The HAP Foundation | Grief workshop at TFD

The HAP Foundation is a nonprofit organization that provides guidance, direction, and grief support for all ages.

The Grief Workshop, held at The Firehouse Dream with the HAP Foundation, gave community members a safe space to talk about grief, learn about the different stages, and understand the emotions one may be feeling during these stages. Participants shared, reflected, and created memory jars as a way to cope and honor their people and moments in their lives. They also learned that grief can show up in many different ways, and everyone was encouraged to honor their own experiences. One of the Community Health Workers, Kaitlyn Macias, also shared resources, including information about their grief circles to support our community.

PMSA MHC | Grief Workshop Pt 1 & 2

At PMSA’s Mental Health Club, we welcomed Kaitlyn Macias, who is part of the HAP Foundation. She shared valuable resources on grieving and coping. She guided the students in identifying ways to support themselves and others through loss. Additionally, offering tools and sources of support for navigating difficult emotions. As part of the session, students created grief jars that were about someone they had lost. They wrote down the memories they shared with them and placed it in the grief jars.

Mental Health Giveaway | Walther Christian Academy

We are excited to share that we had another giveaway of our Mental Health Kits at Walther Christian Academy. 74 Mental Health kits were given away, and the students were happy to look into their kits and see all the items. Other students came up asking about our programming, our workshops, and how they could get involved.

Thank you to Walther Christian Academy for having us and allowing us to give out more Mental Health Kits for the youth!

Community Yoga

This week’s community session was yoga, led by Daisa Key, a yoga instructor who previously led multiple yoga sessions in our community. Dasia guided the participants through a mix of stretches and grounding poses. There were also quiet moments on the mats, with calming music playing in the background. Daisa gave everyone space to pause and lie back.

Big thanks to Dasia for holding the space with so much care and being attentive to each participant.

Community Circle | September

This community circle was the first session for our Fall 25 programming season! Each new member was able to create a meaningful name tag to represent their identity. Then, community members moved toward circle where they first got to know each other through a competitive game. After, each person shared their talking piece. This piece is inspired on their own cultural practices. The talking piece is then placed into the middle of the circle and used later to center everyone’s focus on the person currently sharing. Thank you to our Proviso neighbors who showed up this evening!

This program is partially supported by a grant from the Illinois Arts Council.