Holidays can be extremely difficult for bereaved parents

Dec 13, 2007

To the Editor:

I wholeheartedly applaud the efforts put forth by the Powassan firefighters, Scotiabank and the Powassan Food Bank for dedicating themselves to ensure that every child has a good Christmas.

However, I can’t help but feel a tinge of sadness as I realize that as a bereaved parent, nothing will ever make the holiday season joyful for me; and sadly, there are so many other bereaved parents in our community whose lives will never be the same.

Perhaps there is a local organization or business who would be willing to sponsor an event for our community’s bereaved parents, to maybe bring a little bit of joy to the holiday season for them. The death of a child is a subject which most people avoid altogether; unless you are a bereaved parent, you just cannot understand how the holiday season impacts them.

One idea that I have come up with is a Christmas tree placed in downtown Powassan with ornaments bearing the names of our deceased children, to give us hope that our children are not forgotten by us nor our community.

I do not wish to put a "damper" on anyone’s holiday season; I merely would like to work with an area business to help bereaved parents honour their children’s memory.

Chantal Fleming
Powassan