INNOVATIVE CLASS HELPS YOUTH COPE WITH GRIEF

A long dreampt of collaboration between In-Sight Photography and the Brattleboro Area Hospice came to fruition this summer with the firtst-time offering of a course for teens and youth who have experienced the loss of a loved one. Six students, ages nine through 16, particpated in the two-week course, “Creative Ways to Deal with Grief,” which met every day for two or more hours. Their losses included parents, grandparents, cousins, uncles and friends. The loss of a loved one is painful at any age, and for youth and teens it can be devastating. “Creative Ways to Deal with Grief” was created to provide participants with a variety of means for expressing grief and telling their stories, and to meet others who share their experiences. The course was facilitated by Elizabeth Pittman, Bereavement Coordinator at Brattleboro Area Hospice, Elizabeth Ungerleider, a children’s breavement couselor and In-Sight Board Member, and Sarah Swift, a long-time Hospice Volunteer who creates photographic quilts with people through hospice and adult day centers; Sarah is also an In-Sight Board member. The course involved a combination of discussions, field trips and photography projects, encouraging participants to explore their feelings of grief and how their lives have changed as a result of their losses. Using digital cameras, students completed

photography “assignments” showing how thier lives had changed; they created photo collages based on their feelings and memories; they explored and photographed local cemetaries; they took a field trip to a walking labyrinth; and using the cyanotype process, they printed photos they had taken as well as scanned photos of their loved ones onto fabric pieces, which were then sewn into “memory pillows” by Sarah Swift.

By all accounts, the course was a success, and it is hoped that InSight and Brattleboro Area Hospice will continue to work together in making “Creative Ways to Deal with Grief” an ongoing offering.

For more information, please call 251-9960 or e-mail tipp@sover.net.

And, of course, please stop by when you are in the area!