North Shore-Boston Chapter
The Compassionate Friends
North Shore - Boston Chapter
Grief Support after the Death of a Child
This website is dedicated to the memory of all of our children.
The Mission of The Compassionate Friends is to assist families toward the positive resolution of grief following the death of a child of any age and to provide information to help others be supportive.
We are a national, nonprofit, self-help organization that offers friendship, understanding and hope to bereaved parents, grandparents and siblings. Our meetings are open to all family members who are grieving the death of a child, grandchild or sibling. There is no religious affiliation and no dues or fees.
WE NEED NOT WALK ALONE
WE ARE THE COMPASSIONATE FRIENDS
WALK TO REMEMBER TEE SHIRTS
The TCF North Shore-Boston Chapter annual Walk To Remember will take place on 9/21/25. More information regarding this event can be found through this link: Walk To Remember
If you would like to order a tee shirt for this year’s Walk To Remember, click on this link:
This link will be active from 5/29/25 through 8/29/25. The shirts that are ordered will be shipped to Tim Glendinning. Tim will then distribute the tee shirts at Ipswich River Park in North Reading before the Walk begins.
If you have any questions, feel free to contact Tim:
(508) 887-1890
WALK TO REMEMBER
TEE SHIRTS
The TCF North Shore-Boston Chapter annual Walk To Remember will take place on 9/21/25. More information regarding this event will be posted on our website in July. If you would like to order a tee shirt for this year’s Walk To Remember, click on this link:
This link will be active from 5/29/25 through 8/29/25. The shirts that are ordered will be shipped to Tim Glendinning. Tim will then distribute the tee shirts at Ipswich River Park in North Reading before the Walk begins.
If you have any questions, feel free to contact Tim:
(908) 902-8631
VOLUNTEER OPPORTUNITY FOR OUR MEMBERS
We will be volunteering at this soup kitchen:
The Dwelling Place
523 Main Street
Woburn, Ma. 01801
If you can make it, please arrive at about 4:00 PM on Saturday, July 5, 2025.
All are welcome, including children, as long as they are accompanied by an adult.
If you are planning on attending or have any questions, please contact:
Pat Powell
Booklovr@aol.com
847-308-0331
TCF NATIONAL CONFERENCE SCHOLARSHIP
The TCF North Shore-Boston Chapter is offering four $500 scholarships (1 per family) for members who are planning to attend the National TCF Conference this year. These will be awarded based upon the order of submission. Details about the scholarship can be found on the application form. If you have any questions, please feel free to contact David Paul at: tcfnoshoreconnect@gmail.com
To access the application form, click here:
2025 TCF National Conference Scholarship Application
VOLUNTEER OPPORTUNITY FOR OUR MEMBERS
We will be volunteering at this soup kitchen on Saturday, July 5, 2025:
The Dwelling Place
523 Main Street
Woburn, Ma. 01801
If you can make it, please arrive around 4:00 PM.
All are welcome, including children, as long as they are accompanied by an adult.
If you are planning on attending or have any questions, please contact:
Pat Powell
Booklovr@aol.com
847-308-0331
WALK TO REMEMBER
TEE SHIRTS
The TCF North Shore-Boston Chapter annual Walk To Remember will take place on 9/21/25. More information regarding this event will be posted on our website in July. If you would like to order a tee shirt for this year’s Walk To Remember, click on this link:
This link will be active from 5/29/25 through 8/29/25. The shirts that are ordered will be shipped to Tim Glendinning. Tim will then distribute the tee shirts at Ipswich River Park in North Reading before the Walk begins.
If you have any questions, feel free to contact Tim:
(908) 902-8631
CHAPTER UPDATES
Our chapter holds two in-person meetings and one online video meeting per month. The in-person meetings are held on the 1st Monday and 3rd Wednesday of each month. The sibling online video meeting is held on the third Wednesday of each month. The parent online video meeting is held on the fourth Wednesday of each month.
More detailed information about our upcoming chapter meetings can be found in the Meeting Updates column below.
An email invitation will be sent to members prior to each meeting. You may also request an invitation by emailing tcfnoshoreconnect@gmail.com to let us know that you would like to participate.
