Connection Opportunities
Alive Alone offers different types of connection opportunities for bereaved parents with no surviving children. We offer, through the members only pages, listings of Alive Alone members who have opted in to facilitate finding a nearby member. Alive Alone sponsors workshops and sharing sessions at conferences by other organizations. Finally we have a limited number of Zoom-based groups that provide peer-to-peer support for members of Alive Alone. Please note, Alive Alone is not able to offer in-person or live support groups at this time.
Individual Connection – Members Only Area
Alive Alone has a members only area where one might connect one on one with other bereaved parents that have similar aged children or have gone through similar experiences with their children. Access to the members only area requires the Basic + Online Access membership tier, or the Basic + Online Access + Zoom membership tier. Please email us for any questions on membership. In order to partially offset the cost of providing offline and online services to members, Alive Alone charges a nominal membership cost. Alive Alone does not have paid staff, only volunteers, in order to keep our costs low. We offer a free six-month trial membership with mailed newsletters and care note(s) during the 180-day period.
Care Notes
Alive Alone has members who volunteer to write personalized Care Notes that arrive near your child’s or children’s date of birth and date of death. These are handwritten notes from another grieving parent.
(Click on the Care Note image below to enlarge)
Conferences & Workshops
Alive Alone can help you by highlighting resources that might find useful with where you are at in your grief journey. We recommend attending an in-person conference, if at all possible, as it is enormously helpful simply being around other bereaved parents. We recognize that many of these include bereaved parents with other surviving children, and that that can be difficult for those of us with no surviving children. Alive Alone works with other bereaved parents and grief organizations to offer workshops and sharing sessions focused on our questions and needs. Please keep an eye on the Events page for upcoming events. Email the webmaster to get events added.
Special Events
Alive Alone appreciates the opportunity provided to now childless parents by Bereaved Parents USA. Each year special events, speakers, workshop presenters and seminars are provided for Alive Alone parents. Please consider this as an opportunity to meet others like ourselves as we are unable to sponsor a conference ourselves at this time.
www.bereavedparentsusa.org/
Occasionally we will offer other special events, which are announced on our Facebook page.
2025 Conferences
Plan Ahead & Reserve the Dates for a Fellowship and Healing Experience with other Bereaved Parents
The Compassionate Friends – July 11th – 13th in Bellevue, Washington
Bereaved Parents USA National Gathering – July 25th – 27th at the Pittsburgh Airport Marriott Hotel in Coraopolis, Pennsylvania
Email us at alivalon@bright.net
Call for Volunteers for Care Card Writing!
Have you considered volunteering with Alive Alone, but you’re not sure how? How about joining our team of compassionate volunteers who write Care Cards to members on their child’s birth or angel dates? Volunteering for Care Cards can be a one-month commitment, or you can sign on to be a regular volunteer and be scheduled for a different month during following years.
What’s involved? Each year, 12 to 24 volunteers share the writing of Care Cards to our members. The cards have a preprinted message inside to which volunteers then add a few more sentences of their own to personalize each card. There are typically 30 to 50 cards per month, with some months having more births or deaths. Months that have a higher number of children are shared between two volunteers.
Volunteers are provided with everything necessary: the cards, the envelopes, postage stamps, and a list of names, dates, and addresses for the parents/children during a month. The time for completion of the cards is usually 8-16 hours for the month.
Why volunteer? Volunteering has been shown to provide a sense of PURPOSE. It can provide social connections and benefits to mental and physical health. Completion of a volunteer project offers ‘healing’ even if only temporary. Writing Care Cards is a special way to honor your child as you connect with other parents who are also now childless. Touching the hearts of your fellow Alive Alone parents is a beautiful act of compassion.
We hope you’ll consider joining the Alive Alone Care Card team. We would be honored to have you with us.
| Jean Campbell | Sherri Albern |
| Kyle’s mom | Kali’s mom |
| Care Card coordinator | Care Card coordinator |