HPC – Hospice and Palliative Care of Western Kentucky is launching a nonprofit grief and healing center specifically for children. The center, called Tucker’s Treehouse, will serve children ages 6-17 and has a mission of providing a space to care for and comfort one another during seasons of grief and loss.
“We are thrilled to be a part of this project to help further grief care in our community,” said HPC CEO Brenda Knollenberg. “It is an opportunity to serve our children in a different capacity than HPC currently offers. We wanted to establish a separate nonprofit organization for Tucker’s Treehouse because we hope this center will eventually address other types of grief and loss for children than the loss associated with the death of a loved one.”
Tucker’s Treehouse was created because of the local need for children’s grief services, Knollenber said.
According to HPC, in the state of Kentucky, 1 in 9 children experience the loss of a parent or a sibling before the age of 18.
Tucker’s Treehouse is named after HPC’s grief therapy dog, Tucker. The vision of Tucker’s Treehouse is to empower children and families to navigate the challenges of grief with resilience and hope.
Knollenberg said they want kids to know that “it’s okay that you’re not okay.”
Tucker’s Treehouse has a board of directors and is awaiting its IRS nonprofit designation. Services will be provided at 3419 Wathens Crossing, which is HPC’s administrative office. Part of the building is currently being renovated to allow for children’s peer groups to occur.
