Children Helping Children with Grief: The Story of The Dougy Center for Grieving Children and Their Families

In 1982, Beverly Chappell met Dougy Turno, a young boy suffering from an inoperable brain tumor. Dougy’s wisdom, compassion, and thirst for life far exceeded his 13 years. His death inspired Bev, a registered nurse working in the area of death and dying, to start support groups for grieving children. At the time, medical and psychological professionals did not widely acknowledge that children grieve. Undaunted, and with the help of her mentor, Dr. Elisabeth Kubler-Ross, Bev founded The Dougy …