COPE offers support groups facilitated by licensed clinicians for parents living with the loss of a child to come together regularly for peer support and connection.
PARENT SUPPORT GROUPS Guide
Peer support groups offer a safe space for grieving parents to share their experiences, give and receive support, find tools to cope with their unimaginable loss, and find validation through the shared experience with others.
There is no exact way of grieving your child, as each loss is unique to that person and the relationship he or she had with them, but oftentimes the best support can come from those who can relate to and understand the depths of your grief.
Participating in a group offers the opportunity to:
- Receive emotional support in a safe and non-judgmental environment
- Begin and continue the healing process by sharing your own story and hearing the stories of others
- Learn coping skills to help you through the difficult moments in your grief journey.
- Discover new ways or traditions to maintain continuing bonds with your children by keeping them present in your heart and connected in your memories.
- Increase your understanding of how other family members might react to loss.
- Permission to grieve and permission to live
Until I discovered COPE, I had never known anyone who had suffered the loss of a child. I now know people who understand my pain and grief, and I can find support whenever I need it.”
– JB
Who Can Join
COPE Parent Support Groups are open to those in New York City and Long Island and welcome all ages and backgrounds grieving all manners of loss. New members join on an ongoing basis, and there are options for those at all points in their grief journey. There is no timeline to enter the group, and as your grief does not end, neither does our support.
COPE Parent Support Groups are free to attend and, like all of COPE’s programs, are sustained through the generosity of our participants.
All prospective group participants must first fill out our intake form and complete an intake phone call with our Clinical and Program Director, Claire Sharkey, LCSW, to determine readiness for the group and the best group fit before being connected with the group facilitator and attending a group.
Current COPE group members interested in switching groups must first contact COPE Clinical and Program Director Claire Sharkey, LCSW at (516) 274-0540 or claire@copefoundation.org
Group Offerings
Current group offerings are listed below. In order to maintain group numbers that will allow for the best opportunity for participants to connect and share, we cannot guarantee available space in every group at all times, but we will work with you to find the best fit for your needs.
| PARENT SUPPORT GROUPS | FACILITATOR |
|---|---|
| South Shore Bereaved Parents Virtual Support Group | Michelle Graff, LCSW |
| North Shore Bereaved Parents Virtual Support Group | Rhonda Ryan, LCSW |
| Daytime Bereaved Parents Virtual Support Group (2x per month) | Janet Zimmerman, LCSW-R |
| Plainview Bereaved Parents In-Person Support Group (2x per month) | Marilyn Kohn, LMSW |
| Babylon Bereaved Parents Hybrid Support Group (2x per month) | Mary Ann Stein, LMSW |
| Rockville Centre Newly Bereaved Parents In-Person Support Group | Lauren Jukofsky, LCSW |
| Roslyn Newly Bereaved Parents In-Person Support Group (2x per month) | Barbara Goldstein, LCSW |
| Lake Grove Bereaved Parents In Person Support Group | Rashida Sanchez, MA, LMSW, FT |
| Jericho Bereaved Parents Virtual Support Group (3+ years) | Marilyn Kohn, LMSW |
| Bereaved Parents Virtual Support Group (Loss of a Child Under 18) | Carly Bergstein, LMSW |
Current Parent Support Group members can check the calendar for upcoming groups by clicking below.