“For only while loving do the pains of living lighten.” ~ Robert Bly

Dearest friends,

To live is to be vulnerable. We suffer and we rejoice. Yet, it is in changing our relationship with grief that we may begin to live the beauty of who we are. Good Grief Guidance, Inc. understands that it is through identifying and befriending our sorrows, and releasing outgrown truths and stories of the self, that we are able to transform our pains and losses into healing. In doing so, we are empowered to move from a place of surviving to that of thriving, both within ourselves, how we relate to others, and how we engage the larger community.


In a peer-support setting, Good Grief Guidance facilitates this healing by creating a safe place of connection which affirms the inherent value of each individual, and which recognizes every person as whole, unbroken and without the need for fixing, saving or correcting. Within each grief group, whether in schools, prisons, or the community, Good Grief Guidance enables people to tend to their grief by tending to one another. Each person is seen, heard and held through the witnessing of our respective wounds in community. Through this collective act of love, one is able to hold the complexity of who they are, no matter the discomfort, so they may listen to and trust in the grief which is needing to be voiced, embraced and healed within themselves.


Good Grief Guidance, Inc. is a movement toward well-being in Central Oregon. In addition to continuing to serve teens at Bridges and New Leaf Academies, as well as residents throughout our community, our focus is to expand our existing presence with prisoners at Deer Ridge Correctional Institute in Madras, OR. The men bravely and eagerly show up for our 16 consecutive week program. We are awed by their willingness to be vulnerable in a prison setting and by taking responsibility for their actions; they are making every effort to learn how to positively contribute to their well-being and that of their families and communities. Many of them were born in grief; some of them are veterans; most of them have serious addictions; yet, every one of them sincerely wants to learn how to be better men and how to manage in society once they are released from prison. The profound healing and personal power these men gain from Good Grief Guidance inspires us to offer additional groups for prisoners in the upcoming year of 2017.


With your help, we can begin to support greater numbers of teens and adults, including prisoners, through their grief and into the healing process. Your charitable contribution to Good Grief Guidance, Inc. funds scholarships (for individuals unable to afford the full cost of the program); helps to offset the cost of the grief classes; and pays for materials and operating expenses. Our end-of-year fundraising goal is $60,000. If you would like to make a contribution, please make your check payable to Good Grief Guidance, Inc. You may also donate online using our secure website.