Initiative helps Clubs support grieving youth and build environments for social-emotional development By Morgan Mabry Kendra Calhoun knows all too well how loss and trauma can affect young people. There is perhaps no place in the United States harder hit by the opioid epidemic than Eastern Kentucky, where Calhoun is director of the Cawood Ledford Unit of the Harlan County Boys & Girls Club. In 2011, before the crisis was making national headlines, 13 members of the Harlan County organization lost parents to overdose deaths in one winter. While nothing can erase the effects of such a trauma on a young person, Calhoun knows the difference that caring staff, a supportive Club environment and professional counseling services can make. As a participant in the initiative Be There, Calhoun organized her Club’s second annual Children’s Grief Awareness Month, including activities for youth and a Family Night component to provide parents with resources and guidance to communicate with and support grieving youth. Calhoun also secured a partnership with a local counseling practice to provide professional counseling and support to distraught youth and their families. For millions of kids, Boys & Girls Club youth development professionals like Calhoun are anchors of support in the face of adversity. Accordingly, it’s critically important they be equipped with the right tools to guide young people during daunting times. In a year marked by natural disasters, mass shootings, violent protests and tragedies, the need to help Club youth process trauma seems obvious. But the truth is, Clubs have long been a place for kids and teens to find comfort and guidance in a safe, welcoming space. 14
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That’s why with the generous support of a $3 million New York Life grant, Boys & Girls Clubs of America joined with the National Alliance for Grieving Children and Harvard’s PEAR Institute: Partnership in Education and Resilience, to create Be There, an initiative to provide Clubs like Harlan County with essential resources and facilitate partnerships to support grieving Club members.
Supporting the Whole Child
Be There is a comprehensive approach to help Clubs build supportive relationships and integrate best practices to support youth experiencing grief and other major life-altering losses. Be There provides training, resources and strategies that help Clubs increase capacity to support bereaved youth, staff and families. These trainings and resources can help Club staff recognize signs of grieving in young people and provide them with skills and strategies to respond to members’ needs. For example, Club professionals might coach youth to manage and learn from ongoing emotional experiences by teaching them mindful breathing practices to use if they’re feeling angry. Staff can also make the Club a safe place for youth to share stories and emotions by incorporating opportunities for reflection and discussion at the end of program activities. The Be There initiative also helps Clubs make local contacts and form partnerships with organizations that can provide professional counseling services to youth and families. The Boys & Girls Club of the Alma Area in Arkansas, for example, was able to form