When families make that first phone call to us at Valerie’s House, it takes a great deal of courage. Their lives have been shattered and completely turned upside down. For one of our moms, Claire, it was no different.

Claire and her sons playing basketball at group night

When Claire’s husband came home from work not feeling well one Friday afternoon and tested positive for Covid, nothing could have prepared her for the traumatic experience of driving him to the hospital that Sunday, just two days later, and not returning home with him. Their close-knit family of four lost their rock that day. Having been married for 11 years, Claire lost the love of her life and best friend, and her two sons lost their superhero daddy. The community, even though they were new to the area, surrounded them with love and support. Claire’s family moved to Naples in April of 2021, and her husband died in January 2022. All of their family was back in Miami, and while she considered moving back, she knew she needed to provide stability for her boys. They were immersed in school, with wonderful teachers and friends and after-school sports activities, and she didn’t want to uproot them. Going through the hardest experience of her life, she also made the difficult decision to stay in Naples…a decision which made her, in her words, “all by myself.” Claire says that a hundred people must have told her, “You have to call Valerie’s House,” so she did. She says that Valerie’s House is the one place where she doesn’t feel all by herself. It’s the one place where people understand what she is feeling and going through. Claire says, “Seeing people who are functioning and able to rise and face whatever is in front of them has been inspirational for me.” Courage is contagious.

While grieving the loss of her husband and becoming a single mom overnight, Claire constantly worries about her sons and how they are processing and handling everything. Bringing them to Valerie’s House has given her a peace of mind that they all have a special place to share their feelings openly and honestly. She says that they don’t feel judged and know they can talk about their worries and concerns. Claire also expresses that the kids don’t want to “make her sad” and open up more freely at Valerie’s House in their own special age groups. She feels the same about her caregiver group, surrounded by other moms, dads, grandparents, and others who are caring for children who are grieving.

“Knowing the kids are getting help at Valerie’s House has been super helpful because they are my number one priority, and I want them to be ok, and I know it’s going to take time,” says Claire, “It’s so hard. I hadn’t seen my younger son cry until we went to Valerie’s House. I know he loved his dad. I was worried about that. The fact that he was able to let it out was so good. He loves going to Valerie’s House.”

Claire also says that the fun activities are really nice when everything else feels heavy all the time. She expresses that Valerie’s House is the one place in the community where she and her kids can go and be treated as “normal.”

As Claire picks up the pieces from this life-shattering loss and begins to rebuild, she shares with us, “We are still living. And I need to show my kids life goes on. Valerie’s House has done so much for us. They have all been hugely helpful.”

Thousands of children in Collier County like Claire’s sons will experience a life-altering loss this year. Their caregivers, whether moms, dads, grandparents, aunts, uncles, friends, or foster parents will worry and wonder where to turn to get help for their grieving children. Valerie’s House will be here. We will continue to expand our reach, services, and arms to ensure that no one has to navigate their heart-breaking grief journey alone.