BEND, OR -- A local nonprofit will soon launch a special grief support group for those who have lost a child. "It is one of the hardest losses anybody could deal with." says Partners In Care Bereavement Coordinator Carla Purusa, "It’s very out of sync from what we expect in life. And that doesn’t matter if your child is six or 60."

She tells KBND News grieving parents requested their own group, to help them through unique circumstances, "It’s not that we weren’t serving that population; we were. They were just in different groups. We have had Traumatic Loss groups, where those losses were due to accidents or trauma of some sort, and a lot of the parents were in those groups." Purusa adds, "A lot of those losses are young men in their early 20s. That’s a big one. They’re taking a lot of risks, they’re very active and a lot of accidents happen."

Partners in Care hosts a half-day workshop on May 24th in Bend to start the conversation about dealing with the loss of a child. "There will be a panel that have lost adult children and they’ll talk about their own experience with that. And, we’ll do a luncheon and an experiential exercise in the afternoon." says Purusa. Attendance is free, although pre-registration is required. Click HERE for more information.

Weekly support group meetings start in the fall. Purusa says they'll be similar to other groups already taking place, "We try to help people understand the process and then offer skills to manage the grief process, and how to best deal with that. And then, allow them to have some discussion with each other in the group, also."