Welcome To Bereaved Through Suicide Support Group
When was the group established?
The bereaved Through Suicide Support Group Inc. was established in 1986. It is thought this is the earliest group for those bereaved by suicide in Australia.
How and Why?
The Group is the initiative of Mr Harold Jones and Miss Veronica (Roni) Honour, two bereavement educators who were running classes for a funeral service in Adelaide, South Australia. Throughout the early 1980s, a period of increasing sensitivity in Australia to the need for community aid, they noticed there were a number of people bereaved through suicide in their classes, who were struggling with issues unique to a suicide bereavement and for whom there was no specific community support.The structure of the Group was based on the model of Solace Inc., the successful nation-wide support group for widows and widowers. A professional advisory council of relevant local professionals was set up to offer advice about establishing and running the group as well as to provide advocacy among the local services and community. The first Professional Advisory Council included a psychiatrist, a GP, a senior Sergeant at Coroner's Office, a funeral director and a bereavement educator. Soon after this were added a social worker, an accountant and an advertising professional.
Following a successful public meeting to solicit the general support among the bereaved and service providers, the group was established and incorporated as a registered charity by the Australian Taxation Office.
For Whom?
Particular care was taken in selecting the words 'bereaved' and 'suicide' for the title as it was felt important that the title should be specific to those for whom the group was intended . Elsewhere and especially in the US the term 'survivor' is taken to apply to the bereaved, but in Australia it was felt this term could equally apply to those who had survived a suicide attempt. Helping those who had attempted suicide was not within the skill range or the purpose of the group and this distinction was important.Only persons bereaved by suicide, and their accompanying support people, were eligible to attend the group or work as volunteer support workers for the group. However all suicide-bereaved, irrespective of their relationship to the deceased person be it distant relative friend, partner or colleague, were welcome.
Purpose of the Group
The group was established with following aims:• Give support and care to those grieving the loss of someone through suicide;
• Provide an understanding of the grief process;
• Help with healing and recovery; and
• Increase the understanding of suicide grief in the community through education and research.
Main activities of the group
• Regular support meetings held in an open format that bereaved people could enter and leave the group as they wished with no termination date; • A 24 hour/day telephone support service provided by the support workers;• Community meetings and grief education were offered to rural communities, provided for by support workers;
• The running of workshops and seminars for the purpose of raising awareness, providing education, and fund raising;
• Liaising between the professional loss and grief service providers and the bereaved.
Roles within the group
There were various levels of support within the structure of the group:• Support workers, who were people bereaved by suicide and who had undergone bereavement education training, provided most of the services to the group.
• A counsellor, usually a member of the Professional Advisory Council, provided backup for group meetings either in person or via phone.
• The Professional Advisory Council advised on matters such as safety and facilitation of group meetings, publicity, finance and advocacy.
• An elected committee of bereaved members was responsible for the group's activities, AGM and liaison with the Professional Advisory Council at regular intervals.
• A Chairperson, elected at the AGM, managed the committee.
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Today
May I
Smile
With
My
Heart.