We would like to inform all of our members that we no longer mail hard copies of our monthly chapter newsletter. Our newsletters are accessible electronically through this link: Chapter Newsletters
If you have any questions, please contact our chapter leader, David Paul. You may access his contact information through this link:
https://tcfnoshore-boston.org/contact-us.aspx
We are currently in need of help with managing our chapter website. If anybody has interest in helping out, please contact our Website Manager via email:
Also, in order to help cover our chapter website fees, we invite our members to sponsor our website for 1 month in memory of their children, grandchildren or siblings. The monthly website sponsor donation is $25 per member and the maximum number of sponsors per month is 2. Sponsors may post a message to their children, grandchildren or siblings; this message will be displayed in the Website Sponsor column on the Home page of our website and will also appear in our chapter newsletter.
If you would like to sponsor our chapter website, please contact our Website Manager via email: tcfnoshoreweb@gmail.com
Website sponsor signup sheets are also available at our in-person meetings.
ADDITIONAL SUPPORT OPTIONS
In addition to our chapter meetings, other support options are listed below:
1) TCF Live Chats
The National TCF website offers scheduled Live Chat sessions on different days and with different topics. The details can be found here:
National TCF Live Chat Schedule
2) Private Facebook Groups
TCF offers several private Facebook groups facilitated by bereaved parents, grandparents or siblings. They can be accessed here:
3) TCF North Shore-Boston
Facebook Page
Our chapter has its own Facebook page that is active with members from our chapter. You can access it here:
Website Sponsor Messages
Our website is sponsored this May in loving memory of:
GEORGE SILVA
Dear George,
You are no longer here,
but your love
continues to shine on
in every memory
and every heart
you have touched.
Happy Birthday!
We miss you and love you
so very much.
Mom, Bob,
Gustavo, Aimee and family
ERIC KRASKER
Too many years
have gone by
without you.
Never forgetting.
Always loving.
Miss you
with all our hearts.
Mom, Dad, Lynne
Event Updates
See information below on upcoming TCF events:
SUMMER BBQ
Sunday, July 19, 2026
12:00 PM – 3:00 PM
Ipswich River Park
15 Central Street
North Reading, MA
Click here for additional information:
2026 TCF NATIONAL CONFERENCE
Baltimore, MD
July 2-5, 2026
Click here for additional information:
Website Sponsor Messages
Our website is sponsored this June
in loving memory of:
ADAM & JASON DIXEY
Adam Dixey
You live in the things you've built,
in your art,
in our laughter and in our tears,
in the quiet ways you taught us how to love more deeply.
You've left pieces of you everywhere
and what a gift that is.
The grief is impossibly loud
but our love for you is louder.
The memories will never fade,
the lessons you taught us without even knowing it.
We are softer and we are stronger because of you.
Maybe part of healing is realizing
that you're not really gone at all.
You're the song that plays at the perfect moment
and the courage that we find on difficult days.
Your beauty will live in our hearts forever.
We love you so much.
Jason Dixey
A light like yours is never truly extinguished.
A glimmer remains in the hearts of everyone who knew you,
and everyone who hears our stories.
Because we will never stop telling your stories.
Stories of your infectious smile.
Stories of how you loved so deeply.
Stories of the mischief you got into and the fun you had.
We tell of how you made us laugh,
how you were the life of the party,
how you were a fierce friend.
Your light was not extinguished,
it was shared among those of us who loved you the most.
We will carry it with us for the rest of our time,
then pass it on to the next.
We love you, always and forever.
Love, Mom, Dad, Riley, Amanda and Melissa
CHRISTOPHER POPE
Christopher,
Though you were physically here with us for only 3 days,
you have continued to live on with all of us for the past 32 years.
Your twin, Dave, hates celebrating his birthdays,
because for him, it’s not fair that he’s still alive and you’re not.
Your new sister-in-law ordered a slice of cake for you
when she and Dave were out celebrating your birthdays.
They also dedicated a seat for you
with a bouquet of flowers at their wedding ceremony.
You taught us so many important life lessons
and we will forever be grateful for that.
Life keeps evolving, as I’m sure you know,
and I trust that you will be with us
every step of the way.
HAPPY BIRTHDAY, Christopher!!!
We love you!
