A national support group for bereaved parents and siblings is to hold a meeting in Galway. Championed by Catherine Colleran, Anam Cara aims to provide support and understanding to families who, like themselves, have lost a son or daughter.

Almost 2,000 families lost a child during 2004 through a series of different and tragic circumstances including illness, accidents and sudden death. In 2006,1,700 families lost a child and for the first quarter of 2007 that figure was 439 deaths to the end of March 2007, the last available data. In total, over the past five years, 9,406 families lost a child.

Anam Cara, an old Gaelic phrase, is translated as 'Soul Friend', the person who truly understands you. The group felt there is comfort in knowing that you are not alone, others are also dealing with a similar loss.

"Regardless of whether a child died recently or decades ago, or how old they were, for each of us the loss has been a unique and personal experience. For some it was expected, for others it was sudden but what connects us all is the devastating sense of loss we experience. With each other we have found a level of support and understanding that we feel we can now offer to other parents if such a tragic event was to occur," said Catherine Colleran.

The group works to bring together bereaved families to support and comfort each other and assist in helping families to 'journey on' after the death of their child. They offer parents and siblings the opportunity to share their feelings and experiences and to learn ways of coping. They provide a safe forum where parents can talk freely about their child to people who not only understand fully, but have felt all those similar feelings themselves. They also provide guidance and encouragement to extended family and friends as to how they can best support their loved ones.

The meeting will take place at the Carlton Shearwater Hotel, Ballinasloe on Saturday 23 February at 11am.

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