East Hill offers hope for grieving

Church to host 13 sessions on how to deal with loss

By Rob Cullivan

The Gresham Outlook, Mar 28, 2008, Updated Oct 30, 2009

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Rebecca Tellez knows that our society doesn’t deal well with grief. You’re expected to go back to work soon after a loved one dies, and even well-meaning people sometimes tell you to “get over it.”

Yet grief can be accompanied by feelings of abandonment and anger, she says, which can take months, even years to resolve.

“Grief is just like a fingerprint,” Tellez, 61, says, noting she lost one brother when he was 25 and another when he was 33. “It’s unique to each individual.”

To help people deal with grief, East Hill Church, 701 N. Main Ave., is offering GriefShare, a 13-week course to help you through the grieving process, Tellez says. Each session runs from 6:15 to 8 p.m. in Room A-7, and the registration fee of $15 covers the cost of materials used, she adds. The series begins Thursday, April 3.

GriefShare uses a series of videos to prompt discussion and reflection among participants, she says. For example, Session 1 uses “Living With Grief,” which addresses such questions as why participants shouldn’t be ashamed of their grief and why they shouldn’t rush their healing.

Tellez adds that GriefShare, which was developed by Church Initiative, a ministry based in Wake Forest, N.C., is Christ-centered. For some people, this can be a turn-off, she says, but for others, especially those who may have been away from church for a while, it can be a chance to reconnect with God.

On that note, GriefShare acknowledges that not everyone who loses a loved one is going to be a big fan of God.

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