Eluna Community Conversation: Supporting Youth Grieving an Overdose Death

In this conversation, Eluna’s respected panelists of clinicians & caregivers addressed barriers & stigma associated with addiction and overdose loss, and shared strategies to support youth & families grieving an overdose death and connect them to communities of support.

Panelist Resources:

• CapRadio is the NPR member station in California’s capital city. We serve audiences on our website, on radio programs like Morning Edition and All Things Considered, on our Insight with Vicki Gonzalez talk show, and also via podcasts and live events. This role will primarily focus on serving our digital audiences at CapRadio.org. But there will also be the opportunity to acquire experience and skills in radio and audio journalism so as to serve our listeners.
• The Sacramento Observer is the weekly Black newspaper of California’s capital city and has been serving this African American community since 1962. Generally regarded as one of the premier Black newspapers in the country, The Observer has been named the nation’s best Black newspaper six times. The reporting from this beat will serve our print and online audience at SacObserver.com as well as with partner Black news sites such as WordInBlack.com.
• FRIENDS WAY serves families throughout Southeastern New England. Staffed with highly qualified mental health care professionals and extensively trained community volunteers, they provide peer support to children and their families in a safe and nurturing environment. Their services are free to all families.

Additional Overdose Grief Resources:

• Overdose Grief Resource Hub: Central set of resources that have been carefully created by Eluna and thoughtfully compiled from our partners and other leaders working in the fields of substance use disorder (addiction) and grief.
• Postcard Pointers: Overdose Grief: Pocket-size tips that can be easily shared with the people who need them the most – caregivers, support professionals, frontline workers, and camp staff.
• Explaining a Substance-Related Death to Children: Comprehensive & compassionate article written by Camp Erin Director, Lauren Schneider, about the importance of language and truth-telling during these important conversations.

Meet the Moderator:

Srishti Prabha (They/Them)
K-12 Education Reporter at CapRadio – NPR, The Sacramento Observer

Srishti Prabha is the K-12 education reporter for CapRadio, an NPR-affiliate station in Sacramento and for The Observer, which serves the Black community in Sacramento, California. They were previously the managing editor of India Currents, a nonprofit magazine in the Bay Area, covering the intersection of immigration, cultural identity, health and more in the South Asian community. Prabha came to journalism as a Public Allies Fellow working at East Palo Alto Today, addressing the effects of gentrification and housing in East Palo Alto, California. Since then, they have won awards from the San Francisco Press Club and the California News Publishers Association. They hold a bachelor’s degree in biology and master’s degree in anthropology with a focus on disparities in education. LinkedIN

Meet the Panelists:

Ryan Loiselle, MSW, LICSW (He/Him)
Program Director of FRIENDS WAY

Ryan Loiselle, LICSW is the program director for FRIENDS WAY. Prior to joining FRIENDS WAY, he worked at Merrimack Valley Hospice with a concentration in pediatric palliative care and children’s bereavement. Ryan studied at the University of Rhode Island and received his degree in Human Development and Family Studies, with a minor in Thanatology (the study of death, loss, grief, and bereavement). He went on to Simmons College in Boston, MA and received his master’s in social work. Additionally, he has presented at several conferences for NASW (National Association of Social Workers) and for NAGC (National Alliance for Grieving Children) on children’s bereavement. Ryan joined the board of directors for the NACG in January 2022. He started RI Grief Counseling in July 2020 and has been involved in grief camps since 2003. LinkedIN

Jennifer Wiles, LMHC, BC-DMT (She/Her)
Director of HEARTplay Program and Camp Erin Boston

Jennifer Wiles, MA, LMHC, BC-DMT is the director of HEARTplay, a bereavement program for children, teens, and young adults at Good Shepherd Community Care in Newton, MA. Her current project, Expanding the Language of Grief, focuses on providing access to compassionate grief support services to people of all abilities.  She is also the director of Camp Erin Boston, now in its tenth year supporting grieving youth and families. Jennifer has taught nationally and internationally on the topic of children’s grief. Jennifer is a board-certified dance movement therapist/licensed mental health counselor and is on the adjunct faculty at Lesley University’s Graduate School of Arts and Social Sciences where she is also a clinical site supervisor. Jennifer is an active member of The National Alliance for Children’s Grief, where she serves on the Board of Directors and chairs the Education Committee.

Tiffany Mcknatt (She/Her)
Foster Mom

Tiffany has been fostering for 12 years and got into foster care because of a child who was in the middle school where she worked. Tiffany has been a child care worker since 14 years old, and as an adult, has taught Head Start, Reading Recovery, and additional programs to special needs middle school students. Tiffany is currently a full time substitute teacher in a middle school as well as a foster mom to 6 girls who have experienced severe trauma. Prior to that Tiffany was a single mom to her bio children who are now 36,33,and 27. Tiffany also dealt with a very traumatic childhood, that included alcoholism, drugs, neglect and abuse. Tiffany feels that her ability to beat the odds and heal from that has helped in her journey to support youth with the tough stuff.