We are fortunate to have so many wonderful professionals and groups, many of which are designed around the relationship and circumstances of the loss. For example, experiencing the death of an elderly parent is very different from the impact of losing a young child, or a sudden, tragic death from that of a prolonged illness. Listed below are several local agencies, facilitators, and groups that may be of help.
Circle of Life Hospice
Circle of Life Hospice staffs a bereavement team comprised of trained professionals who support those struggling with grief and loss. They offer a variety of support groups, grief classes, and workshops to assist those of various circumstances and ages that have experienced a significant loss. For more information visit their website or Bereavement Calendar.
Center for Loss & Life Transition
Center for Loss & Life Transition is led by grief counselor and educator Dr. Alan Wolfelt, and is an organization dedicated to helping people who are grieving and those who care for them. They offer a number of online resources, books, and understanding. We invite you to explore their website or call 970-226-6050 for more information.
Grief Share
Grief Share is a national program but is facilitated locally at various churches throughout the area. GriefShare seminars and support groups are led by people who understand what you are going through and want to help. You’ll gain access to valuable GriefShare resources to help you recover from your loss and look forward to rebuilding your life. To find a local group and location click here.
NWA Support Group for Suicide Loss Survivors
NWA Support Group for Suicide Loss Survivors offers an ongoing group setting hosted by Ozark Outreach to give and receive support from others who share surviving the difficult loss of suicide. The group meets at throughout the year on the second Tuesday of each month from 6:30 p.m. to 8 p.m. at the Rogers Public Library, 1211 S Dixieland Road. Visit the website or call 479-366-2272 or 479-763-2866 for more information and to ensure the group is still active and confirm both meeting times and location.
Survivors of Suicide NWA Crisis Center
614 East Emma Avenue, Suite 213, Springdale, AR 72764
(479) 756-1995 | Meetings per Month: Two | Fee: None | Call Emily for meeting details.
Share Pregnancy & Infant Loss Support
Share Pregnancy & Infant Loss Support is a community for anyone who experiences the tragic death of a baby. They serve parents, grandparents, siblings, and others in the family unit, as well as the professionals who care for grieving families. Share is a national organization with over 75 chapters in 29 states. Services include bed-side companions, phone support, face-to-face support group meetings, resource packets, private online communities, and so much more. Visit their website for more information and to find a local chapter.
Heritage Funeral Home also hosts an annual Holiday Remembrance Service for the families we serve throughout the year. Following the death of someone loved, many “firsts” are very difficult such as the first birthdays, anniversaries, and including the holidays. This program is designed to give hope and encouragement during the season and begins with us sending each family an invitation to the event and a booklet entitled Getting Through The Holidays When You’ve Lost A Loved One just prior to Thanksgiving. The program is then scheduled in early December and hosted at our chapel with a guest speaker, special music, good food, and even the gift of a keepsake ornament. Each year we receive wonderful feedback from those who attend.
- A Time to Grieve: Meditations for Healing After the Death of a Loved One – Staudacher, Carol
- Living When a Loved One Has Died – Grollman, Earl A.
- I Wasn’t Ready to Say Goodbye – Noel, Brook
- Empty Arms: Coping after Miscarriage, Stillbirth and Infant Death – Isle, Sherokee
- Don’t Take My Grief Away From Me – Manning, Doug
- Parenting through Crisis: Helping Kids in Times of Loss, Grief, and Change – Coloroso, Barbara
- Losing a Parent: Passage to a New Way of Living – Dennedy, Alexandra
- Healing After the Suicide of a Loved One – Smolin, Ann
- Talking about Death: A Dialogue Between Parent and Child – Grollman, Earl A.
- When the Bough Breaks: Forever After Death of a Son or Daughter – Bernstein, Judith R.
- After the Death of a Child: Living with Loss Through the Years – Finkbeiner, Ann K.
- The Bereaved Parent – Schiff, Harriet Sarnoff
- Companion to My Tears: Working Through the Process of Bereavement – Drucker, Margaret Anne Roberts
- A Grief Observed – Lewis, C. S.
- Tear Soup – Schweilber, Pat
- Beyond Goodbye – Williams, Sherry L.
- Living with Grief: Before and After the Death – Doka, Kenneth J.
- Renewing Your Spirit: A Guide for Holidays and Special Days – Williams, Sherry L.
- Talking About Death Won’t Kill You – Morris, Virginia
- When We Remember; Comfort and Inspiration in Time of Sorrow – Compilation
- Living When a Loved One Has Died – Earl A. Grollman
- Grieving the Loss Of Someone You Love – Mitsch & Brookside
- Finding Hope In Times Of Grief – Parrish, Preston & Glenda
- Living With Grief; Diversity and End-Of-Life Care – Hospice Foundation of America
- Bear Hugs and Merry-Go-Rounds – Circle of Life Hospice
- Lifting The Veil Of Sorrow – Auran, Connie
- The Gift Of Significance – Doug Manning
Social Security has paid a small death benefit of $255 for many years. This benefit was originally paid to the next of kin. However, in the early 1990’s this benefit was modified in that it is now paid only to a surviving spouse or a dependent, minor child.
We notify Social Security on behalf of the family as soon as possible to first protect the decedent’s number, secondly to stop any overpayments from Social Security that would later have to be refunded, and thirdly to assist the survivors to start the process of receiving potential benefits from the decedent.
More detailed information is available at www.ssa.gov, or you can download a helpful brochure here.
Veteran’s Administration offers several potential benefits to survivors of honorably discharged veterans. Survivors of a deceased veteran who received monthly disability or a pension may qualify to receive a V.A. Burial Benefit of some amount depending on their percentage of disability, type of funeral selected, and the place where death occurred. We stand ready to assists you family with the application and submission of the necessary documents. We also help in procuring a burial flag and/or military grave marker (several styles to choose from) should they be desired.
We also work in concert with the National Cemetery Administration to assist survivors of veterans wishing interment in a national cemetery, such as the one we are fortunate to have in Fayetteville. The cemetery lot, grave opening and closing, concrete outer burial container, and monument are provided at no cost to the family of any honorably discharged, war or peace time, veteran. The spouse and/or a permanently disabled, dependent child is also eligible for burial with the veteran.
More detailed information is available at www.va.gov
We are a proud member of the Regional National Cemetery Improvement Corporation, or RNCIC, a local group of veterans and citizens that diligently raise funds to acquire land adjacent to Fayetteville National Cemetery. This land is then granted to the National Cemetery Administration for expansion and improvement of the cemetery.
To learn more or make a donation please visit rncic.com.
Heritage Funeral Home is conveniently located adjacent to several hotels and restaurants. We are proud to partner with two the hotel properties below that offer special, discounted rates to relatives and friends needing accommodations while attending a funeral.