Mom, Dad, Dave, Marisa, Kelly, Ian, Tom, Nell
Meeting Updates
Our June 2026 chapter meetings will be held on:
Monday - 6/1/26 - 7:00 PM
In-Person Meeting
(E-mail invitation to follow)
You may also contact
to request an invitation
Topic: The Emotional
Roller Coaster
Wednesday - 6/17/26
In-Person Meeting - 7:00 PM
(E-mail invitation to follow)
You may also contact
to request an invitation
Topic: Open Sharing Session
-and-
Sibling Online Video Meeting
7:30 PM
(E-mail invitation to follow)
You may also contact Aimeeb15@gmail.com
if you would like to participate
Topic: Secondary Losses
Wednesday - 6/24/26
Online Video Meeting - 7:00 PM
Please contact
if you would like to attend
Topic: Familly Dynamics
Click here for our 2026 schedule:
In the event of inclement weather, necessitating the closing of North Reading public schools, our chaper meeting will also be canceled.
Event Updates
See information below on upcoming TCF events:
SUMMER BBQ
Sunday, July 19, 2026
12:00 - 3:00 PM
Ipswich River Park
15 Central Street
North Reading, MA
Click here for additional information:
2026 TCF NATIONAL CONFERENCE
Baltimore, MD
July 2-5, 2026
Click here for additional information:
Website Sponsor Messages
Our website is sponsored this April in loving memory of:
ALEXANDER The Great WHIPPLE
Dear Alexander,
I can't believe it has been 15 years
since we said goodbye to you.
We miss you so much.
We wonder who you would be today
as an almost 17 year old young man.
I am sure you would be kind and caring
and a wonderful big brother
to Asher and Elizabeth.
We love you and think of you always.
Love,
Mommy, Daddy, Asher & Elizabeth
JULIA ANN FORMAN
Dear Julia,
We miss you.
We miss your hearty laugh;
your delicious cooking;
your love; your kindness & just you.
Your nieces, Evie & Claire,
still talk about you after 5 years.
The grief comes in waves;
ebbing & flowing.
Sometimes the water is calm
and sometimes it’s overwhelming.
We love you so much.
Mom, Bob, Josh, Briana & the girls
Event Updates
See information below on upcoming TCF events:
SPRING EVENT
A GARDEN FOR OUR CHILDREN AND SIBLINGS
Sunday, May 17th
1:00 - 4:00 PM
Aldersgate United Methodist Church
235 Park Street
North Reading, MA
Click here for additional information:
2026 TCF NATIONAL CONFERENCE
Baltimore, MD
July 2-5, 2026
Click here for additional information:
Website Sponsor Messages
Our website is sponsored this March
in loving memory of:
JON McGLINCHEY
In Memory of Jon "Babe" McGlinchey 11/8/87-3/28/16
A Decade I can't believe it's been ten years- how quickly time has passed.
I can't decide if it has crawled or if it's moving fast.
So much has changed since the day you left, some joyful, some so sad.
Yet every memory of you makes the hardest days not so bad.
I’ll cherish each and every moment until we meet again,
and hold you close within my heart until the very end.
~Crystal Chambers
Missing you forever, Your sister!
ROBERT M. DeCARLO
03/08/1983 – 01/18/2019
Your birthday will be here soon, remembering that day,
the nurse put you in my arms, I held you close
and was in awe of everything about you.
I immediately said, “I want another one,”
and less than two years later I had your brother.
My greatest gift to each of you will always be each other.
I feel you close and with us almost every day.
On days I do not, I think to myself,
well, he’s off golfing (as we know there is golf in heaven)
or watching Sports.
My tears still fall but I know you understand it,
you knew me, so I know you are saying
“it’s ok Ma” let them fall “it’s ok”.
I believe on your arrival in Heaven,
your Grandparents, family and friends were there
waiting to surround you with love and welcome you.
In Heaven, the air is pure, fresh, you can breathe,
no inhalers, no asthma, no pain.
You gave 35 years of wonder, fun, laughs (and a few worries)
but your love of family was deeply felt.
We wanted more, many more years with you.
Your brother who knew you best, described you best . . .
If you called Rob in December, you could bet
he was watching “It’s a Wonderful Life”.
Like George Bailey at the end of the movie, Rob loved life,
he loved the town he lived and grew up in,
he loved his friends and family and
he loved living life his way.
