Acquisition International - Non-Profit Organisation Awards 2023 29 lizabeth Boisson, President and Co-Founder of Helping Parents Heal, created the organisation in 2009 following the passing of her son Morgan during a university exchange trip to Nanjing, China. He had travelled to the Base Camp of Mount Everest in Tibet, where he suffered from severe altitude sickness. Elizabeth felt what she describes as a deep connection with Morgan. Something she now knows was an event known as a ‘shared death experience’, during which she felt her son hug her, and let her know that he was alright. This was the beginning of a spiritual journey for Elizabeth, leading to the creation of her current NPO. And as if that experience alone wasn’t enough of a grounding, it was actually the second time Elizabeth had lost a child. Her daughter, Chelsea, passed prior to Morgan, in 1991 when she was only 2 days old. It is clear why it was so important to Elizabeth to reach out to other bereaved parents, and try to help them, which is exactly what Helping Parents Heal does for so many. The recent COVID-19 pandemic was a disruptive factor for the organisation however, presenting a major challenge for its affiliate groups in the United States and worldwide. The way that HPH overcame this difficulty was to immediately switch away from in-person sessions to Zoom meetings, allowing the organisation to still reach as many families in need as possible. It is now moving back to in-person meetings, but continues to have a significant Zoom presence as well. Despite the obvious downsides accompanying the pandemic, this transition to Zoom could be seen as a positive step for Helping Parents Heal. For one thing, as a result of the Zoom meetings that took place during Covid, almost 500 interviews of Grief and Afterlife Communities experts were made available on the Helping Parents Heal YouTube channel and its website. The company mission of HPH is to assist bereaved parents through support and resources. It aspires to help individuals become what it calls Shining Light Parents, meaning they have achieved a shift from a state of emotional heaviness to hopefulness and peace of mind. HPH goes a step beyond groups with a similar ethos because it allows for open discussion of spiritual experiences and afterlife evidence in a non-dogmatic way. It welcomes everyone regardless of their religious or non-religious background, and encourages open dialogue. The organisation is staffed by volunteers, with 9 board members and 165 affiliate group leaders throughout the United States, Canada, Mexico, Brazil, the UK, South Africa, India, Australia, and New Zealand. It also has a group of 33 Caring Listeners who are available throughout the world. These Caring Listeners have walked the healing E path a little further, and now extend their hands back to other bereaved parents, to help pull them forwards. Nine different languages are covered by the Caring Listeners, and all team members are parents who have experienced the passing of one or more children. All are compassionate, open-minded, and excellent listeners. Helping Parents Heal holds a conference every 2 years, organised by Irene Vouvalides, the Chair and Vice President. These feature expert presenters from the Grief and Afterlife Communities. The last conference took place in 2022, hosted 900 parents and siblings, and 44 presenters who travelled from around the world to attend. HPH gave away 110 scholarships for the conference, and hopes even more parents will attend the next one in 2024. The occasion is an uplifting, healing event, as can be seen via this video link: https:// youtu.be/K2QsrxJAiow. What makes Helping Parents Heal different from other support groups is its belief in a connection with children who have passed on to the other side. It celebrates this connection, and tries to improve it through meditation, sound healing, reiki, yoga, and other healing modalities. Moreover, unlike most support groups, it believes it is possible to heal from the passing of a child, and that our children want us to be happy and experience joy again. ‘Film producer Craig MacMahon featured twenty of the Helping Parents Heal members in a documentary entitled Life to Afterlife: Mom, Can You Hear Me? These same parents came together to write a book about how they moved forward and healed. It is called Life to Afterlife - Helping Parents Heal, the Book, and is available on Amazon. Helping Parents Heal has been honoured in the Non-Profit Organisation Awards as the Most Nurturing Bereaved Parents Support NPO 2023 – USA. It is a hugely deserving recipient of this prestigious title, and deserves to continue onwards and upwards with its amazing caring and sympathetic charitable efforts. Helping Parents Heal is a non-profit organisation dedicated to assisting bereaved parents. It aims to help them shift their mindsets from states of emotional heaviness to ones of hopefulness and greater peace of mind. It is welcoming to all, regardless of either religious or non-religious backgrounds. Most Nurturing Bereaved Parents Support NPO 2023 - USA Company: Helping Parents Heal Web Address: www.helpingparentsheal.org/ Contact Name: Elizabeth Boisson Apr23624
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