PROSSER, Wash. – Cork’s Place, a children’s grief center in Tri-Cities, has been providing essential support to kids dealing with loss for over 20 years. The center, part of Tri-Cities Chaplaincy, relies heavily on community support to continue its mission.
Alane Wilkerson, a staff member of Tri-Cities Chaplaincy, explained the importance of community involvement. “We can’t do the work that we do without the community,” said Wilkerson.
Cork’s Place offers a safe space for children to process loss and develop coping skills. Wilkerson emphasized the center’s approach, stating, “After being with us. We want them to have the coping skills, the resources and the confidence to move after loss. It doesn’t take away how large a loss is or what they’re feeling, but we want them to be able to continue on and not have any sort of deficits after that.”
The center engages children in conversations about emotional regulation, grief, and loss. “They’re all tailored around emotional regulation, coping skills, grief, loss, so that they’re having really, really intentional conversations. But we’re kind of do it in a stinky, fun way,” Wilkerson said.
This month, more than a dozen businesses have come together to support Cork’s Place.
Several restaurants and wineries in Prosser, along with a bakery in Richland, are participating in the effort. Wilkerson highlighted the generosity of local businesses, noting, “Frost me sweet. They are delicious. Bakery one and two. Very generous. So every Funfetti cupcake that is sold in the month of November, they’re donating a dollar back to us, at Corks Place.”
As a nonprofit organization, Cork’s Place values the community’s support. “They put so much time and dedication and thoughtfulness into the programing. And so when the community mirrors that back to them and shows the support that they need to stand behind the program and they want it to continue and thrive and they want to fund it, I think that really says a lot, about the support that they feel from the community,” Wilkerson said.
For more information on how to support Tri-Cities Chaplaincy, click here.
Cork’s Place continues to serve as a vital resource for children in the Tri-Cities area, helping them navigate the difficult journey of grief with the community’s backing.
