Grief Support Resources

Online resources include discussion forums, educational tools, and a community for people who are dealing with grief. You may find one or more of the following websites to be helpful:

• Auz, Martin M. & Maureen Lyons Andrews.
• Handbook for Those Who Grieve. (What should you know and what you can do during times of loss)
  
• Burton, Valerie.
• Let Go of the Guilt
  
• Cooke, Tony.
• Life After Death - rediscovering life after the loss of a loved one 
  
• Cornils, Stanley P.
• The Mourning After - How to manage grief wisely.
  
• Devine, Megan.
• It's OK That You're Not OK - Meeting Grief and Loss in a Culture That Doesn't Understand
  
• Devine, Megan.
• How to Carry What Can't Be Fixed - A Journal for Grief
  
• Fink, Joanne.
• When You Lose Someone You Love
  
• Golden, Thomas R.
• Swallowed by a Snake - The gift of the masculine side of healing
  
• Heath, Judy
• No Time for Tears - Coping With Grief in a Busy World
  
• Hsu, Albert Y.
• Grieving a Suicide - A Loved One's Search for Comfort, Answers & Hope.
  
• Kubler-Ross, Elisabeth & David Kessler.
• On Grief and Grieving - Finding the meaning of grief through the five stages of loss
  
• LaFleur, Suzanne
• Love, Aubrey
  
• Lewis, C.S.
• A Grief Observed.
  
• Mackesy, Charlie
• The Boy, the Mole, the Fox and the Horse
  
• McCormack, Jerusha Hull.
• Grieving a beginner's guide.
  
• Petrie, Ronald G.
• Into the Cave: When Men Grieve.
  
• Sandberg, Sheryl & Adam Grant.
• Option B
  
• Schaefer, Daniel & Christine Lyons.
• How Do We Tell The Children? - A step-by-step guide for helping children and teens cope when someone dies.
  
• Schroedel, Jenny.
• Naming the Child - hope-filled reflections on miscarriage, stillbirth, and infant death.
  
• Schwiebert, Pat & Chuck DeKlyen.
• Tear Soup.
  
• Voskamp, Ann.
• One Thousand Gifts: A Dare to Live Fully right Where You Are.
  
• Wolfelt, Alan.
• Understanding Your Grief: Ten Essential Touchstones for Finding Hope & Healing for Your Heart.
  
• Wolfelt, Alan.
• The Understanding Your Grief Journal: Exploring the Ten Essential Touchstones.
  
• Zonnebelt-Smeenge, Susan J. & Robert C. DeVries.
• Getting to the Other side of Grief - Overcoming the Loss of a Spouse. 
• Zonnebelt-Smeenge, Susan J. & Robert C. DeVries.
• Living Fully In the Shadow of Death
  

Langeland Family Funeral Homes provides a six week educational grief support group which meets periodically throughout the year. (See GROW Groups section on website) These groups offer an opportunity for those who grieve to gain tools which can be helpful during the grieving process as well as a safe environment for sharing personal experiences with grief and loss. Many people find this resource to be very beneficial as they navigate through the difficult journey of grieving.

There are also other local agencies who conduct groups to assist people in their grief journey. The following list provides contact information for these agencies, either listing a website or phone number to contact for the most updated schedule and location of group meetings.

Langeland Family Funeral Homes is not affiliated with any of the following organizations and the inclusion of their information in the listings is provided as a service.

Centrica Care Navigators offers a wide range of grief groups to support individuals (children, teens and/or adults) as they move through the grieving process toward healing . Groups which are led by licensed grief support counselors and trained volunteers are open to any grieving person in the community at no charge. For more information, call 269-345-0273.

