Going home for the holidaysWhen I think of going home for the holidays, I remember the warm times we spent around the kitchen table full of food, holiday treats mom had made, a glittering tree in the living room with many packages waiting for eager fingers to tear away paper; laughter and frolicking plus throwing the ribbons and bows all over the floor. In the midst of the fun and family, never did it occur to me family meant spending the holidays with one parent at one home and the other parent at their home. My holiday at home was then, and this is now, and family means spending holidays sometimes with multiple families. Census officials estimate that only 69 percent of U.S. children live in a two-parent family (the two-parent count includes stepparents). In other words, millions of children will cope with divorce and stepfamily adjustments by the time they are 18. Unfortunately in our corner of the world, Rock County, children of divorce are not exempt from these statistics. Too many times we see families in our community and churches who go through divorce situations leaving the kids wondering what is going on with my family? To ease some of these fears "Helping children cope with Divorce" is a specifically designed curriculum created for children 6-11 years old. The author, Jenni Douglas Duncan, created this program from her own divorce situation. She found herself a newly divorced mom with children 5, 9 and 12. During the time of shock from when the word divorce was mentioned, the children experienced changes of homes, schools, and even eating patterns. From her experience, she has created a program especially for children helping them to cope with the effects of a divorce. In an effort to respond to a call of help from several local parents, a Children of Divorce program is going to run starting Jan. 8, at United Methodist Church in Luverne. COD is an 8-week course support program for children, which provides a safe place where children can deal with the issues that are affecting them. The kids will have arts and crafts, games, story time and supper is provided. If you want to make a difference for a child going through a divorce situation, give either Tammy or myself a call. Tammy Moeller Community Parish Nurse(507) 920-7653 or (507) 283-9077Diaconal Minister, Kristi Franken(507) 283-9732
