Children's Grief Awareness Day^SM Toolkit

Many people joined us in conducting Children’s Grief Awareness Day activities in 2011. It’s not too early to start planning for this year's Children’s Grief Awareness Day, which will be November 15, 2012.

We invite you to invite those in your organization, your school, and your community to join with thousands of others—children and adults—to pause and take a moment, a day, or even a week to consider the impact on a child of the death of a loved one.

We are providing in this Toolkit materials to help you in the activities you're planning for Children's Grief Awareness Day. You can also encourage others to:

• Wear blue on Children's Grief Awareness Day.
• Raise awareness of grieving children and Children's Grief Awareness Day by visiting the Children's Grief Awareness Day Facebook page and taking part in the conversation.
• Learn about other activities you can plan on "How You Can Participate in Children's Grief Awareness Day."
• Help spread HOPE to grieving children right now by joining in "Holding on to HOPE."

The resources in this Toolkit can provide you with materials which will help you get the word out about your planned activities and communicate to others the needs of grieving children.

Thank you for making a difference in the life of a grieving child and for encouraging others to do so as well. Together, we can help the children in our midst—maybe children right next to us—to not feel so alone in their grief and to find hope and healing.

Tools in This Kit

• Welcome from the Director of the Highmark Caring Place, A Center for Grieving Children, Adolescents and Their Families
• Important Considerations as You Become Involved in Children's Grief Awareness Day Activities
• Fact Sheet
• Poster—Wear Blue
• Poster—Be There (vertical)
• Poster—Be There (horizontal)
• Bulletin/Newsletter Announcements
• Certificate of Participation
• Did You Know?
• Tip Sheet "When Someone You Know Is Grieving"
• Tip Sheet "When You Are Grieving"
• Thoughts from Teens
• Quotes from Teens about Grief
• Quotes from Teens about Support
• Governor of Pennsylvania's Proclamation
• Senate of Pennsylvania Resolution

(Note: The information in the Fact Sheet and Tip Sheets can be used as separate pages/posters to spread awareness about the prevalence of the issue of grieving children or these facts can be used individually in newsletters, emails, or other types of communication to raise awareness.)

View the entire Children's Grief Awareness Day toolkit.