A Journey to New Beginnings
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Who We Are
A Pathway From Grief is a Chicago-based 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization providing trauma-informed, non-clinical education, grief support, and coaching to individuals, families, and communities.
Our work begins with an understanding that grief extends beyond the death of a loved one. Loss, change, and other life experiences can affect us in ways we may not always recognize. These experiences may influence how we communicate, build relationships, make decisions, and respond to life's challenges.
We are also shaped by what we learn, observe, and carry with us throughout our lives. Some of those lessons serve us well. Others may continue to show up simply because they have become familiar.
Through education, meaningful conversations, practical learning experiences, and coaching, we help people better understand what may be influencing them and provide tools to support intentional choices and positive change.
Because grief is where our story began, understanding our work begins with understanding grief differently.
Awareness Creates Choice.
Choice Creates Change.
Change Creates Impact.
A Different Understanding of Grief
Grief is most often associated with the death of someone we love, but loss and change can take many forms—a relationship, health or independence, financial security, an opportunity, an expectation, or the future we once imagined.
Although these experiences are different, they can leave us wanting or longing for something that is no longer accessible to us.
We view grief as a container. Within that container may be sadness, anger, disappointment, fear, and many other emotions. Those emotions are what we may experience within grief, but they are not grief itself.
We believe grief is simply wanting what you no longer have access to.
We also believe grief is intended to be a journey with an end destination—not a permanent way of living. We describe that end destination as becoming grief-free.
Becoming grief-free means reaching a place of acceptance where we are no longer living in the wanting or longing for what we no longer have access to. It does not mean forgetting someone we love or erasing what we experienced.
To support that journey, we developed:
From Grief → Grace → Gratitude
Grief — recognizing what has been lost, changed, or is no longer accessible.
Grace — extending understanding and less judgment to ourselves and others as we consider what was known, needed, or understood at the time.
Gratitude — becoming complete with what was and reaching acceptance. It does not mean being grateful for the loss.
For some, acceptance may also bring meaning or purpose. For others, acceptance itself may be enough.
Mission
A Pathway From Grief provides trauma-informed, non-clinical education, grief support, and coaching to help individuals, families, and communities understand how grief, life experiences, and learned patterns may influence their lives, while providing tools to support intentional choices and positive change.
Vision
A future where families are intentional about what they carry forward, what they change, and what they pass on to the next generation.
Our Guiding Philosophy
Awareness Creates Choice.
Choice Creates Change.
Change Creates Impact.
