A single action is all it takes to start a ripple effect. In Tammy’s case, the series of events that led her to Kate’s Club started with a single conversation.
When Tammy’s daughter Raquel died in 2022, she also began taking care of Raquel’s son, Za’Kyan. While coping with her own grief, Tammy also sought ways to support Za’Kyan’s grief for his mother.
It was one of Za’Kyan’s school counselors that told Tammy about a weekend-long camp for grieving families. Then, at that camp, someone told Tammy about Kate’s Club.
“I was excited that there are some resources for Za’Kyan, especially resources where he could be around other children his age who are dealing with a loss too, so he didn’t feel like it was just him,” Tammy remembered how she felt hearing about Kate’s Club.
While Za’Kyan had a supportive network of counselors at school, Tammy was excited to hear that Kate’s Club allowed for more peer-to-peer connection on a long-term basis.
In addition to the peer-to-peer member support, Tammy and Za’Kyan have also been able to attend family programs together, and Tammy has attended the parent and caregiver programs.
Finding a supportive community for grieving parents and caregivers at Kate’s Club
Tammy remembers when she first started attending Park Bench, the parent/caregiver support group at Kate’s Club. It was only a few months after her daughter’s death.
“I was still just confused and sometimes in a place of disbelief. It was just a lot of sadness,” Tammy said. “Even though I believe I am a person who understands that part of living is death, when she passed it just hit me very hard.”
However, at Park Bench, she heard from other parents and caregivers who were in a different part of their grief journey and gained a different perspective. She feels their insight gave her the tools to celebrate her daughter’s life and the time they shared together, rather than focus on the loss that she was experiencing.
Even now that a couple years have passed, Tammy still likes to attend Park Bench. She appreciates the topics, even when they don’t apply to her. She attended a Park Bench session focused on dating after the death of a partner, and while she wasn’t in the same shoes, she enjoyed participating in a lively discussion with “a lot of interacting.”
Tammy even keeps in touch with several other caregivers who she met through Park Bench. They have a group text to support each other in their day-to-day lives, outside of the Kate’s Club programs themselves.
Virtual grief support options for families at Kate’s Club
Kate’s Club has monthly Family Night programs at our different Clubhouse locations. However, these programs are on weeknights, and Tammy and Za’Kyan’s family live an hour and a half away from the Clubhouse, so Family Nights are hard to attend in person.
However, through Virtual Family Night, they appreciate the opportunity to do activities at home that will support their grief. Each Virtual Family Night, they receive a package with materials and complete the project on Zoom with other families and the Kate’s Club team.
“We all like the activities that we do, but I also like the fact that we’re talking about our person, and Za’Kyan’s able to verbalize that in front of us,” Tammy said.
She compares the family program to our flagship Clubhouse Days for kid and teen members. There, Za’Kyan talks about his grief with his peers and the Kate’s Club volunteers, but not with Tammy.
Tammy and Za’Kyan are also able to attend the program with other members of the family, including Za’Kyan’s great grandma, Tammy’s husband, and Tammy’s adult daughter.
The ripple effect continues
After a few years at Kate’s Club, Tammy finds herself in the same position she was years ago, but on the other end of the conversation. She tells people all the time that she “just love[s] Kate’s Club,” even sharing that she met someone on Sunday who had a grieving child and happily referred them to Kate’s Club.
“Kate’s Club is about community,” Tammy said. “[It’s] a wonderful organization that will allow you to share what’s going on with you and give you tools and resources to deal with your grief, to cope with the loss that you’ve had, and to help bring some joy and some peace to you.”
Grateful for the community she has found at Kate’s Club, Tammy continues that ripple effect that strengthens the community – the same ripple effect that brought her to Kate’s Club in the first place.
We are grateful for the opportunity to serve Tammy’s family and all who attend Kate’s Club. Thank you also to Tammy for sharing her and Za’Kyan’s story!
Contact Kate’s Club for grief support in Georgia
Kate’s Club empowers children and teens, their families, and young adults facing life after the death of a parent, sibling, caregiver or someone important to them. The organization builds healing communities through recreational and therapeutic group programs, education and advocacy. Since its founding in metro Atlanta in 2003, Kate’s Club has served thousands of individuals who are grieving, through both in-house and outreach services. Kate's Club offers services in Metro Atlanta, Coastal Georgia, Northeast Georgia and Southwest Georgia.