, bringing fresh perspectives, deep compassion, and unwavering commitment to our work.
From supporting our grief groups to developing resources, engaging with the community, and contributing behind the scenes, our students have left a lasting impact. Their dedication has strengthened our ability to provide meaningful support, and we are so grateful for the effort and heart they have poured into their time with us.
✨A heartfelt thank you to:
- Shantel, Outreach Grief Support Coordinator
- Nour, Outreach Grief Support Coordinator
- Tara, Admin and Peer Support Worker
- Megan, Outreach and Volunteer Relations Assistant
- Sherry, Volunteer Coordinator
- Sair, 2SLGBTQIA+ Program Coordinator
- Rebekah, Outreach and Fundraising Support
- Erin, 2SLGBTQIA+ Program Coordinator
We appreciate all that you have done and the care you have shown in your work. While we will miss you, we know you will continue to make a difference wherever you go. Thank you for being part of our journey—we are so proud of you!
✨At the same time, we are excited to welcome our new summer placement students!
- Kerry Russell, Outreach Grief Support Coordinator
- Lyndsay Ouellet-Avila, Community Outreach and Grief Support Specialist
- Alexandra Macos, Outreach and Volunteer Relations Assistant
We look forward to the fresh perspectives, skills, and passion you will bring to our work. Thank you for choosing to be part of our team—we can’t wait to learn and grow alongside you!
Here’s to a season of gratitude, transition, and new beginnings! 💙
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We raised $1,434.35 in January and February for our charity in 2025. Thank you very much for your support! That amount will train six (6) new volunteers, which will directly impact 6+ individuals in our community who are grieving the loss of someone. Our goal is to raise $60,000 every year in order to help sustain our free peer grief supports.
If you would like to make an impact or learn more, please reach out to fundraising@bereavedfamilies.ca.
Email Kelly Price (she/her), Fundraising Manager, at fundraising@bereavedfamilies.ca if you'd like to be featured in an upcoming Donor Spotlight, and/or if you would like to be added to the distribution list to receive our monthly Donor Impact Reports. These reports provide a monthly overview of the meaningful accomplishments and progress we've made to-date for the current year.
If you'd like to make a direct donation please visit: www.bereavedfamilies.ca/donate.
| | Expressing Appreciation for Our Generous Funders and Community Support! | | | Feedback, Comments, Suggestions | | | |
Comments, concerns, feedback, and compliments can always be forwarded to Victoria (she/her) at programs@bereavedfamilies.ca. Anonymous feedback can be submitted to us here: www.bereavedfamilies.ca/contactus.
Partnership opportunities, event support inquiries, and donation inquiries can be forwarded to Kelly (she/her) and Julia (she/her) at fundraising@bereavedfamilies.ca and executivedirector@bereavedfamilies.ca.
Looking to volunteer? Please contact Irish (she/her) at volunteering@bereavedfamilies.ca with your interest.
All other inquiries (intakes, group registrations, getting set up with us) can be forwarded to Sam (she/her) at info@bereavedfamilies.ca.
Our next Hope Report will be sent in June 2025. Our Care Corner: Wellness Newsletter will be sent in May.
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