TAPS San Diego Regional Seminar and Good Grief Camp Brings Together Families of America’s Fallen Military Heroes
Event Helps Participants Connect with Peers, Honor their Loved Ones, Find Hope and Healing
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE - Nov. 28, 2017
ARLINGTON, Va. – The family members of America's fallen military heroes will gather at the Tragedy Assistance Program for Survivors (TAPS) Regional Survivor Seminar and Good Grief Camp, Dec. 1-4 at the Bahia Resort Hotel in San Diego. This event brings together more than 400 family members to share their stories of love and loss, learn ways to cope with grief and find healing in their shared experiences.
For adults, support and comfort will come from connecting with peers in sharing groups and attending workshops with grief professionals where they will learn how to cope with traumatic loss. Children attending the TAPS Good Grief Camp will gain a network of new friends their own age who are also grieving a fallen hero, learn that they are not alone in their grief, connect with a military mentor one on one, and come to understand that they are now part of an American legacy of service and sacrifice. As one child said, “The TAPS Good Grief Camp is like the best kind of family – they get me!”
Additionally, more than 120 service members from Camp Pendleton, Marine Corps Air Station Miramar and Davis-Monthan Air Force Base have volunteered to be trained as mentors more than 100 surviving children attending the Good Grief Camp.
“The regional military survivor seminars bring military families grieving a fallen hero together with support, resources, and compassionate care,” said Bonnie Carroll, TAPS president and founder and a 2015 Presidential Medal of Freedom recipient. “Together, we honor the lives of our heroes, cope with our grief, and have hope for the future.”
INTERVIEW
OPPORTUNITIES:
Friday, Dec. 1 - Good Grief Camp Zone
6 to 9 p.m. - Good Grief Camp Zone
Meet children of fallen military as they arrive from across the country, and interview military mentors as well as other volunteers as they support the Good Grief Camp Zone.
Saturday, Dec. 2 - Good Grief Camp, Opening Ceremonies
5 to 9 a.m. - Morning Show Stand-ups Available
Interview TAPS Founder and President Bonnie Carroll and surviving family members of America’s fallen military heroes as they pay tribute to their loved ones who died in service to our nation.
8:45 a.m. to 8 p.m. - TAPS Good Grief Camp
Children and teens engage in interactive activities to help cope with military loss and trauma with the help of military mentors.
9 a.m. to 8 p.m. - Meet Families of the Fallen, Talk with Experts on Military Loss
Interviews available. In addition to talking about the seminar, experts can provide an interview about coping with grief during the holidays.
9 to 10 a.m. - Opening Ceremonies
Get photos and video of TAPS President and Founder Bonnie Carroll, as well as renowned expert Dr. Frank Campbell, as they welcome families to the seminar.
Sunday, Dec. 3 Good Grief Camp, Closing Ceremonies
5 to 9 a.m. - Morning Show Stand-ups Available
Interview Bonnie Carroll and the surviving families of military loss as they pay tribute to their loved ones who died in service to our nation.
8:45 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. – Good Grief Camp
Follow surviving children as they work through grief with the help of their military mentors during special activities.
9 a.m. to 3 p.m. - Meet Families of the Fallen, Talk with Experts on Military Loss
Interviews available. In addition to talking about the seminar, experts can provide an interview about coping with grief during the holidays.
12 to 3 p.m. - Closing Ceremonies
Get photos and video of the seminar’s closing ceremony, which will feature a performance by country music artist Shane Owens.
All interview and coverage opportunities will be at the Bahia Resort Hotel, 998 West Mission Bay Drive, San Diego.
AVAILABLE
FOR INTERVIEW: Bonnie Carroll, TAPS President and Founder.
Dr. Frank Campbell, Ph.D., LCSW, C.T., a featured speaker and expert who has
helped many TAPS families cope with grief, trauma and suicide.
Surviving family members participating in the seminar.
ABOUT TAPS
The Tragedy Assistance Program for Survivors (TAPS) is the national organization providing compassionate care for the families of America’s fallen military heroes and has offered support to more than 70,000 surviving family members of our fallen military and their caregivers since 1994. TAPS provides peer-based emotional support, grief and trauma resources, grief seminars and retreats for adults, Good Grief Camps for children, case work assistance, connections to community-based care, online and in-person support groups and a 24/7 resource and information helpline for all who have been affected by a death in the Armed Forces. Services are provided free of charge. For more information go to www.taps.org or call the toll-free TAPS resource and information helpline at 1.800.959.TAPS (8277).