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Coping Without Fathers
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They say that big boys don’t cry. In fact, one Missouri Attorney remembers all too well the grief he was expected to hold back when his dad died many years ago. Today, as a legacy to his father, he sponsors a grief counseling center for children. As Kim Riemland reports, the program helps children respond openly to their pain and loss. |
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SCRIPT:
Locator: Springfield, Missouri
Child in group: "Sometimes I'll be just sitting at school and I'll just be thinking about my dad and I'll kind of start crying."
Small voices speak of great losses. Everyone in this room is coping with the death of a father, mother, sister, brother.
Child in group: "I felt pretty sad because he was gone."
This program, called "Lost and Found," helps youngsters deal with grief.
Nat: "This is Robin Squires at Lost and Found..."
Robin Squires became involved with the group after hearing about it through a Sunday school classmate at Schweitzer United Methodist Church. He is attorney Shawn Askinosie ('ask in oh' zee'), who has haunting memories from his childhood, when his father died of cancer.
Shawn Askinosie/Co-founder of “Lost and Found”: "They should have explained to me that death is a part of life, and it's natural, and that people grieve when people die. And none of that happened."
So other children would not have to suffer silently, Shawn created “Lost and Found” – a place to listen, a haven to heal.
Child in group: "It just felt like there was an empty space where my dad was."
When Robin’s 36-year-old brother died, he left a 10-year-old son suddenly fatherless. She encouraged her nephew to try the program.
Robin Squires/ Executive Director “Lost and Found”: "I get it more now, having lived that experience."
While the kids meet in one room, adults meet in another.
Robin Squires: "These families are sometimes desperately searching for something to try and ease their pain."
The smiles they see tell Robin and Shawn that they’re helping these kids through a very difficult time.
Shawn Askinosie: “I believe I've been able to help people who've been in the same kind of situation that I was in when I was a young boy.”
TAG:
Since its inception 4 years ago, nearly 300 youngsters ages three through eighteen and their caregivers have taken part in “Lost and Found.”
For information, contact “Lost and Found” at 417-832-9423.