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“The most tragic and heartbreaking experience anyone can
undergo is the death of a child.”
These words can be found in a book entitled The Bereaved
Parent by Harriet Sarnoff Schiff; a book owned by Betty Garrett, a member of
Pelham Road Baptist Church in Greenville, S.C. Betty has found much solace from
this book of counsel written for those who suffer the heartbreaking experience
of losing a child.
A little personal history here: Betty and her husband,
Tony, had the misfortune to lose their beloved son, Baron, to the terrible
illness of Reye’s Syndrome, on June 21st in 1978. Baron was 10 at
the time, a handsome lad who was an active participant in organized sports. This
devastating experience left his parents with such overwhelming and indescribable
feelings of despair and loss that Betty wondered how other families coped with
this same situation in their own lives.
Betty learned of an organization founded in England in 1969
called “The Compassionate
Friends,” formed to offer support and understanding to bereaved parents
throughout the United Kingdom. The organization later spread to the United
States. The Compassionate Friends (TCF) was incorporated in 1978 as a
not-for-profit organization and today there are local chapters in approximately
600 communities throughout the country. The Greenville Chapter was organized in
September 1980.
Here was a needy cause and Betty felt a strong desire to
get involved. Today she is the Chapter Leader of the Greenville branch, which
meets at 7:30 on the second Thursday of each month at Pelham Road Baptist
Church. This local chapter is open to all families who have experienced the
death of a child from any cause, at any age. Folks who attend
these meetings are loosely called ‘members’ but there are no membership dues
or fees of any kind. TCF is funded by tax-free donations from individuals and
businesses. ‘Members’ come and go but usually there are about 12 to 15
families represented at any particular meeting.
The Compassionate Friends is not a therapy group, but
healing is slowly and gently promoted as families share in comforting
discussions with each other. They learn that they are not alone in facing this
terrible tragedy—others have also faced the isolation and desperation this
loss can bring.
Betty Garrett, because of her own heart-rending experience,
has been committed to helping others to work through their grief and by playing
a big part in this wonderful organization.
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