Rainbows for All Children

GREAT mission, GREAT team! the CLOZTALK team is honored to call this org a partner & promote its good work!

CLOZTALK team
>> Jonny Imerman, co-founder

As a mediator working in Chicago's Divorce Court for twenty years, I say, "Thank God there is a Rainbows"! Daily I interview children who are in the midst of their parents' divorce and high conflict. Children hurting from loss, anger, and feeling helpless. Often parents in their own pain are unaware of their children's needs. As a mediator I can not "save" these children but because there is Rainbows I can refer them to a place of ongoing support and hope. In Rainbows the children find a place to grieve and move on with their lives. Without Rainbows thousands of children would be "lost". Thank God for Rainbows! Kathleen Borland

Rainbows For All Children is one of the best charities to help children and teens who are grieving. They've helped so many children worldwide through their difficult life stages.

I have had a connection to Rainbows in so many ways throughout my life. As a first grader, I attended Rainbows programs that were held at my Catholic elementary school. I think one of the many great benefits that children experience, and that I remember, is a feeling of connection to other classmates as well as the development of relationships with adults whom you can trust and feel supported by during a time of great change occuring in the home. I also remember that the opportunity to talk about divorce and change in the groups made it easier to have those conversations with my parents, and I think it helped them to understand what I was experiencing. As an adult I became a professional therapist that works with children experiencing trauma and loss, it is evident to me that when there is a significant crisis or change, children need their community to respond and support them so that they and their families can adjust. Rainbows is a low cost program that schools can implement relatively easily to provide children with the critical help they need so that they can have a positive outcome to the changes and losses that they may experience. As an adult, a professional in the field, and an alum I am proud to support Rainbows and would suggest anyone who has experienced a loss in their family to utilize this resource.

I originally heard about Rainbows through the Church in which my children were going to preschool. Going through a divorce when the kids were so young - I did not know anyone that was in my position. I was also relatively new to this state and had no support of family or friends. I figured I would try it once and see how it went. Our Rainbows group was for parents and children; each week we split into our parent and children groups and had an of support and fun, tears and laughter. What a great feeling that there was this organization available to us ! 12 years later, I am grateful for meeting one of my best friends through Rainbows and am so grateful for Rainbows being around for us, when nothing else was. Thank you Rainbows for helping my kids and myself through such a dark time. Rainbows do come after storms!

As a child dealing with parents going through a divorce, Rainbows was the most sensational program I could have been introduced to. At the time, I did not realize that was taking part in a program that was so widespread around globe. I participated in my school (public grammar school) with the school counselor. While in Rainbows I not only dealt with issues I was having at home because of the divorce, but was also a victim of adolescent bullying. My counselor that ran Rainbows also helped guide me through those struggles as well. I feel that even if it is unclear whether or not a child is having difficulty grieving that it is extremely helpful to be around those that are also dealing with similar circumstances. Rainbows is THE program to guide children and families through difficult times. I would absolutely 100% recommend it to anyone that feels it may help, because it will. Being a non-profit they can certainly use any amount of funding to continue to grow the program. People need it all over the world as they continue bloom into other countries each year.

My husband, Len, and I have been involved with Rainbows for nearly 15 years -- Len has served on the golf committee and Board of Trustees and I have been involved with the Women's Board and several committees. We support Rainbows because it provides such needed service and support to grieving children. The results are simply extraordinary. We do not have children of our own, and being involved with Rainbows is our way ot giving back to kids.

As a parent of four children who attended Rainbows during their school day while dealing with a divorce, I spoke with each child and asked them how Rainbows helped them. Two of my children said it helped explain what divorce is and helped them bond with others who shared similar situations. My son said it made him understand better. One of my daughters went to Rainbows and discovered that another child, one she was in conflict with regularly, also was dealing with divorce. She learned about empathy and understanding in a way I couldn't teach myself. I think it is a truly valuable program, offering valuable insight and a place to feel safe to children when they most need it. Parents know they need to provide it for the children, but are having a difficult time providing it themselves due to their own trauma experience.

As a Board Member and volunteer for over five years, I have had the privilege of learning about the Rainbows programs and the life changing effect is has had on millions of children. The more I talk about Rainbows the more I learn of its miraculous healing power in the lives of people I meet. Children need the support and guidance to understand the grieving and be able to heal through their time spent in Rainbows. The organization is truly committed to making a difference in the lives of all children suffering a loss from death, divorce, deployment or other traumatic life events. What amazes me about Rainbows is how effective they are in using the dollars they receive as donations to benefit great numbers of grieving children and the passion with which they take on that mission!

