MOUNTAINSIDE, NJ — In December 2023, Imagine, A Center for Coping with Loss, received a generous grant in the amount of $20,000 from the Summit Foundation in order to help grow its Spanish speaking programs. Thanks to its support, Imagine was able to expand its efforts to provide support to Spanish speaking families to include groups at the Mountainside location, the Newark location and virtually. All groups meet every other week to hear one another’s stories and give and receive support as they mourn the loss of their person who has died.
In Spanish, “duelo” is used to describe grief and the literal translation of “duelo” is “pain.” Imagine seeks to support those who are experiencing pain – and other emotions – as they go through their grief journey. With the support of the Summit Foundation, Imagine is able to create safe spaces for adults who have Spanish as their primary language through Spanish speaking groups, where participants can share their feelings in a language that’s true to their heart and know that they are not alone in their grief experience.
In order to meet this need, Imagine employs three bi-lingual staff members who are fluent in Spanish, so the moment a Spanish-speaking family calls Imagine, they are able to communicate with someone about their loss in their native language. Support calls and orientations are conducted in Spanish and, on a Night of Support, Imagine has a bi-lingual staff member and Spanish-speaking facilitators to lead these adult grief support groups.
Thanks to the generosity of the Summit Foundation, in addition to Imagine’s support groups, Imagine has also been able to offer parenting education in Spanish and English created specifically for the parents and guardians of the children in Imagine’s support group program. Five grief education workshops are being offered monthly beginning in January. These workshops aim to help adults to understand children’s grief and to equip them with tools to provide support to children who are grieving. Imagine’s bilingual program manager, Sonia Nuñez, presents these workshops in Spanish.
Imagine also offers several community workshops and webinars throughout the year. This year, Imagine’s Training and Education director, Veronica Ortiz, will be offering the same content for the Spanish-speaking audience. Recently, Imagine staff offered a workshop on “Coping with Loss During the Holidays” or “Afrontando la Perdida durante los dias feriados” in English and Spanish. As a part of their training and education program, Imagine has been able to provide training in Spanish to groups where English is their second language, ensuring that language is not a barrier to getting grief education. All of this is possible because of the generous grant provided by the Summit Foundation.
Imagine’s executive director, Lindsay Schambach, said this about the growth of Imagine’s Spanish speaking programs. “It takes true partnership to break down barriers. The Summit Foundation has been instrumental in Imagine’s ability to build trust and space for Spanish-speaking families to find grief support. Grief is universal. It knows no age, race, economic or language barriers. We are grateful to be able to partner with the Summit Foundation who share our values and beliefs, as we support our Spanish speaking families and work to ensure that no one grieves alone.”