LOSING a loved one can be a trying time, but a new bereavement support group hopes to help ease the pain.
St Catherine's Hospice has teamed up with three Oxted churches to create a group where people can talk about their loss.
Nine volunteers from the three churches – Oxted United Reformed Church, St Mary's and All Saint's – have been trained to help people through bereavement.
Mary Cook is one of the volunteers from St Mary's.
She told the Mirror: "I decided to volunteer because it can be a very hard time for people and having lost someone in the past, I realised that there is not always someone to talk to.
"It is important that people do not ever feel alone and know that we are there to support them.
"I think there are a lot of people hurting who need to talk through their feelings."
The Oxted Bereavement Support Group was started on January 24, based at the Oxted United Reformed Church in Bluehouse Lane.
Reverend David Skitt said: "It is a place for people to come together in comfort, knowing that there will be others there who have suffered a bereavement recently.
"Losing a loved one can be really hard and our aim is to work hard to make this horrible time more bearable.
"It is not a formal counselling session or anything, it is just a way for people to talk to one another and enjoy a coffee and cake."
Every second and fourth Thursday of the month, between 1 and 3pm, residents can drop in to the United Reformed Church. Mr Skitt said the group was non-religious, adding: "I think this service could be of great value to those who have lost a loved one."
Meanwhile St Catherine's is providing ongoing support to the volunteers.
Karen Norman, patient and family support team manager at the hospice, said: "We already help family, friends and loved ones of patients who have died whilst under the care of the hospice, but this project enables us to widen our support throughout the community.
"We also hope to encourage people who are perhaps finding it difficult to socialise following their bereavement, to do so within a safe environment.
"Feedback from the bereavement support group in Crawley shows that meeting people in similar situations, sharing feelings and experiences, relieves the feeling of being alone.
"By working with – and for – the community we serve, we are able to provide informal bereavement support to both St Catherine's Hospice clients and members of the community – which would not have been viable on our own."
For further information, call Annette Phillips at St Catherine's Hospice on 01293 447343.
