By JAMES BELL
Hays Post
After taking the reins of the Center for Life Experiences this summer, Executive Director Darian Schlegel has worked to expand the organization’s programming beyond the three support groups that have helped guide areas residents through grief and loss for decades.
That expanded programming has included hands-on activities and the addition of support groups that deal with other traumatic experiences, like divorce and the onset of life-changing physical ailments.
"We're really excited,” Schlegel said. “Actually, we got a lot of stuff going on, and hopefully, we can get the community involved.”
In the months since taking over the organization, she said the group has readjusted its mission to include more people than ever.
“We've kind of done a little rebranding at CFLE in the past couple of months, where we're trying to do different branches of grief,” Schlegel said. “We can experience grief outside of losing somebody to death. And that can be through losing part of your family through divorce, or when kids get separated from their families and enter the foster care system, they're losing that part of their family as well. So that's a type of grief. So we're trying to hit those different types of grief as well.”
One of the ways the organization has added to its programming is through limited-time support series that tackle challenges facing those of all ages and backgrounds.
“Every six to eight weeks, we do a different support group focused on something that the community tells us that we need,” Schlegel said.
Fostering Connections was the first and is currently underway. The series is for children that have experienced the foster care system.
“That is a place where kids with similar experiences can just get to know each other and maybe even build some friendships,” Schlegel said. “And because kids within the foster care system, it would be nice for them to have somebody else who has kind of a similar experience, just so they have that connection there.”
The next series will begin in November and is for those affected by neurocognitive decline.
“So that's like Alzheimer's disease, or even just dementia, that type of thing,” Schlegel said. “If you have grandparents going through it, and you want to come, maybe a parent, or if you're experiencing it yourself, you can also come, so it's kind of open to that.”
While historically the organization has helped attendees with grief related to loss, she said the effects of neurocognitive decline can be equally traumatic.
“You're grieving for losing that ability that you used to have with being able to fully mentally function,” Schlegel said. “And you're also grieving that part of your maybe grandparent or parent who can't necessarily remember those moments that you do with them.”
Along with the support series, the organization has launched the CFLE Book Circle, where participants work through difficult emotional situations while reading through a relevant book, and It’s Good to Talk, a social support session for parents.
“It's Good to Talk starts on the 26th, and we meet from 5 p.m. to 6:15-6:30 p.m.,” Schlegel said. “It's for parents with children on the spectrum, or experience seeing any kind of neurodivergent, where parents can just come and talk about how to use maybe disciplinary strategies that aren't necessarily working for other kids and how to best learn how to help them regulate their emotions and stuff like that.”
And a hands-on session, Bonding Through Creativity, is set for Nov. 9.
“We're trying to give kids an opportunity to use a creative outlet to process their emotions,” Schlegel said. “So CFLE has partnered with the Niche Art Studio downtown (at 707) Main Street, and that will offer a place where kids can do a create a painting, and they can take it home with them.
“But throughout that process, we'll have to stop and let paint dry and so on, so we'll be talking about maybe struggles at school, how to describe some emotions, and how do we come to our parents to talk about it when we're upset, or mad or sad, and different types of things like that, because creative outlets are good for children, and we want to offer as much of that as possible to them,” she continued.
Changes at the organization were not limited to in-person sessions. Its digital home, cflehope.org, also received a significant renovation.
“They can look at our events, look at the descriptions. They can also register for events on there,” Schlegel said. “And that will give them all the information they need from us.”
In celebration of the recent efforts, she said a ribbon cutting is planned at 4 p.m. Oct. 20 at its location at 103 E. 27th St., Ste. C.
“We're going to be talking a little bit about our new programs and kind of where we hope to see CFLE grow,” Schlegel said. “And then the ribbon cutting will proceed after that.”