Happy Birthday, Rob
You are forever in our hearts and thoughts
Until we are together again…”We only want to see
you laughing in the Purple Rain”…
Love, Ma & Family
Meeting Updates
Our April 2026 chapter meetings will be held on:
Monday - 4/6/26 - 7:00 PM
In-Person Meeting
(E-mail invitation to follow)
You may also contact
to request an invitation
Topic: Men / Women
(split groups)
Wednesday - 4/15/26
In-Person Meeting - 7:00 PM
(E-mail invitation to follow)
You may also contact
to request an invitation
Topic: Open Sharing Session
-and-
Sibling Online Video Meeting
7:30 PM
(E-mail invitation to follow)
You may also contact Aimeeb15@gmail.com
if you would like to participate
Topic: Dealing With the
"What If's?"
Monday - 4/22/26
Online Video Meeting - 7:00 PM
Please contact
if you would like to attend
Topic: How Grief Is Affected By Seasonal Changes
Click here for our 2026 schedule:
In the event of inclement weather, necessitating the closing of North Reading public schools, our chaper meeting will also be canceled.
Event Updates
See information below on upcoming TCF events:
2026 TCF NATIONAL CONFERENCE
Baltimore, MD
July 2-5, 2026
Click here for additional information:
Website Sponsor Messages
Our website is sponsored this January in loving memory of:
JILLIAN ANNE SULLIVAN
Dear Jillian,
More loving and connected,
more vulnerable and strong,
more truthful and forgiving,
more wise and compassionate,
more faith- filled and courageous,
more trusting and open.
My love for you is endless
and made me more of all of these qualities,
and your life infinitely more impactful
than the number of years you had on this earth.
Together we will leave more love on earth
until God reunites us in heaven.
What a day that will be!
In love and gratitude,
Your Mom
BRIANNA LEE PAUL
AN UNTAMED LIFE
you never lived your life to the pleasure of others
a wild child blazing her own path
with an honesty so bold it caused
most of us to cower
you knowing but never fearing the aftermath
time has now created just enough space
to appreciate the truth unspoken
you were meant to part this measured realm unbroken
Love you forever - Mom Dad, Erin and Eden
Chapter Meeting Updates
Our February 2026 chapter meetings
will be held on:
Monday, 2/2/26 - 7:00 PM
In-Person Meeting
Please contact
if you would like to attend
Topic: Will I Laugh Again?
(feel free to bring a photo of your child)
Wednesday - 2/18/26 - 7:00 PM
In-Person Meeting
Please contact
if you would like to attend
Topic: Open Sharing Session
-and-
Sibling Online Video Meeting - 7:30 PM
(Email invitation to follow)
You may also contact Aimeeb15@gmail.com
if you would like to attend
Topic: Finding Out Your Sibling Died
Wednesday - 2/25/26 - 7:00 PM
Online Video Meeting
(Email invitation to follow)
You may also contact tcfnoshoreconnect@gmail.com
if you would like to attend
Topic: The New Normal
Click here for our 2026 schedule:
In the event of inclement weather, necessitating the closing of
North Reading public schools, our in-person chapter meetings
will also be canceled.
Website Sponsor Messages
Our website is sponsored this February
in loving memory of:
JASON MATTHEW DIXEY
No words can say how much we miss you,
but you live on in our hears forever.
“Sadness I but a wall between two gardens.” (Kahil Gibran)
“I have not heard your voice in years,
but my heart has conversations with you every day.” (Rumi)
“I carry your heart. I carry you in my heart.” (E. E. Cummings)
Forever missed, forever loved.
Until we see you again.
Love, Mom and Dad
ANDREW BROWN
In Memory of Andrew “Drew” Brown
2/19/1998 – 3/21/2024
A Blessing
A mom!...Me, A mom!
What a real life changing information bomb.
Can I do this? Will we be okay?
What if I don’t know what to do or to say?
What if I do not know the right way?
The magic. The messy. All the mistakes.
The laughter. The love. The memories we make.
Celebrations or stormy weather,
growing through it all, individually, together.
A bond unbreakable, a connection unshakeable,
a mom and her son.
You taught me the meaning of unconditional love.
A lifetime of memories to treasure and share,
keeping you alive with us, even though you’re not here.
Can I do this? Will we be okay?
What if I don’t know what to do or say?
What if I do not know the ‘right’ way????