Grace Hospice has Grief Support Groups available see https://www.ghospice.com/bereavement/grief-loss-support-groups.html

GriefShare Groups. It may be hard for you to feel optimistic about the future right now. If you've lost a spouse, child, family member, or friend, you've probably found there are not many people who understand the deep hurt you feel. This can be a confusing time when you feel isolated and have many questions about things you've never faced before. GriefShare Groups meet weekly for twelve weeks to help you face these challenges and move toward rebuilding your life. GriefShare groups are led by trained facilitators and are held in churches across the country. The groups are free of charge, but there may be a small charge for materials. Go to www.griefshare.org/findagroup to locate a group in your area.

Gryphon Place offers a Survivors of Suicide Support Group is a bi-monthly drop-in support group for those who have lost a loved one to suicide. Please call 269-381-1510 for a pre-screening before your first meeting and for details.

Kalamazoo Chapter of Compassionate Friends offers a grief support group for parents and grandparents who have lost a child or grandchild of any age. Siblings are welcome, too. The group meets twice a month. Call 269-589-4756 (ask for Melinda) or email kalamazoocf@gmail.com for times and location of the local group. For more information on the Compassionate Friends organization go to www.compassionatefriends.org 

Kindred Hospice offers Grief Support. Look at their website for more information: https://www.curohealthservices.com/bereavement-care/

Promedica Hospice offers Grief Support. See the grief support available by checking out https://www.promedicahospice.org/find-an-agency/promedica-hospice-kalamazoo/?contentIdString=14458&contentNameString=Family%20Support 

Wings of Hope Hospice offers a variety of grief support groups. See what is available at: https://wingsofhopehospice.com/services/grief-support/grief-support-groups/ 

Other Agencies that have offered Grief Support Groups in the past - you may check to see what they are currently providing:

Bronson Methodist Hospital 

Bronson at Home - Battle Creek

Compassus Hospice 

Are you aware of another grief support group meeting in the area? Email Dana Naumann, Bereavement Care Coordinator for Langeland Family Funeral Homes with any information you have so she can follow up and include them in the community listing.

» Camp Anew
Camp Anew safe place for kids to take the next step in their grief journey. During their three-day stay, campers are given numerous opportunities to have fun, grieve, connect with others, and, most importantly, be reminded that God still loves them. The Camp is held at Grace Adventures in Mears, Michigan from June 27—29. Registration fee.

» Camp Erin - Detroit
Camp Erin is the largest network of bereavement camps in the country, serving more children than any other organization. Camp Erin–Detroit is run by the Henry Ford Hospice SandCastles Grief Support Program. It is open to children in 1st-12th grades. This camp will be held Friday August 18— Sunday, August 20. For more information and an application call Sandcastles at 313-874-6881. There is no charge for the camp.

» Camp Live, Laugh, Love - "In Life There is Hope"
Camp is held at YMCA Camp Nissokone in Oscoda, MI
July 21-23, 2017 —Ages 7-16.
There is no cost for this camp.

» Camp Star
A camp for children ages 8-17 years old that have experienced the death of a loved one, parent, sibling, friend, or grandparents. Camp is a weekend long, full of fun camp experiences along with meaningful activities to help the children understand that they are not on this journey alone. Camp Star takes place at Bay Cliff Health Camp in Big Bay in the upper peninsula of Michigan. August 11-13—Free of charge.

» Hospice of Michigan—Camp Good Grief—two locations

West Michigan
Held at Camp Nawaygo on Monday, June 16, 2017—application and information available from Katie Gedraitis 231-527-0913

Southeastern Michigan
Held at YMCA Camp Ohiyesa on Friday, August 4, 2017— application and information available from Jackie Morris 313-578-6328 No charge for Camp Good Grief—Lunch and Snack provided at no charge.

» Grief Recovery After a Substance Abuse Passing (GRASP)
For those who have lost someone to substance use or addiction. The website provides access to resources and also an ability to connect with others in social media who have also suffered this loss.

» National Hospice and Palliative Care Organization 
Committed to improving end of life care and expanding access to hospice care with the goal of profoundly enhancing quality of life for people dying in America and their loved ones.