Enter Pathways of Hope Grief Support Services of Ohio's Hospice of Dayton.
In addition to individual, family and school-based counseling services, Pathways of Hope offers Camp Pathways -- a unique, overnight weekend camp experience that provides a way for grieving children and teens to get the support they need in an environment that is safe, nurturing and fun.
“I don’t feel so alone anymore”
“This June will mark the 25th year for Camp Pathways,” said Jonathan Haag, camp director. “Over that time, we’ve helped more than one thousand kids in the Dayton area.”
Just like traditional summer camps, Camp Pathways lends itself to new friendships and experiences through fun outdoor activities such as swimming, ropes course, climbing wall, arts and crafts, and campfires. In addition, Camp Pathways provides group support time with grief activities and a memorial service to honor the memory of lost loved ones -- all led by professional grief counselors and trained volunteers.
“A lot of bonding and cohesion among the kids goes on during the camp,” explained Haag. “They are surrounded by others who are in the same boat as they are and are feeling similar pain. What I hear most often as kids leave the camp is, ‘I don’t feel so alone anymore.’”
Haag said one thing that makes Camp Pathways so unique is their effort to keep a one-to-one or two-to-one adult volunteer-to-child ratio.
Two of those volunteers are John Siehl and his daughter, Jenny Siehl.
Healing through helping
In 1992, after losing his wife to a very aggressive cancer, John Siehl found himself at a loss for how to help his two teenage children who were seriously struggling with the death of their mother.
“It was really a tough time,” recalled John. “I was struggling, myself, and my kids were at a point in their lives where they were still figuring out who they were. Then they had to deal with losing and being forever without their mother. I had no idea how to help them.”
A year after his wife’s death, while enrolled in a master’s degree program in counseling at the University of Dayton, John learned about Camp Pathways, then in its second year. He signed on as an adult volunteer or “buddy,” as they’re called. He has returned every year since, recruiting his daughter along the way.
“After mom died, I spent lots of nights crying with my dad. He would hug me and say that we’d be OK,” remembered Jenny. “Then he got involved with the camp and told me about it. It sounded like something I would want to help with.”
Like her father, Jenny went on to earn her master’s degree in counseling. She is now a group leader with the camp and has been a volunteer there for the last 23 years.
“All of the sharing that goes on during camp always stirs up emotions for Dad and me,” said Jenny. Since she knows exactly what these children are feeling, “It’s rewarding just knowing that I can give a child a little bit of hope.”
Camp Pathways 2017 will be held Friday, June 23, through Sunday, June 25, at Camp Joy Outdoor Education Center. Click here for more information about Camp Pathways, or you can call (937) 258-4991.