A sponsored walk will take place this week by members of North West bereavement services in a bid to normalise grief and get people talking about this typically uncomfortable subject.
The walk on Thursday 5 December will mark National Grief Awareness Week (2-8 December), a national campaign driven by The Good Grief Trust that highlights all aspects of grief and loss on a national scale.
The Good Grief Trust is the UK’s leading umbrella charity which is bringing all UK bereavement services, support organisations and helplines together under one central database for the bereaved and those working with them.
12 members of the North West Institute of Cemetery and Crematorium Management (ICCM) will come together for the 30 mile walk from Anfield Crematorium, Liverpool to Agecroft Crematorium in Salford via St Helens Crematorium (pictured).
The group sets off from Anfield Crematorium at 6am, reaching St Helens Cemetery at around 9am, hoping to complete the route in Salford by 6pm.
St Helens Council’s Bereavement Services Manager Sonia Smith will be among them, along with service colleagues Joe Sullivan and John Mackey. Sonia said:
“Grief is a very personal thing, and we all deal with death differently. It can completely turn your life upside down when you experience it, especially at this time of year with Christmas approaching. I think it’s vital that we raise awareness about grief and encourage everyone to talk about death more openly.
“Everyone experiences bereavement in their lives, but most of us still find it difficult to talk about how it affects us, how it makes us feel. That’s the reason we are doing this walk; we have to get people talking so that we’re all better able to process the most painful feelings that loss brings.”
All proceeds will go to the Good Grief Trust. If you’d like to sponsor the group, go to www.justgiving.com/fundraising/mathew-crawley7.
To learn more about the campaign visit www.nationalgriefawarenessweek.org and to find bereavement support visit www.thegoodgrieftrust.org.
If you need urgent support, anyone can call Samaritans at any time and for any reason on 116 123.
