After my father died when I was in third grade, I felt utterly isolated. I lost a lot of friends, because other third-graders didn't know how to relate to me, or maybe they thought that dead fathers were contagious. Grief group programs at Judi's House offered me a safe place to have feelings that were too dangerous to express at school, where they alienated my teachers and classmates. Judi's House also showed me that I wasn't alone, and that other people were feeling the same way I was, even if our situations were really different. Community and support is so important for grieving children and families. I don't know where I'd be today without Judi's House.
390 Pageviews Read Stories
- EIN 84-1600797
- (720) 941-0331
- 10125 E 25th Ave Aurora CO 80010-1494 USA
- www.judishouse.org
- Add to Favorites
Promote This Nonprofit
More Nonprofits
Nonprofit Overview
Causes: Counseling, Mental Health, Philanthropy, Public Foundations
Mission: At judi's house, our vision is that no child should be alone in grief. Our mission is to help children and families grieving a death find connection and healing.
Programs: Judi's house is the only free-standing organization in the metro denver area devoted solely to supporting grieving children and their families since 2002. The behavioral health professionals on staff at judi's house have provided free care to more than 7,900 children and caregivers. We believe that investing in these vulnerable children will help them build resilience and the coping skills they need to adjust to their loss, and handle future challenges. The comprehensive grief care model developed at judi's house integrates knowledge drawn from a collaboration of community, practice, and research partners to normalize the grief journey in its many forms, while effectively preventing and addressing complications of bereavement. This trauma-informed, preventive approach to supporting the whole family has been empirically studied at judi's house for over a decade, setting it apart from other models of grief support and creating the largest research dataset of its kind on this issue. Jag institute, also named in memory of judith ann griese, is our center of excellence and learning that complements the work of judi's house by allowing us to reach even more grieving children and families as we continue to grow our long-standing research and training efforts, we will expand our capacity to help others provide effective grief support programs in communities beyond metro denver. Judi's house and jag institute promote healthy adjustment in grieving children and families through our three core strategic initiatives: direct service - providing comprehensive grief care, evaluation and research - advancing the field of childhood bereavement, training and education - increasing access by building workforce capacity. We have been able to create a successful track record by being thoughtful in our approach toward growth, all while incorporating the care values of compassion, accountability, and respect as our guiding principles.