Since 1991, GriefConnect, Inc. has been helping caregiving professionals connect with people in grief. Through continuing education seminars, program design consultation, and printed materials, you can look to us as your resource for bereavement.   So, why the compass? When a loved one dies, life can become pretty chaotic. Even if we've experienced grief before, since every relationship is unique, every bereavement is also unique. In the midst of the confusion and "lost-ness" that ensues, what we most need is someone to help us "find our way." And that's an especially good task for a compass.   Need something right now? Call us at (254) 292-9900 or email info@GriefConnect.com     Follow us on  Facebook      Read Bill's blog here!       Join us on LinkedIn

Hospice Releases Annual Report

(January 12, 2012) The National Hospice & Palliative Care Organization (NHPCO) has just released its annual report showing that about 42% of Americans who died last year were under the care of hospice. Download and read the entire report here.

ADEC...a connection point for everyone in death, dying and bereavement.

The Association for Death Education & Counseling is the world's largest and most influential organization dedicated to the field of death, dying and bereavement. This interdisciplinary organization is the gathering place for hospice professionals, parish bereavement volunteers, university educators, researchers, professional counselors and a wide diversity of others in our field.

No other organization helps you keep up like ADEC. Included in membership are the electronic versions of some of our best professional/academic journals in the field including Death Studies and Omega: Journal of Death & Dying. You even have access to the last 10 or 15 years of these journals--all right from the ease of your home or office computer.

Bill Hoy says, "ADEC membership is the best money I invest every year. Being part of ADEC helps me grow connections with my colleagues and friends around the world, the people who do the same kind of work I do and who are passionate about some of the same issues. The annual conference is the highlight of my professional career every year."

Find the full list of member benefits as well as a membership application here. Don't delay; join ADEC today!

Continuing Education from Your Desktop.

Did you know that the Association for Death Education & Counseling presents a different 90-minute webinar EVERY month--and that they are available in a library of recordings, too, including Bill Hoy's presentation in October 2009 entitled Creating Meaningful Memories. You won't find a more cost-effective way to get "up-to-speed" on a death and bereavement topic of interest. Learn more here.

Foundations of Thanatology Course

Bill Hoy will be teaching the Foundations of Thanatology course as part of the Association for Death Education & Counseling's annual Pre-Conference Institute. This course is excellent preparation for the Certified in Thanatology (CT) exam and overviews the most important issues in death and bereavement studies today!

Questions not answered here on our site? Call us at (254) 292-9900 or

email us at info@GriefConnect.com TODAY.

Upcoming Public Seminar Locations

Here is where you will find us the next few months:

Springfield, Illinois (February 29)

For more information, click here.

Downer's Grove, Illinois (March 1)

For more information, click here.

Arlington Heights, Illinois (March 2)

For more information, click here.

Timonium, Maryland (March 8)

For more information, click here.

Ellicott City, Maryland (March 9)

For more information, click here.

Rochester, New York (March 20-21)

For more information, email Theo Munson,  Dave Perotto or Mark Anthony

Atlanta, Georgia--ADEC Conference (March 27-31)

For more information, click here.

Temple, Texas--Scott & White Hospice Conference (April 3)

For more information, click here.

University of Wisconsin Green Bay (April 20-21)

For more information, click here.

Gainesville, Florida (April 25)

For more information, click here.

Orlando, Florida (April 26)

For more information, click here.

Tampa, Florida (April 27)

For more information, click here.

Toronto, Ontario (May 4)

For more information, click here.

Orange County, California (May 8-10)

For more information, email Pat Kolstad

Bill Hoy co-authors chapter in new book

Along with University of Western Ontario colleague, Dr. Laura Lewis, Dr. Hoy has co-authored the chapter "Bereavement Rituals and the Creation of Legacy" for the new anthology, Grief and Bereavement in Contemporary Society: Bridging Research and Practice. 

“Grief and Bereavement in Contemporary Society is an authoritative guide to the study of and work with major themes in bereavement. Its chapters synthesize the best of research-based conceptualization and clinical wisdom across 30 of the most important topics in the field, including the implementation of specific models in clinical practice, family therapy for bereavement, complicated grief, spirituality and more. The volume’s contributors come from around the world and their work reflects a level of cultural awareness of the diversity and universality of bereavement and its challenges that has rarely been approximated in other volumes” (from the publisher). 

Our Blog on WordPress. . .

Keep up to date on Bill Hoy's bereavement-related musings on our blog. You can offer your feedback or signup to receive an email whenever the blog is updated.

Web Resources from Selected Independent Funeral Homes

Bill Hoy has written extensive resources now published on the website of Selected Independent Funeral Homes. Under the Families and Individuals tab, you'll find Bill's resources under the headings The Importance of a Funeral, Coping with Loss and Cultural and Religious Funeral Customs. The site contains many of Bill's publications as downloadable and printable PDF files.