COPE helps parents heal

One Long Island nonprofit hopes to reach out to families who have suffered an unimaginable loss - the loss of a child.
COPE Foundation (Connecting Our Paths Eternally) will hold its first Healing Day event, titled “Festival of Renewal,” this fall to provide comfort and spirituality for bereaved families in Long Island. Activities planned for the fall-themed event include: music therapy, yoga, martial arts, art therapy, movement workshops, psychic readings, meditation, Reiki, massage, hand facials and reflexology treatments. Supervised children’s activities such as miniature golf, arts and crafts, playground time and sports (including a kid-friendly version of dodge ball called Gaga) will also be held
Art, music, theater, film, writing and storytelling offer a sense of control over events and feelings and meditation can facilitate the healing process. Physical activities such as Reiki, yoga and movement therapy provide a spiritual connection to the lost loved one, while massage alleviates stress
“In summary, each of these healing modalities are designed to alleviate grief, either by providing a distraction from grief, teaching bereaved parents to allow themselves to self-nurture again, providing an opportunity for bereaved parents [and] siblings to memorialize and celebrate their loved ones, or subconsciously allowing grieving family members to process their feelings,” explained Executive Director Karen Flyer, in an e-mail.
Qualified volunteers will lead groups of children from activity to activity, allowing the adults to receive attention. Although the event is free, COPE requests an optional starting donation of $10 to offset costs.
Attendees will choose morning and afternoon workshops to be held from 11 a.m. to noon and 1 to 2 p.m. Lunch will be served from noon to 12:30 p.m., after which Ron Villano, an inspirational speaker who has also suffered the loss of a child, will give a keynote address.
Since 2000, COPE has served approximately 100 families in Nassau and Suffolk counties by providing emotional, therapeutic and spiritual programs at no cost. Among the offerings are parent support group meetings, individual one-on-one support, sibling support, weekly art and movement therapy workshops. COPE’s grief hotline, COPEline, has provided immediate support, resources and referrals to grieving individuals outside of Long Island. The organization was founded by a group of parents who, coping with the loss of a child, held informal meetings in their homes to comfort each other and express their grief.
COPE’s other plans involve extending outreach to siblings, securing a “COPE House” for families and reaching out to residents of New York City and other metro areas.
“We have a ‘Model’ we are perfecting that which defines what COPE is and what COPE stands for in relation to five areas of opportunity: support, self focus, creative therapies, educational programs and spiritual opportunities,” said Flyer. “Each opportunity area will be headed up by a team leader who will coordinate the referral of new members to their area. COPE’s plan is to replicate this model in cities outside of Long Island, slowly, e.g. two additional cities next year, four additional cities the year after that. And so on and so on. We are now in the process of finalizing this model; we will soon be ready to expand.”
The Festival will be held on Sunday, October 19, from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m., at Camp Coleman in Merrick, New York. Pre-registration at www.copefoundation.org is strongly encouraged.