• Welcome
    • About
    • Contact Us
    • Need a Friend?
    • Credo
    • The Seven Principles of The Compassionate Friends
    • Parent Package
    • Facebook
    • Pamphlets and Links
      • TCF Canada – Pamphlets
      • CHEO/TCF Brochure
      • Links
    • TCF Canada – National Newsletters
    • The Butterfly Symbol
    • Donations
  • Monthly Sharing Circles
  • blog
    • blog Archives
  • Events
    • Butterfly Release
    • The Butterfly Garden
    • Thank you Andy and Eileen
    • Events Calendar
    • The Worldwide Candle Lighting Celebration
  • Library
  • Remembering Our Children

The Compassionate Friends

Supporting Family When A Child Dies – Ottawa, Ontario

The Compassionate Friends – Update and Coming Events

April 12, 2018 by TCF Ottawa

Dear Compassionate Friend:

The tragic bus and semi-trailer collision in Saskatchewan that resulted in the deaths of 16 members of the Humboldt Broncos hockey club and left 13 others critically or seriously injured sent a shockwave across the country. A modest GoFundMe campaign initially aimed at covering travel expenses has raised over $8 million that will require professional management. This outpouring of grief and support for the families from the international hockey community shows that “they need not walk alone” as they slowly begin to rebuild their lives around their loss. Members of The Compassionate Friends know from direct experience that they face a long and painful journey and we offer our understanding and support.

The leaders of the TCF Saskatoon Chapter attended the vigil last Sunday to begin the outreach process. The Board of TCF Canada is presently considering other actions to make the community and each family aware of the support that TCF offers. If you have any suggestions or would like to help directly, please reply to this e-mail or visit the TCF Canada Facebook page.

Please read on for information about some upcoming local events: Annual General Meeting, Balloon Release, Bereavement Conference, and Summer Social. We hope that you will join us.

  1. Sharing Circles – every 3rd Tuesday

Regrettably, our March Circle had to be cancelled as our room booking was cancelled in error by staff at The Old Forge. We have been in contact with them and emphasised the importance of these meetings to parents who are suffering the loss of a child. In this particular situation, several parents had made the effort to attend their first Circle but were unable to do so. If you were one of those, or you know who they were, we strongly encourage you and them to come to the meeting next Tuesday, April 17th.

In our 19 years of operation (since May 1999), this is only the second time that our monthly Sharing Circle was cancelled. The first was in February 2016 when The Olde Forge had to close due to burst pipes.

  1. Annual General Meeting – Tuesday, June 5th

We invite you join us for our 19th Annual General Meeting at 6:30 pm at The Olde Forge. This is an opportunity to see what goes on behind the scenes in our Chapter and also to learn how you can contribute your time and talents to helping others on their grief journey. We follow an informal round-table format with lots of time for discussion.

  1. Bereavement Conference – Saturday June 9th

Registration is now open for the Healing Broken Hearts Conference organised by Ottawa parent Sue Kavanagh. The attached flyer includes contact information and a link to the conference website with program details.

  1. Balloon Release – Saturday June 23rd

This annual event now organized by CHEO will be held on the grounds of Ronald McDonald House starting at 2pm followed by the release of butterflies in The Butterfly Garden. This brief but moving ceremony includes music by the Canterbury Chorus and is open to all parents, families and friends suffering the loss of a child.

  1. The Butterfly Garden at CHEO

It was with great sadness that we learned last month of the passing of Elaine Routledge, the master gardener who has overseen the rejuvenation of the garden since 2014. Since initiating the Butterfly Garden project in 2002, our small group of TCF volunteers has looked after its upkeep and maintenance. More recently, under Elaine’s guidance and with on-going donations through the CHEO Foundation, the Garden has undergone a major overhaul to ensure its long-term sustainability. It is now an established resource in daily use by patients, families and staff from both CHEO and the General. Eileen and I continue to represent TCF Ottawa at the Butterfly Garden Committee planning meetings.

We were also sorry to hear of the retirement of Gerardo Quintanar, Spiritual Support Director at CHEO. Gerardo has been an ardent promoter and supporter of the Garden within CHEO and a key player in the renovation project. Eileen and I attended Gerardo’s retirement presentation on behalf of TCF Ottawa.

  1. Summer Social – Saturday, July 7th

Mark your calendar for our annual Summer Social, a casual, pot-luck style dinner hosted by Eileen and Andy. More details nearer the date.

  1. Website / Newsletters / National Facebook Page

Our Chapter website (www.tcfottawa.net) contains many useful resources and materials, including newsletters from other Chapters and from TCF Canada. The Spring newsletters in particular contain many timely informative and inspirational readings.

TCF Canada maintains a closed Facebook group where bereaved parents across the country can post and share their stories and other information. To join the group, log into Facebook and look for “The Compassionate Friends of Canada”. Answer a couple of questions to be accepted by the Moderator.

  1. Unsubscribe

If you would prefer not to receive these occasional updates, please reply to this e-mail and I will remove you from our mailing list.

Best wishes,

Andy Bond
Kevin’s Dad
The Compassionate Friends, Ottawa Chapter

Website: www.tcfottawa.net
E-mail: tcfottawa

HealingBrokenHearts Flyer_04 07 18.pdf

Share this:

  • Share
  • Print
  • Email
  • Twitter
  • Facebook

Like this:

Like Loading...

Posted in Uncategorized |

  • Upcoming TCF Ottawa Online Sharing Circle

    Please join us for our next Zoom Meeting:

    When: Thursday, February 2nd 7:00 p.m. Eastern Time (US and Canada) (always the first Thursday of the month)

    Join Zoom Meeting
    https://us06web.zoom.us/j/88442331294?pwd=N09vbXhIVjRGNXV5R1dpa0RQV3Q4UT09

    Meeting ID: 884 4233 1294
    Passcode: 638946

    One tap mobile
    +17789072071,,88442331294#,,,,*638946# Canada
    +17806660144,,88442331294#,,,,*638946# Canada

    Dial by your location
    +1 778 907 2071 Canada
    +1 780 666 0144 Canada
    +1 204 272 7920 Canada
    +1 438 809 7799 Canada
    +1 587 328 1099 Canada
    +1 647 374 4685 Canada
    +1 647 558 0588 Canada

    Find your local number: https://us06web.zoom.us/u/kcq4L1injP


  • Upcoming TCF Ottawa In-person Sharing Circle

    Please join us for the next In-person Sharing Circle:

    When: Tuesday, February 21st - 7 p.m. to 9 p.m. (always the third Tuesday of the month)

    Where: We meet at Tubman’s Funeral Home, 3440 Richmond Road, Nepean.

    Please Note: The entrance is located around the back, down the hill to the right.

    Hope to see you there.

  • The Compassionate Friends of Canada Newsletter

    The latest TCF National Newsletter is available through the following link:

    Click to access tcf-nat-nltr-fall-2022-.pdf

Website Powered by WordPress.com.

WPThemes.


  • Follow Following
    • The Compassionate Friends
    • Already have a WordPress.com account? Log in now.
    • The Compassionate Friends
    • Customize
    • Follow Following
    • Sign up
    • Log in
    • Copy shortlink
    • Report this content
    • View post in Reader
    • Manage subscriptions
    • Collapse this bar
%d bloggers like this: