Marny Williams-Balodis on Developmental Milestones and Children’s Grief
“My son would ask me multiple times a day, where’s Daddy, when’s he coming home? And every time he asked that question and you have to answer that he’s not coming home, that he’s died, it’s gut-wrenching for us parents.”
— Marny Williams-Balodis
I had such a great discussion with Marny Williams-Balodis for this episode. Marny is a widowed parent, and is the cofounder and executive director of Hummingbird Centre for Hope in the Toronto, Canada, area.
Some topics Marny and I discuss include:
Getting through the first year as a widowed parent of a 3-year-old and 3-month-old;
Needing to explain to her 3-year-old over and over that his dad died, and what that meant;
Kids needing to grieve again and again as they move through developmental milestones;
How kids’ understanding of loss grows and changes over the years;
Taking her daughter on a “trip to meet her dead dad;”
Why she didn’t take both kids on the same trip;
Why she started Hummingbird Centre for Hope; and
Hummingbird’s programs for widowed parents.
I hope you enjoy my discussion with Marny Williams-Balodis.
Links & resources for this episode
Hummingbird Centre for Hope (Ontario, Canada)
Hummingbird’s virtual groups
Marny on episode 59
The Great Canadian Woman, with a chapter by Marny
More links for listeners
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