LEXINGTON, Ky. — The Kentucky Center for Grieving Children and Families held a volunteer event on Monday to put together bags with resources and comfort items for youth who are dealing with grief.

What You Need To Know

  •  The Kentucky Center for Grieving Children and Families is an organization that runs grief support groups for youth who are dealing with loss

  •  Members from the Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority Lexington chapter joined the organization to put together bags for grieving youth

  •  The bags contain resources to get help for handling grief and comfort items 

  • One in nine Kentucky children will experience the death of a parent or sibling by age 18

Leila Salisbury began the organization in 2021. It runs free grief support groups in the community through church, schools and an online platform.

Members from the Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority Lexington chapter joined Salisbury and her team for the volunteer event.

This is the first time the Kentucky Center for Grieving Children and Families has made these bags. Funding that was given through ONE Lexington was used toward the bags. They will be distributed to downtown churches and organizations, and given out to at risk youth and children of color.

“This is such an incredible event for us,” said Salisbury. “This is a project we’ve been wanting to do for a long time and so being able to have all of this energy in the room, these incredible volunteers, you know, getting together for the purpose of healing and connection.”

One in nine children in Kentucky will experience the death of a parent or sibling by age 18, according to the Childhood Bereavement Estimation Model.

The Kentucky Center for Grieving Children and Families will be expanding its school-based support groups to Scott and Madison counties. There are also plans to start a college group at the University of Kentucky this fall.

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