Bereavement

We grieving the deaths of fellow parishioners and their families as a community. We have recently expanded our St. Mary Magdalene Bereavement Ministry to provide accompaniment to all who have experienced the loss of a loved one, through meetings, prayer partners, and more.

We have started a grief support ministry. 

Meetings at the Basilica are currently suspended due to travel commitments of our group leaders. 

At this time we are recommending professional grief support programs in our area, particularly Avalon Hospice, who welcomes all those who are grieving, regardless of whether their loved ones have been under the care of Hospice. (See Counseling below for a phone and email contact.)

More local resources are also listed below.

If you would like to learn more or receive Bereavement assistance, please contact the parish office.

Contact Us

Behold Your Child - a Catholic ministry that aims to walk alongside those experiencing miscarriage. Read 10/15/2023 article by Catholic News Agency here.

Videos

• Grieving with Great Hope - by Good Mourning Ministry, a Catholic Bereavement Apostolate, available through our parish FORMED.org subscription. 
   

• Why, What If, If Only - by Grief Care Fellowship

Books

• Good Grief: A Companion for Every Loss, Granger E. Westberg
• Good Grief: The Complete Set, Granger E. Westberg
• Your Grief Your Way: A Year of Practical Guidance and Comfort after Loss, Shelby Forsythia
• Grieving the Loss of Someone You Love: Daily Meditations to Help You through the Grieving Process, Raymond R. Mitsch & Lynn Brookside
• Beautiful and Terrible Things: A Christian Struggle with Suffering Grief and Hope, Christian M. M. Brady (for parents who have lost children)
• Till We Have Faces: A Myth Retold, C. S. Lewis
• On Death and Dying: What the Dying Have to Teach Doctors, Nurses, Clergy and Their Own Families, Elisabeth Kubler-Ross
• Healing after the Suicide of a Loved One, Ann Smolin and John Guinan

Online

• Dealing with Grief and Coping with Stress - cdc.gov
• Coping With Grief: Helping Others With a Loss, Pamela Blair, PhD 
• Red Bird Ministries - A Catholic ministry that guides individuals and couples through the complexity and trauma that happens with the loss of a child from pregnancy through adulthood.   

Counseling and Grief Groups 

• Avalon Hospice (Please contact Kelsey Payne, Bereavement Coordinator, to discuss groups or individual support that would be best for your situation: 423-892-3737 [email protected]) 
• Christy Bonner, LMFT 
• Susan Latta, LMFT  
• Hospice of Chattanooga grief groups
• La Paz Chattanooga (Español) 

The St. Mary Magdalene Bereavement Committee is honored to host a reception for family, friends, and guests following the funeral of your loved one. This reception can be held in Varallo Parish Hall, schedule permitting. If you would prefer, we can also send food to your home or other location to help you host a gathering.

If you would like this service, please speak with our parish office staff when making the arrangements for the funeral.

Visit our Last Rites & Funerals page for more information. 

If you would like to help with our funeral receptions by serving or providing food or drink, please contact Florence Porter at [email protected].