Patricia Murphy Josie’s Place

San Francisco Study Center 3288 21st Street. No 139 San Francisco CA 94110

The Althea Foundation 3701 Sacramento Street #436 San Francisco, CA, 94118 info@thealtheafoundation.org RE: Request of a Grant for Josie’s Place

Dear Mrs. Julie Moore:

I am writing this letter to request seed money for Josie’s Place, an initiative under the

San Francisco Study Center. Josie’s Place was started a little over year ago to provide

counseling services for bereaved adolescents and younger children. Josie’ Place believes

all children have a right to grieve over the loss of a loved one in a safe, healthy

environment. The effects of unresolved grief on children and adolescents in particular

can lead to dysfunctional behavior and disruption of healthy development into

adulthood. Josie’s Place feels that healthy grieving for adolescents and younger children

will resolve many problems for our kids now and in the future. Because of your support

of mental health and bereavement issues with adolescents, Josie’s Place feels the Althea

Foundation is an ideal partner to help adolescents and younge children express and

find resolution to their grief.

r

If you have any questions or concerns, feel free to call or e-mail me. I look forward to

building a productive and positive relationship with you and your organization.

Thank you.

Sincerely,

Patricia Murphy

A Grant Proposal

Josie’s Place San Francisco Study Center

3288 21st Street No 139

San Francisco CA 94110

info@josiesplace.org

(415) 513-6343

We gratefully accept donations payable to:

San Francisco Study Center/Josie's Place 3288 21st Street, #139

San Francisco CA 94110 USA

Table of Contents

Executive Summary 1

Introduction 2

Statement of Need 3

Goals, Objectives, and Outcomes 5

Programs and Services 6

Evaluation 7

Conclusion 8 Budget 9 Reference List 10 Appendix A Research Articles

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Executive Summary Childhood bereavement is a serious dilemma. Children are not often able to handle the

grief over the death of a loved one. The issue is even more problematic in adolescents.

The effects of bereavement in adolescents can lead to isolation, drug-abuse, alcoholism,

gang involvement, and more. Josie’s Place, an initiative under the San Francisco Study

Center a 501(c)(3) non- profit corporation, has developed programs to combat the issue

of children and adolescent bereavement. Teens, children, and their caregivers meet in

separate groups once a month. These “Talk Circles” allow adolescents, children, and

their caregiver an opportunity to explore and express their grief. In addition, caregivers

are given information about childhood bereavement and how to support their kids.

Josie’s Place also hosts a once-a-year training seminar for volunteer facilitators for the

“Talk Circles;” as well as, offering high school outreach discussions about bereavement

and its impact. Josie’s Place is a new organization seeking $40,000 in seed money for art

supplies and staff payroll.

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Introduction

Mission

Josie’s Place provides bereavement programs in a safe and caring environment that

supports children, teens, and their families in the San Francisco Bay Area who are

grieving the death of a family member or friend.

We support participants through education, compassion and understanding as they

integrate loss into their lives at their own pace.

Philosophy

Josie’s Place is founded on the belief that all children deserve the opportunity to grieve

in a supportive and understanding environment.

• We believe that grief is a natural reaction to the loss of a loved one.

• We believe that individual have the inner ability to heal himself/herself.

• We believe that the grieving process is unique for each individual, both in terms

of intensity and duration.

• There is no “right” way to grieve.

• We believe that understanding, compassion, caring and acceptance aid families

with their grief process.

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Organization

Josie’s Place offers bi-monthly, open-ended grief support groups in the evening for

teens, children, and their families free of charge. Patricia Murphy, who is on the board

of director’s along with Arlyne Charlip, founded Josie’s Place.

Josie’s Place is a program of the San Francisco Study Center, a 501(c)(3) non- profit

corporation. Since 1971, the Study Center has been a resource for organizers by

providing public records research, grant writing and a City Hall Newsletter. The Study

Center focuses on helping Non-Profits in organizational development and publishing.

Josie’s Place is based on the model created by the Dougy Center in Portland, OR. Since

1981, the Dougy Center has helped organizations by offering a wide variety of training

sessions and workshops on child grief-counseling programs. The Center currently

serves 350 children and their 200 family members. Through their national training

program, they have developed 165 programs modeled after the Dougy Center.

Statement of Need Robert lost his mother to cancer at age 14. After her death, he was struck with an acute

loneliness. He explained this feeling by saying, “I felt that a piece of me was missing.”

