Healing Hearts

Healing Hearts is a three-session grief program designed to give children ages 8 to 12 an opportunity to interact with other children their age who have experienced the loss of a loved one. Through play, stories, games, songs, talking about feelings, art and conversations with our bunny puppet named “Hamilton”, children find a comfortable place to express their thoughts and feelings.

This program is offered at no cost to the families and open to any child in the community. Pre-registration is required to ensure we have enough supplies and staff for the children attending.

All sessions take place at Hamilton’s Funeral Home, 605 Lyon Street, Des Moines.

Upcoming program:

Summer 2024

To register for this program:

Register Online for Healing Hearts

Additional Resources

-Printable Handouts about talking to and supporting grieving children

-Latest episode of “The Widowed Parent Podcast” about supporting grieving children

-National Alliance for Children’s Grief: GriefTalk Resource Guides

  • Talking to children about death and dying
  • Talking to a child or teen to let them know someone has died
  • Talking about end-of-life memorials and rituals
  • Talking about grieving as a family