It's our 6th Birthday!
Happy 6th birthday to us! Later this month we celebrate the anniversary of receiving our 501c3 status and becoming an officially recognized nonprofit organization. What an awesome ride these 6 years have been.
A Haven started as a dream in the minds of our cofounders – to provide grief support for kids who currently had no other accessible option after someone had died. Our cofounders wondered, though, how could we possibly support kids well if we weren’t also supporting their grownups?
It was with that question in mind that A Haven began to take shape.
Grief support services in the heart of underserved Chester County.
Groups that were family centered.
A place where kids and grown ups could learn to grieve together.
Where they could look around a room and see other families like theirs.
Where they could begin to build their own extended community of support.
An organization that could transform the whole county, one family at a time, into a place in which every individual feels comfortable rising up behind a grieving family after someone has died.
As A Haven has grown, our family centered approach has grown, too, both onsite and beyond the walls of our Exton Home. We have expanded our vision for providing grief support. Our crew of people has blossomed into the largest board, staff, and volunteer teams in our history. This dedicated group of people show up wholeheartedly to stand in the gap with grieving families and enrich A Haven’s culture and services. Many of our team come as a part of remembering their own people who have died; we work hard to care for them and to remember their loved ones well.
We see schools as an extension of family. How can we fully care for grieving students if we’re not turning towards the teachers and school staff who spend so much time with them? Our school based services now include not only support groups for students, but also grief support and supportive education for school staff. Our relationships and collaborations with school counselors have deepened and we delight in any chance we get to celebrate them. We are humbled and motivated by the work they do on behalf of their students and colleagues. We are grateful for the space they allow us to hold in their buildings.
The community at large has become a part of our extended family as awareness of our mission and services has grown and supporters have flocked to the nest. This year for the first time our annual Give Grief Hope fundraising campaign brought in over $100,000 in donations from people and businesses all around Chester County. People who believe in the work we are doing and want to be a part of ensuring that we can provide it at no cost.
6 years in, it feels pretty good to know that the family centered approach that is at the heart of our origin story is the piece that continues to light our path for growth.
We’re grateful to you for being a part of the A Haven family…now go enjoy a piece of birthday cake for us!