WinterSpring program offers sharing, learning, and healing
Every morning someone wakes up in the Rogue Valley with an ache inside because a loved one has died. Sometimes people run from that ache. Sometimes they meet it heart first. People overwhelmed by loss often don’t believe healing is possible. But they don’t have to wait until the pain gets unbearable to call WinterSpring.
WinterSpring creates a safe and confidential environment for sharing, learning, and healing through grief. Through shared stories, connection to other grievers, and tools for healthy grieving, we can all find healing for our losses.
Our team offers compassionate phone support, assessment, group grief support, resources, and referrals using the companioning model of grief support developed by Dr. Alan Wolfelt. WinterSpring also offers grief education for organizations and individuals interested in creating understanding about and support for grief.
WinterSpring began in 1989 as a response to meet the unmet needs of those experiencing grief and not receiving support in Jackson County. It was started by four nurses who wanted to provide more for their patients. The aim was to provide a safe environment for children, teens, and adults to fully mourn their loss with compassionate and trained volunteers to guide and support them.
What to expect when you call
It can be challenging to seek support during grief. WinterSpring can help. Call us at 541-552-0620, and a trained staff member will answer or return your call within three business days. Please allow 15-30 minutes for our initial conversation with you about your grief experience. We will ask detailed questions about the nature of your loss as well as gathering demographic information. We will help you decide if joining one of our grief groups is the safest and most helpful approach to healing for you at this time or if we can provide other support.
What we offer
Support Groups
Bereavement support groups typically run 6 to 8 weeks and guide participants through the shadowlands of grief to uncover their own inner resources and resilience. Support groups are designed to provide information about the natural trajectory of grief, as well as emotions that can seem chaotic and unrelenting. Facilitators provide tools to develop self-understanding in a sacred space for sharing, healing, and transformation to occur. Participants join groups as they start and can rejoin groups as often as they need. To register for groups, call 541-552-0620 or email winterspring@laclinicahealth.org. WinterSpring staff will call to answer questions, offer support, and complete group registration. See a full list of current groups and classes below.
Youth Programs
WinterSpring offers facilitated peer support groups for children and teens in local schools. If you are an educator, school counselor, or school administrator and are interested in a WinterSpring group at your school, call 541-552-0620 or email winterspring@laclinicahealth.org. to learn more. If you are the parent or caregiver of a grieving child, please reach out and let us know what support you need. We also offer a children’s group for grieving children 6-12 and accompanying adults.
Grief Education
WinterSpring offers:
- Trainings for educators and administrators to better support grieving children in the classrooms
- Trainings for individuals interested in learning how to better support those who are grieving in their community
- Education for supporting grief and loss in the workplace
- Supportive education for clubs, teams, and other organizations that have felt the impact of loss and want to learn how to support each other
Resources and Support
Sometimes, a group is not the best fit for where you are on the grief journey. In these cases, we offer:
- A list of counselors with specific grief-related training and experience. We will help guide you through finding support.
- Written materials and online support
- Grief classes to prepare you for a group experience
Our groups and classes
Our groups and classes are all free. They’re offered online or in person at La Clinica Center for Learning and Innovation, 931 Chevy Way, Medford, unless otherwise noted. Please call for dates and times.
Bereaved Parents Group
This 8-week group gives people grieving a child of any age a safe place to explore and express their intense pain and loss. Participants have a chance to receive the unmatched support of being with others who have also lost a child.
Format: In person
Language: English
Children’s Program
The WinterSpring Children’s Program offers support and education to children ages 6-12 and their adults. Children meet every two weeks with our experienced team of companions to learn about the grieving process and share their grief with their peers. They will memorialize their loved ones and learn skills that will help them help themselves and others throughout their lives. Adults have the option to meet in their own group to support each other in shared grief. They can learn about the grief processes of children and about healthy grieving practices. With these skills, they can support themselves and their children through the challenges that grief brings.
Format: In person
Language: English
Growth and Resilience in a Changing World
This 6- to 8-week group gives members the chance to be with others and explore the pain, loss, and emotional intensity of climate uncertainty. It offers transformative support, resources and practices to people facing these issues. Please note: participants must complete a registration packet to participate in the group.
Format: Online
Language: English
Navigating the Stormy Seas of Grief
This series of classes covers the natural spiral process of grief, healthy mourning practices, the importance of ritual and ceremony and dispelling myths, and misconceptions about grief in our society. Learn to identify your own unique mourning needs and the best ways to care for yourself, develop resilience, and have compassion for yourself on the journey. The classes include experiential exercises and question and answer sessions. You can engage as much or as little as you are comfortable.
Format: Online
Language: English
Seasons of Grief
This in-person group begins in November and goes through early January to give people a chance to be with other grieving people through the winter holidays. The weekly meetings offer a safe place to receive support and find resilience during an extra challenging time of year.
Format: In person
Language: English
Spouse and Partner Loss Group
This 8-week group provides in-person support to people who have lost a partner or spouse. Participants get the time and space they need to be with and express their pain and grief, share memories, and form lasting bonds with others who understand.
Format: In person
Language: English
Suicide Loss Survivors Group
This 6- to 8-week group gives people grieving the suicide death of a loved one a safe place to express the unique and often complicated feelings about these losses. The weekly meetings offer participants a chance to connect with others who can relate to all the complex emotions that can accompany this sensitive and often misunderstood kind of loss.
Format: In person
Language: English
Trauma-Sensitive Yoga
Trauma-sensitive yoga is a movement practice focused on supporting participants in awareness and mindfulness. This practice offers an opportunity for participants to make choices, creating awareness of their physical sensations and learning ways to regulate their responses to challenging emotions. Participants will have an opportunity to recognize and tolerate physical sensations (by moving away from or toward a sensation) and thereby regain a sense of safety inside their bodies.
Format: Online
Language: English
Memorial Grove
Our collaborative project with Medford Parks and Recreation is at Donahue-Frohnmayer Park in Medford. Natural stones, inscribed with the names of deceased loved ones, form a curving Wall of Remembrance and are available by donation. Memorial benches and trees also are available. Call us at 541-552-0620 or email winterspring@laclinicahealth.org to learn more about placing a stone at the Memorial Grove.
