MISSION
The mission of Healing House is to provide a safe place for grieving children, teens, and their families as they share their experiences and move through the healing process; to extend education and support services into the community.
 

HISTORY
Research indicates that children are the most underserved bereaved population. Recognizing this, a multi-disciplinary steering committee was formed locally in 1990 to study how we could serve the needs of this group. The result was the establishment of The Grief Center of Southwest Louisiana. The Center’s inaugural board of directors held its first meeting in October 1995, and the Center was subsequently incorporated as a nonprofit agency. The first groups for children and teens began in the fall of 1997. Although our name changed to Healing House in 2005, the services remain the same with an emphasis on hope, renewal and healing during the grief process.
 

PURPOSE
The purpose of Healing House is:
• To provide a safe place for children in Southwest Louisiana to cope with loss and to share their grief with others.
• To create an awareness of grief issues and to provide education on those
issues.

ABOUT OUR SERVICES
Healing House serves children ages 4-18 and their families who have experienced the death of a parent, primary caregiver or sibling. For these children and families, Healing House is a safe place where they are allowed to express their thoughts and feelings in a variety of ways. All services are provided free of charge and led by trained volunteers.
• The Free To Be Me Room is a place where the child can dress up, create puppet shows and share circle time.
• The Hurricane Room is loaded with pillows, stuffed animals and has a punching bag in order for kids to appropriately express big emotions.
• The Art Room is available for the children’s creative side, and offers a variety of methods for the child to express themselves in an artistic fashion.
Healing House has created a Tragedy Response Team made up of trained volunteers to work with groups of children who have experienced a death.

TO BECOME A VOLUNTEER
Trained volunteers facilitate group sessions in which children are given the opportunity to choose activities in which they can talk about and play through their thoughts and feelings surrounding their loss.
 

• Volunteer training is offered during the year.

• Please call Healing House at (337) 234-0443 for the next training dates.
 

TO DONATE
Funding for Healing House comes primarily from the following sources:
• Individual donations
• Public/Private grants
• Special event fundraisers
• In-kind contributions
Your tax-deductible contribution to Healing House would be greatly appreciated.
(Tax ID # 72-1314590)
Donations may be mailed to
Healing House at:
P.O. Box 3861
Lafayette, LA 70502