GriefShare helping the widowed navigate life after loss

Grief can take many forms and perhaps one of the most profound is the kind suffered by those who have lost their husband or wife, an experience that many say is akin to losing half of oneself. The entire structure of the world is altered when a life partner passes away, leaving their loved one to face the challenge of mourning, coping and rebuilding what has been shattered. But they do not have to go through that journey alone.

GriefShare is an international, multi-faceted support groups geared specifically toward helping those who are mourning the loss of a loved one through their time of pain. This nondenominational organization has chapters all around the world, including right here in Pahrump, where the GriefShare chapter that calls Central Valley Baptist Church home hosts regular grief support meetings twice weekly. This month, the chapter will also be hosting two special sessions of GriefShare’s Loss of a Spouse seminar and anyone who has lost a life partner is encouraged to attend.

“We really want to get the word out that we’re having two Loss of Spouse sessions, one on the 18th and another on the 23rd,” local GriefShare facilitator Marcia Savage told the Pahrump Valley Times this week. “We usually use the Loss of a Spouse as an outreach to the community; it’s a great way to introduce the program.”

Loss of a Spouse is a special session dedicated solely to those who have lost their life partner. The seminar is comprised of the same three elements as regular GriefShare sessions, including a video for attendees to watch, an open discussion in which thoughts and feelings are shared and a booklet that helps carry the messages home with attendees.

The session will begin with a 35-minute video hosted by two people who have gone through the very same thing that attendees have experienced.

“Micheal Faulkner and Pam Lundell know what it’s like to lose a spouse and they have a passion to help those who’ve lost loved ones. So, they were delighted to co-host the Loss of a Spouse seminar video,” information from GriefShare details. “Rev. Michael Faulker pastors New Horizon Church in Harlem, serving the economically and socially disadvantaged. He played football for the NY Jets during the 1981-82 season. In 2014, he lost his wife of over 30 years, Virginia, to lupus. They had raised three children together. Pam Lundell hosts the morning show for Christian broadcaster 98.5 KTIS in Minneapolis-Saint Paul, Minnesota. Her husband, John, died suddenly in 2005 of an accidental overdose, leaving her a single mom. Today, she serves on the board for the nonprofit Widow Might.”

The Loss of a Spouse video includes interviews with seven people who have each lost their life partner as well, along with messages of hope and comfort from a variety of experts in the fields of counseling, psychology and religion, providing a well-rounded view of the unique grief widows and widowers face and how to overcome it.

“At a Loss of a Spouse seminar you’ll discover: other people understand and have found ways to make it through; why it won’t always hurt so much; reasons for hope; and practical tips for coping with the death of a spouse,” GriefShare states.

Loss of a Spouse will take place Monday, May 18 from 3 to 5 p.m. and Saturday, May 23 from 1 to 3 p.m. at the Central Valley Baptist Church Fellowship Hall, 3170 S. Blagg Road.

For more information on GriefShare as a whole, visit GriefShare.org. For more on the Central Valley Baptist GriefShare chapter, contact Savage at 775-513-4482.

Contact reporter Robin Hebrock at rhebrock@pvtimes.com