Grief support programs for children and teens

The Healing Place Mission Statement

The History of The Healing Place

The development of The Healing Place began in March 2001, when the founding members of The Healing Place, watched a 20/20 documentary of The Dougy Center, The National Center for Grieving Children and Families located in Portland, Oregon. After viewing the video, the founding members organized a meeting of those in Colbert, Lauderdale and Franklin counties who were providing grief support services. The purpose of the meeting was to learn how the needs of grieving children and families were being met in this area. It was determined that grieving children and families were "falling through the cracks" and there was a need for a facility to be established to meet the unmet needs of grieving children and families.

During the fall of 2001, a Board of Directors was established and began meeting and planning to develop the grief center. The Healing Place: A Center for Loss & Change was incorporated on September 27, 2001. The next task involved finding a location for The Healing Place. Jackie and Connie Scogin offered to build the facility in memory of his father on an acre of his land in Tuscumbia. The Board selected the house plan and upon completions of the facility in October of 2001, the Board signed the lease agreement.

The Board hired the director in November 2001 to work on modeling the program after The Dougy Center. The Healing Place opened on January 8, 2002 and the first group was held on January 22, 2002. The Healing Place received non-profit 501 (c)(3) status in May 2002.