Peer Support Companion Program

In connecting with others who are also walking a grief journey,
healing and bonding can begin to form.

Would it be helpful or healing to talk to another donor family member?
Would you like to connect with someone who has gone through the similar experience of losing a loved one?

The Peer Support Companion Program connects newly grieving donor family members with donor family members who are advocates and trained to provide support and comfort as a Peer Support Companion.

Moving through the journey of grief can feel like an isolating experience. Connecting with another donor family member can provide comfort in knowing that you are not alone in this journey. Seeking connection is healthy and can build a support community. Sharing your heartache and your pain with someone else can promote healing when trust is established in a supportive, healthy environment.

Donor Family Advocates

Donor family advocates are trained by the aftercare support team to become peer support companions. Training is centered around the book “The Handbook for Companioning the Mourner, Eleven Essential Principles” by Dr. Alan Wolfelt.

Please know that our aftercare support team will take special care to connect you with a peer support companion who best fits your needs as specified. Please know that our aftercare team may contact you for additional information prior to connecting you with a peer support companion.

Dr. Alan Wolfelt writes –

Companioning is the art of bringing comfort to another by becoming familiar with their story (experiences and needs). Of course, this may well involve tears and sorrow and tends to involve a give and take of story. I tell you my story and you tell me yours. It is sharing in a deep and profound way.

More specifically, for me…

Companioning is about being present to another person’s pain; it is not about taking away the pain.

Companioning is about going to the wilderness of the soul with another human being; it is not about thinking you are responsible for finding the way out.

Companioning is about honoring the spirit; it is not about focusing on the intellect.

Companioning is about listening with the heart; it is not about analyzing with the head.

Companioning is about bearing witness to the struggles of others; it is not about judging or directing these struggles.

Companioning is about walking alongside; it is not about leading or being led.

Companioning means discovering the gifts of sacred silence; it does not mean filling up every moment with words.

Companioning the bereaved is about being still; it is not about frantic movement forward.

Companioning is about respecting disorder and confusion; it is not about imposing order and logic.

Companioning is about learning from others; it is not about teaching them.

Companioning is about curiosity; it is not about expertise.