Animated films to help children cope with bereavement from Co-Operative Funeralcare

It's been seven years since we lost my dear old Nan. It was the first time that my younger children had to deal with bereavement. They adored their Great Nan and her death was very hard on them. I remember telling them when they got back from school on the day she died. We sat together on the stairs and sobbed. Losing a loved one is hard, and although she was 98 years old and in poor health, her death hit them hard.

We decided that all the great grandchildren would attend her funeral, giving them a chance to say good-bye and celebrate her life together. At the service, my daughter Megan read a beautiful poem in front of the congregation and her words, punctuated with sobs, touched everyone deeply. It was so moving. Afterwards we had a family party where we remembered our favourite stories about Nan, laughing and crying in equal measure. The process of being involved in the funeral helped the children deal with the grieving process and as a family we worked through all the emotions of losing a loved one. We all still miss my Nan and fondly remember all the wonderful things about her.

The Co-operative Funeralcare has launched a series of short animated films aimed at helping bereaved children to cope with the loss of a loved one. Teaming up with the charity Child Bereavement, Trauma and Emotional Wellbeing Service (CHUMS), they are offering the films as a free resource to local schools, medical professionals, counsellors, community groups and bereaved families.

The DVDs including “Our Year Since Dad Died” and  "Our Year Since Grandma Died", are animated stories to help children understand their grief, told in a video diary format, with the main character Gemma talking through her feelings following a loved one's death. It includes various aspects of the family’s grief, including significant events such as the funeral, Mother's Day and birthdays. It offers practical guidelines on how to overcome everyday hurdles.

It also comes with resources such as guidance notes and downloadable lesson plan and Powerpoint presentation suitable for key stages 2 – 4.  Grief can be overwhelming, painful, confusing and lonely. The aim of these DVDs is to support bereaved children and let them see they are not alone and that there is no right or wrong way to grieve and there is no fixed time scale for individuals to express their grief. The films can make a difference to a child through their loss and help with their long term emotional well being.

The free DVDs are available from your local Co-Operative Funeralcare. 

To view a short preview of the DVDs and find out more visit: 

www.co-operativefuneralcare.co.uk/child-bereavement

Still missing you Carol xxx

Today would have been my sister Carol's 51st birthday.  She'd be preparing for an amazing party.  She loved this time of year.  Her birthday, Halloween and the promise of Christmas just around the corner meant she was in her element.  Dressing up, stringing decorations in the trees in her front garden, socialising, parties, family.  She was the best, most imaginative host ever.  She was fun, caring, hilariously funny, a little outrageous, giving, loving...the most brilliant person I've ever known.  I thank the Lord that I was blessed to have her as my big sister.  She inspired me, I aspired to be like her, I adored her.  She was a huge presence in my life, which is why even now 15 years after her death, I still miss her everyday.

At just 36 years old, my sister was cruelly taken away from us.  Six years earlier she had been diagnosed and treated for skin cancer.  The medical profession had not done enough and the malignancy found its way into her lymphatic system.  It was a fight that she could not win.  It devastated us. 

Sometimes I still find myself thinking "I'll phone Carol to tell her that."  I still remember her phone number as if it was just yesterday that she was my confidante, on hand to listen to her younger sisters trials and tribulations.  She was always the first person I turned to. Her dry sense of humour would always lighten up any situation. She knew how to handle things, how to turn situations around.  She made you feel special...that was her gift.

Carol never lived to know who the Spice Girls were.  Never read Harry Potter.  Never saw Toy Story.  She never saw the explosion of the internet.  How she would have loved Facebook and Blogging!  She'd have embraced the Social Media and I would have loved having her in my virtual world.  She would have adored Sky +.  Mobile phones with cameras and videoing capabilities.  Reality TV.  3D horror films at the cinema.  Laptops.  Pixar films.  Sat Nav's. Digital radio. MP3's. 

She never got to be there to see her children grow up into the beautiful, amazing adults they have become.  I am so proud of my nephew and niece and they have so much of their mother in them, it is a comfort and an honour to have them in our lives.  My third child was born six months after my sister died.  Carol knew I was pregnant, I told her the day before she died that I would give my baby her name.  My daughter Ella Carol Ann wears her middle names with pride, honouring the auntie she never got to meet.  We keep Carol's memory alive with the handful of old family videos and photos we are lucky enough to have.  We have stories...so many funny stories!  Carol lives on in our hearts and the four nieces and two nephews who will never know their Auntie in person, will know about the wonderful human being who will always be a part of our family.

Cancer devastates families.  It is responsible for 1 in 4 deaths in the UK.  420 deaths a minute are attributed to cancer, that is one death every four minutes.  Every number in these statistics is a real person, someone's loved one, someone who will be missed everyday.  Someone like my amazing sister Carol. 

Being fortunate enough to be finalists in the VW competition means we can support Cancer Research UK with a financial donation.  We are exteremely honoured to be able to donate £500 to this worthy cause.