Grace, trust, and knowing……some of how we keep going;
love and connections transcending time and space,
until we meet again in a different place.
So, in heaven, as you grow, with all of the magic, learning and love.
I will know you are in His hands of safety above.
I will always be your mom. And you will always be my son.
I got to be your mom for this lifetime.
This gift of unconditional love, the experience of you.
You were a light, your light and I do my best
with the remaining shattered pieces and holes
in my heart to let your light and live shine through.
The ripple effects of your presence is eternal.
Not a day goes by without feeling gratitude
that I got to be your mom.
Meeting Updates
Our February 2026 chapter meetings will be held on:
Monday - 2/2/26 - 7:00 PM
In-Person Meeting
(E-mail invitation to follow)
You may also contact
to request an invitation
Topic: Will I Laugh Again?
(feel free to bring a
photo of your child)
Wednesday - 2/18/26
In-Person Meeting - 7:00 PM
(E-mail invitation to follow)
You may also contact
to request an invitation
Topic: Open Sharing Session
-and-
Sibling Online Video Meeting
7:30 PM
(E-mail invitation to follow)
You may also contact Aimeeb15@gmail.com
if you would like to participate
Topic: Finding Out Your Sibling Died
Monday - 2/25/26
Online Video Meeting - 7:00 PM
Please contact
if you would like to attend
Topic: The New Normal
Click here for our 2026 schedule:
In the event of inclement weather, necessitating the closing of North Reading public schools, our chaper meeting will also be canceled.
Event Updates
See information below on upcoming TCF events:
2026 TCF NATIONAL CONFERENCE
Baltimore, MD
July 2-5, 2026
Click here for additional information:
Website Sponsor Messages
Our website is sponsored this February in
loving memory of:
JASON MATTHEW DIXEY
No words can say how much we miss you,
but you live on in our hearts forever.
“Sadness is but a wall between two gardens.” (Kahil Gibran)
“I have not heard your voice in years,
but my heart has conversations with you every day.” (Rumi)
“I carry your heart. I carry you in my heart.” (E. E. Cummings)
Forever missed, forever loved.
Until we see you again.
Love, Mom and Dad
ANDREW BROWN
In Memory of Andrew “Drew” Brown
2/19/1998 – 3/21/2024
A Blessing
A mom!...Me, A mom!
What a real life changing information bomb.
Can I do this? Will we be okay?
What if I don’t know what to do or to say?
What if I do not know the right way?
The magic. The messy. All the mistakes.
The laughter. The love. The memories we make.
Celebrations or stormy weather,
growing through it all, individually, together.
A bond unbreakable, a connection unshakeable,
a mom and her son.
You taught me the meaning of unconditional love.
A lifetime of memories to treasure and share,
keeping you alive with us, even though you’re not here.
Can I do this? Will we be okay?
What if I don’t know what to do or say?
What if I do not know the ‘right’ way????
Grace, trust, and knowing……some of how we keep going;
love and connections transcending time and space,
until we meet again in a different place.
So, in heaven, as you grow, with all of the magic, learning and love.
I will know you are in His hands of safety above.
I will always be your mom. And you will always be my son.
I got to be your mom for this lifetime.
This gift of unconditional love, the experience of you.
You were a light, your light and I do my best
with the remaining shattered pieces and holes
in my heart to let your light and live shine through.
The ripple effects of your presence is eternal.
Not a day goes by without feeling gratitude
that I got to be your mom.
Meeting Updates
Our February 2026 chapter meetings will be held on:
Monday - 2/2/26
In-Person Meeting - 7:00 PM
(E-mail invitation to follow)
Please contact
if you would like to attend
Topic: Will I Laugh Again?
(feel free to bring a photo of your child)
Wednesday - 2/18/26
In-Person Meeting - 7:00 PM
(E-mail invitation to follow)
Please contact
if you would like to attend
Topic: Open Sharing Session
-and-
Sibling Online Video Meeting - 7:30 PM
(E-mail invitation to follow)
You may also contact
if you would like to attend
Topic: Finding Out Your Sibling Died
Monday - 2/25/26
Online Video Meeting - 7:00 PM
Please contact
if you would like to attend
Topic: The New Normal
Click here for our 2026 schedule:
In the event of inclement weather, necessitating the closing of North Reading public schools, our chapter meeting will also be canceled.