Through its programs Rainbows provides one of the most necessary and most effective services to children who experience a major life loss, such as the divorce, death, or deployment of a parent, or a natural disaster. The trauma of such events can cause lasting damage to a child for a lifetime. Indeed, it can be generational in scope as children who suffered trauma in their family become spouses and parents as adults. Rainbows takes on this essential challenge through programs with proven effect and volunteers with strong commitment. Rainbows is a blessing and a wonder that many of us wish we could have experienced as children. Now it is our duty to save children from sadness, and the trouble at home and school that it brings, by making Rainbows available to more children of this generation and the next.

I have been involved with Rainbows for the last dozen years. RAINBOWS is unique in the way that we are able to serve so many children with so few resources. We are able to leverage the support of so many volunteers by providing them professional training and resources they need to make an impact in their local community. The children are able to play and not even realize that they are healing during that whole process while learning new relationship skills. I continue to be impressed with the resourcefulness of the organization and the quality of the materials. Our recent expansion into Japan to serve the needs of those children touched tandem tsunami and with military families for deployed parents is tremendous.

I have been involved with Rainbows for the past 20 years. My involvement began when I was in middle school and my best friend attended Rainbows while coping with the divorce of her parents. The support and guidance of her peers and Rainbows facilitator helped her overcome the sense that she was all alone and enabled her to express her feelings in a comfortable environment and realize that she was not the cause of her parents' divorce. She is a resiliant, accomplished woman today. Her transformation inspired me to get more involved with this terrific organization and I am still actively involved today.

During the past 6 months, I have interned at Rainbows for All Children. During the beginning of my internship I learned a lot what services Rainbows provides to children. Rainbows focuses on helping children being able to cope with divorce, military deployment of a parent, incarceration of a parent, and loss of a parent. Rainbows recognizes that children need a safe space to communicate their feelings. It is important for children to be heard and to have a voice in the environment around them. I thought this internship was helpful to me. I am currently a first year student in the marriage and family program at the Adler School of Professional Psychology. In this field, a lot of marriage and family therapist see how different events impact the family. We understand the importance of family and how important it is for family members to communicate and heal together. By learning about the events that affect the family, I think it will help me to be more cognizant of what should be addressed within the family.

For the past six months I have interned at the Rainbows for All Children international Headquarters in Itasca, Illinois. My experience working here has been great. One of the reasons that I chose to intern at Rainbows specifically, was due to the fact that I am currently a first year student in the Marriage and Family Therapy program at the Adler School of Professional Psychology. Suzy Yehl Marta, the President and Founder of Rainbows, inspired me with the work that she began almost 30 years ago. Since I come from a field that focuses on familial issues, I thought the Rainbows mission, providing grief support groups for children and youth, was a tremendous service. Often times, children and youth have difficulties expressing their feelings and needs in times of loss. They often have no voice on matters such as divorce, military deployment of a parent, etc., and struggle to work through the complexities that come with grief. The Rainbows curricula addressing this need beautifully. Peer support groups help normalize their feelings because they learn that they are not the only ones who are dealing with tough issues, and these groups provide the children with a safe place to process their grief. Suzy also recognized the importance of family support in these situations and the Rainbows curricula works to incorporate the family during the program. This organization truly devotes their time and effort to heal and strengthen families in times of loss, and the fact that it is now the largest international grief support organization is testimony to its effectiveness, and to the need that it addresses.
Interning here has been a great opportunity for me and I will continue to support the Rainbows mission even after I leave. This organization cares for the well-being of children and their families and I hope that it only continues to prosper.

Elyse Dombrowski

I have heard the heartwarming stories told by Children who have participated in Rainbows, their parents, and facilitators. It is clear to me that Rainbows does change lives. Without having the opportunity to express their frustration, grief, fears, and anger due to death or divorce of a loved one, these kids could easily spiral into a life of despair and sorrow.

I have been involved with Rainbows for nearly 3 years. To hear former and current program participants speak about their experiences within Rainbows and the way Rainbows helped to turn around their life is amazing. I am proud to be a Board Member of this organization.

Rainbows works with children who are dealing with situations such as death and loss that are, by definition, beyond their cope level and helps them through transition periods so that they do not "fall between the cracks." Having attended several fundraisers, meeting the Board and meeting several people who have gone through the program, I can say that Rainbows is a very well run organization whose services are critical to children going through difficult life changes.