0
0
Loss can happen at any age. Children’s Grief Awareness Day brings awareness to children’s bereavement. On Thursday, November 18th, students gathered at the Lenzer Football Field from 6-8 to acknowledge Children’s Grief Awareness Day by lighting luminaires and walking in honor of their late loved ones.
Children’s Grief Awareness Day is a day created by the Highmark Caring Place. It takes place on the Thursday before Thanksgiving each year. Avonworth recognizes this day to support kids by wearing blue so that they have a community of people surrounding them. It is for children who have experienced a loss, whether it is the loss of a family member or a pet.
The event was organized by 8th-grade math teacher Ms. Potter, high school math teacher Ms. Waddel, and Key Club.
“When I was in tenth grade, my dad passed away, ” said Potter about her motivation for Children’s Grief Awareness Day. “My mom looked for a caring place for us to go to, so my sister and I were in a teen room. When I was in that room I just realized how important it is to have a community of people that support you in the fact that your life is never going to be normal again. My main goal of continuing to participate in children’s grief awareness day is just to let other kids know that they are not alone in their grief. I’m hoping that the event just raises one awareness and as a community lets people know that this day exists and is important. Also for people who are experiencing a difficult time with grief, they know that they’re surrounded by a community that not only will support them, but also provide them with the resources that they need to live their life through their grief, not against it.”
Key Club sold t-shirts in the high school lobby two weeks before the event. On the day of the walk, students showed their support for Children’s Grief Awareness Day at school by wearing club-funded shirts.
Key Club Member and freshman Julianne Knable remarked, “I think it turned out really well and the lanterns looked really cool. It was really cold that night and if it was warmer we probably would’ve had more people but we still had a good amount of people show up.”
Members of Key Club want to thank all who came out to support our peers. Overall, the event was a success. Ms. Potter, Ms. Waddell, and Key Club hope to do it again next year.
Additional reporting from Willow Wright and Kayla Geouque
I really enjoyed this topic, and I think that it is incredibly important that we highlight this. With so many of my friends losing a parent over their lifetime, this is just such an important way for them to remember their loved ones, and share their emotions instead of just bottling them up. About the article, I thought it was well written, and the only piece of feedback I really have is maybe just trying to break up Ms. Potter’s quote, as it got pretty chunky, and screwed up the good flow you had created, where the paragraphs were all so nice and short except for that one paragraph. Other than that small thing, I thought this was great and really cool that you chose this topic for a number of reasons.
I really enjoyed this article, glad that you wrote about the event and how it got started. The photos from the event were a nice touch, so glad that you were able to go and check it out.