My six year old daughter has been finding it difficult to deal with the loss of her big sister , finding out that there was other children in the same situation had really helped her and also both my wife and myself realising that we are not alone. Anonymous
In this section
Bereavement Family Camp: An Introduction
The bereavement weekends at Barretstown offer the whole family a supportive environment within which they can spend quality time together, find support, share their experience of loss and find ways to look to the journey ahead.
Our programme is directed by a very experienced team and activities are overseen by carefully trained Caras. A range of fun, challenging, and exciting activities are on offer such as archery, canoeing, horse riding, and drama which are designed to allow families to share experiences and try new things.
The camp runs from Thursday with families invited to arrive between 2-4pm and finishes after lunch on a Sunday. It is a three camp cycle with camps at 6 monthly intervals. Families whose child has sadly died, at the age of 17 or younger, are eligible to attend our Bereavement Camps.
The bereavement component of the weekend is 5 hours, spread over the weekend, and includes reflection, celebration of life (both are quiet times with music, candles and words lasting 30-40 minutes), and age appropriate group bereavement sessions. A movie is also shown on the first night of each camp.
On arrival to camp there will be an information meeting for the parents explaining the schedule and the bereavement component. You are invited to bring a photograph of your child to display during the reflection and the celebration of life.