Robert still felt alone though the grief had passed. He began writing poetry to help

capture “a very distant memory.” In an interview with researchers at New York’s

Memorial Sloan-Kettering, Robert recalls that “it took a couple of weeks” to pass

through the deepest pain but it helped to “get back into the normal groove of things.”

(Black, 2005)

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We all grieve when a family member passes on. It is in our nature to mourn the loss of a

loved one. Grieving allows us to acknowledge our loss and express our feelings for a

loved one. Many forget that children grieve also. They are called the “forgotten

mourners,” (Smith, 1999) those whose silent grieving is reflected in their future

behavior.

In many cases, children perceive the death as a traumatic event, which may lead to

post-traumatic symptoms and behavioral problems. Depending on their age, children

will react differently to the loss of a loved one. A child might begin to be more sullen,

shun the company of others, or act out at home and school. In adolescents, this post-

traumatic reaction to a death can be more severe. (National Child Traumatic Stress

Network,2004) A teenager, as a result, may become involved in drugs , alcoholism,

promiscuity, or gangs.

Gangs are a significant problem for bereavied adolescents, a problem that not only

affects them and their families but their community as well. A survey of 300 teenagers

incarcerated at the California Youth Authority Facility showed 96 percent

acknowledging they had someone significant in their lives die. (Cunningham, 1996)

Another survey done by the YWCA showed 141 out of 150 female offenders at the

Indianapolis Juvenile Correctional Facility had experienced at least one painful loss

before incarceration. (YWCA Indianapolis,1993). Additionally, 35 percent admitted to

engaging in self-mutilation and 61 percent admitting to alcohol and/or drug abuse as a

way to deal with their sorrow. (Indianapolis Grief & Loss Consulting & Educational

Services, 2003).

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These are the future leaders of our world. These are the people who will live and work

in, and build our communities in the future. Without proper outlets for their emotions,

they will express themselves through destructive behavior both to themselves and the

neighborhood around them. In adulthood, they may become dysfunctional and unable

to cope with their community, even becoming a problem to their neighborhood—such

as those who’ve fallen into the ranks of local gangs.

It is important that children learn how to express their feelings of loss before

dysfunctional behavior begins. In a study on bereaved children, 21 percent of parentally

bereaved children demonstrated dysfunctional behavior within two years after the

death of a loved one (Worden & Silverman, 1996), while 37 percent showed signs of a

major depressive disorder within a year after the death of a loved one (R. A. Weller et

al., 1991).

Our teenagers are the future of our community. Keeping them emotionally healthy is

not only important for them, but also our communities as well. We all suffer when a

loved one passes but in kids, the emotional impact can be critical. We all want the best

for our children. It starts by making sure they develop into healthy adults, physically

and emotionally.

Goals, Objectives, and Outcomes The goal of Josie’s Place’s is to reduce the sense of isolation internalized by adolescences

after the death of a family member or friend. We wish to ensure the mental health of all

children and adolescents along with their families throughout the bereavement process

to allow healthy development into adulthood.

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Specifically, these objectives are:

• To build positive social and emotional behaviors of bereaved adolescence in ages

13 to 17.

• To create a safe and nurturing environment where children, adolescents, and

their families explore and express their grief.

• To train and prepare volunteers to facilitate bereavement counseling groups with

compassion and patients.

• To educate local San Francisco High School students about the effects and

characteristics of bereavement.

The outcome of the services of Josie’s Place’s services is to help adolescents (as well as

younger children) and their families to experience some sense of emotional resolution

after the death of a loved one.

Programs and Services Josie’s Place provides several services to help the bereaved children of San Francisco

communities. The key elements are counseling and education. Josie’s Place has three

counseling groups, one training program, and one high school outreach program.

Structure of Groups

Each group meets for 90 minutes in the evening, twice a month. Trained facilitators host

each group by creating a safe and supportive environment. All groups meet

simultaneously.

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Children and Teen Groups

These groups meet in “Talking Circles” where participants tell their own stories of loss

while recollecting their departed loved ones. Everyone has an opportunity to express

feelings associated with bereavement. Discussions concerning loss and activities like

letter writing, art projects, and dramatic play help participants reflect and express their

grief in a peer group environment. In addition, there is free time that includes games

and dramatic plays of the children’s choice. This allows them to take a time out from

their grief or simply to let off steam.

The children’s group hosts no more than 16 kids, with one facilitator for every two

children. The teen’s group hosts no more than 12 teens, with two facilitators.

