Josh Griffith, Tim Griffith’s older brother, started envisioning a retreat for young men who had lost a sibling as soon as the Meadowlark Mother’s Grief Retreats began in 2010.
At that time Josh was on his grief journey and wasn’t ready or equipped to take on the leadership of creating and running something so complex.
The right time came in 2022 when Josh had several experiences under his belt including pursuing his Masters in Psychology and Counseling, becoming a grief counselor with the KARA grief organization, and counseling at the KARA Camp Erin program for children who experienced loss in their families.
Most importantly, Josh had come far in his personal grief work and witnessed the healing results coming out of the Meadowlark Mother and Father retreats.
In 2022, Josh began creating the Meadowlark Siblings Retreat to launch that year.
Josh describes the nature of sibling grief in this way: “When a child of a family dies, it’s a bigger loss for parents for sure. But as siblings we have our own sense of loss – like with Tim. I had experiences with him that no one else had. We were together a lot, slept in the same room and shared so much with each other. Surviving siblings can feel forgotten, tossed aside. The parents don’t have the capacity early on to help the siblings through their grieving. At the Siblings retreat, I want them to feel like their suffering matters.”
To create the retreat, Josh has worked collaboratively with many professionals including Dean Lose from KARA, who runs their sibling loss support group, and Donnovan Somera Yisreal a Meadowlark Father’s Retreat facilitator, to design the weekend program and bring men of 18+ years old together to witness and share the loss of their siblings.
A close friend of Josh, Kyle Perry, who experienced the loss of his brother Trevor, has encouraged and supported the creation of the retreat and is working to become one of the facilitators.
An initial screening conducted by a grief professional will ensure participants are ready for this type of intensive experience. The siblings spend the weekend at Bishop’s Ranch in Healdsburg where they will participate in group sessions and a variety of activities to share about their sibling and their grief.
Josh hopes that participants leave feeling less alone, less sad and even a glimmer of hope for their future. Based on the mother and father retreats we know they will leave with life-long bonds and new insights for moving through their lives without their beloved sibling.
The cost for attending the retreat is $250.00 and for those in need, the Tim Griffith Foundation will cover the cost so that no one is turned away for financial reasons.
The 2024 Sibling retreat dates are will be announced shortly. Visit the Meadowlark Retreats page for more the retreat schedule.