“When someone you love becomes a memory....that memory becomes a treasure.”

The death of a loved one can be one of the most profound emotional experiences any of us ever has to face.

Dealing with the deep and prolonged grief that follows such a loss may well be the most painful challenge of our lives.

Most importantly....we can be a friend!

Bereavement Groups
All support groups are open to anyone in Frederick County who has experienced the death of a loved one. Due to community support there is no fee for these services.

Genesis
An open-ended, self-help group designed to provide support to individuals who have experienced the death of a loved one. This group offers a safe place where members can talk about their loss, share their stories, and express their grief.

Focus
An 8-week, closed-ended evening group designed to help those who have experienced the death of a loved one learn what to expect from the grieving process, while encouraging self reflection. Focus provides a structured setting where members are encouraged to discuss their emotional responses, helping them process this information as it relates to the grieving process.

H.O.P.E. (Helping Others Progress & Express)
An 8-week, closed-ended educational and emotional support group for those who have experienced the death of a spouse or a life partner. HOPE offers daytime sessions that focus on issues relevant to the grieving process. Guest speakers will discuss issues such as Grief versus Depression, Personal and Home Safety, and Taxes and Finances.

Grief is an individual journey that requires much of us but does not give us an easy, prescribed route or timetable to follow. Grieving is a process...a process which we can identify, generally speaking, as having three broad and overlapping phases:

Immediately following a loved one’s death, we may experience disbelief, shock, confusion, even anger. In this first phase of grieving, it’s not unusual to become disoriented by our feelings of despair.

It is during this second phase that we experience the full impact of our loved one’s death. We find that we need to cope by taking one day at a time. Our lives may begin to change as we identify and process all that the loss means to us and all that it causes us to feel, to think, and to do. It can be a time filled with repetition. We tell our stories over and over. We ask ourselves the same questions over and over again. We confront longing day after day, and night after night. And as we repeatedly experience the same emotions and feelings, we need to talk about them. Our feelings need expression and release. Many of us benefit during this phase of grieving from seeking and accepting the support of others. While no one can tell us what to feel or how to grieve, Hospice of Frederick County can help survivors better understand and cope with their grief.

During this last phase of the grieving process, we find that we are better able to accept the death, and begin to integrate the loss into our lives. We begin to see that we are going to go on, to move forward in our lives. Some days, we find we regain a sense of hope... perhaps even some days in which we experience excitement and pleasure. This does not mean that we no longer care about or have forgotten our loved ones. It simply means that we are releasing our hold on the pain associated with the loss and are finding meaningful ways to express our sadness and longing.

• A variety of support and self-help groups
• Workshops on various topics related to the grieving process
• One-on-one telephone support
• Referrals
• Confidentiality
• A safe, comfortable environment

• We can be available
• We can listen
• We can educate you about what to expect from
the grieving process
• We give hope
• We can help you set small goals
• We give you permission to backslide
• We give you the right to question
• We allow you to feel a multitude of emotions
• We can help you make use of ritual
• We accept your grief as being unique
• We are non-judgmental

Camp Jamie is Hospice of Frederick County’s special weekend camp for children, ages 6 - 14, who have experienced the death of someone they love. Due to the generous donations Hospice receives from the community, Camp Jamie is offered at no cost to the children of Frederick County.
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