Adult Group

This group is for parents or caregivers of the grieving children and teens. They meet at

the same time the children’s and teen’s groups meet. The group receives information

about childhood bereavement and how to support children during bereavement. The

format of this group also offers an opportunity for group members to express their own

feeling of bereavement through talks and creative activities that allows them to express

themselves.

The adult group hosts all parents and caregivers with one to two facilitators.

Volunteer Training

Once a year, Josie’s Place hosts a training seminar for future volunteer facilitators.

Training will prepare future volunteers to work with children, teens, and adults.

Volunteers will learn how to mediate conversation and activities focused on the

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grieving process. In addition, they will learn to create a safe, friendly, and open

environment where everyone concerned can feel open and secure to talk about their

feelings.

High School Outreach

Josie’s Place hosts talks at high schools throughout San Francisco concerning

bereavements. Talks include:

• The grieving process.

• The effects of dysfunctional grieving.

• How the bereaved effect people around them.

• Why it is important to express grief over the death of a loved one in a healthy

and safe manor.

• The benefit of grief counseling.

Evaluation Josie’s Place is dedicated to making a difference in our community and to creating

programs that are both nurturing and effective. To that extent, Josie’s Place developed a

method to evaluate the effectiveness of their bereavement groups. They believe the best

indicators of successful therapy are the participants and their parents or caregivers. To

that existent, Josie’s Place has developed a series of evaluation surveys:

• A self-evaluation for participants to evaluate their mental, emotional, and

physical state of being.

• A program evaluation for parents or caregivers to evaluate their children or teens

mental, emotional, and physical state of being.

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• A parent or caregiver evaluation for themselves to evaluate their mental,

emotional, and physical state of being.

All evaluations are handed out before the first group meeting begins to establish their

current state of being, then after the last group meeting to establish their new state of

being.

Conclusion Children suffering grief over the death of a loved one can suffer from post-traumatic

stress and behavioral problems. In adolescents, the consequences can be more serious.

Bereavement issues could lead to isolation, drugs, gangs, and other issues. Josie’s Place

counseling and outreach programs focus on healthy exploration and expression of grief.

Research has shown that programs helping bereaved adolescents to mourn in a healthy

manner are successful and can help restore an adolescent’s mental and emotional

health. The UCSB Project Loss has found in one initiative that out of 24 teenagers 83

percent had a deeper appreciation for life, 79 percent had more caring for loved ones,

and 75 percent had greater emotional strength (Jimerson & Kaufmarn, No Date).

Children are sometimes called “the forgotten mourners.” By funding Josie’s Place, you

help keep our children in the foreground. Children are our future. By keeping them

healthy,--physically and emotionally—so do we keep our future.

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Reference List: Black, S. (2005). Wen Children Grieve. American School Board Journal, Reprint, 27.

Cunningham, L. (1996). The subject of anger. Newhall, CA: Teen Age Grief, Inc. Retrieved

September 4, 2001, from http://www.smartlink.net/~tag/anger.html

Indianapolis Grief & Loss Consulting & Educational Services.

(2003). Lojj study. Indianapolis: Author.

Jimerson, S & Kaufman, A (No Date). Evaluation of Grief Support Services for Bereaved

Youth: An Overview and Update on the UCSB Project LOSS National Collaborative Retrieved

April 24, 2008 from:

http://www.google.com/url?sa=t&ct=res&cd=1&url=http%3A%2F%2Feducation.ucsb

.edu%2Fjimerson%2FFeaturedConferencePresentations%2FProject_LOSS_NSCGS_2002.

ppt&ei=Gr4oSOOyG4OKpwSQ4OWpCw&usg=AFQjCNFIEaIXqTY2064XfG2RmFhGB

v79nA&sig2=Gces0bdyXj9E13wHbCYW4g

National Child Traumatic Stress Network. (2004). Tasman Childhood Traumatic Grief

Educational Materials From:

http://www.nctsnet.org/nctsn_assets/pdfs/reports/childhood_traumatic_grief.pdf

Smith, S. (1999) The Forgotten Mourners. Philadelphia: Jessica Kingsley Publishers.

Weller, R. A, Weller, E. B, Fristad, M. A, & Bowes, J. M. (1991). Depression in

recently bereaved prepubertal children. American Journal of Psychiatry,

148(11), 1536–1540.

Worden, J. W. & Silverman, P. R. (1996). Parental death and the adjustment of

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school-age children. Omega: Journal of Death and Dying, 33(2), 91–102.

YWCA Indianapolis. (1993). [Survey responses of incarcerated female adolescents at the Eliza

Hendricks School in the Indianapolis Juvenile Correctional Facility]. Unpublished data.