Children's Day
I would like to introduce you to our Children’s day. The event was offered to children and grand children of our present and past patients last November.
When a family member is dying or has died, it is challenging and often impossible for the family to provide children something fun and creative. Children’s Day provides time out for children and family / Whanau. It helps children to reduce the frequent isolation felt by them and to enable them to meet others who have also been in a similar situation.
It was a day of creative art and craft, a party lunch with a chocolate fountain, a visit from our Hospice pets (Salty the dog and Fluffy the cat) and a visit from a lovely guardian angel who surprised everyone with goodie bags and encouraging words. Children actively participated in the event and had a great time. There were 16 primary and intermediate school aged children from diverse ethnic backgrounds. They came from as far south as Drury, Papakura, Manurewa, East Tamaki, Papatoetoe, Mangere and Otahuhu.
Children appreciate when their concerns are shared, their questions are answered, and are offered a free and safe space to explore their issues while they are grieving. Our children were well supported by 13 volunteers and staff. Some children got emotional as expected. They were spotted straight away and received appropriate support. Some visited our In Patient Unit to see “the room my parent / grand parent died”. It created opportunities for them to be acknowledged for their grief and loss. At the end of the fun day, everyone got close to each other and sat down together for a lunch with lots of laughter.
Once the event was advertised in the community, we had people who wanted to bake or donate items for the event. We are deeply appreciative of their kindness. They understood what kind of traumatic time these children went through. We all commonly believe that “children are resilient”. However, they are much “less” resilient to trauma like death and dying than adults are.
Guess what! All the children want to come back again. Some asked if they could have a Children’s Day every weekend! We would like to offer a Children’s Day 3 or 4 times a year in future, financial constraints permitting. The day creates opportunities for the children to come back to Hospice, reconnect with others in a similar situation, reflect on their grief or loss with greater insight and find strength to carry on their lives.
A big thanks to our volunteers and staff and all the children who made the day so special. If you would like information to sponsor a Children’s Day please contact Hyeeun.
Hyeeun Kim
Counsellor
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