Words can’t express my gratitude to The BeliEve Foundation for making it possible to travel the 2-hour commute to Faith’s Lodge from the airport.

From the moment Kelly at Faith’s Lodge referred me to your organization, you have been simply amazing and empathic to our needs. As a single mother who has a daughter in college and one preparing to go back to school, I certainly didn’t have the extra money to make this trip possible. But because of organizations like yours caring enough to make these wonderful blessings happen for families like mine, I was blessed with the opportunity to finally experience peace again.

I’m forever grateful!!!

~Lakeya C., Bereaved Mother and BeliEver

A little less than a year and a half ago, we lost our 7 year old son to a rare neurological disease. My husband and I have 2 children, so our 3 year old daughter also lost her brother. For the last 2 years of his life, I did not work,  I cared for him… that alone was more than a full time job with a feeding tube, a trach and more. About 6 months after he passed, our resources had run dry and, though I didn’t feel I was ready, I returned to work as a hairstylist. The intense, busy nature of the salon and constant new interactions were more than my grieving mama heart could handle.  A day came where I just couldn’t go… I chose to take a leave of absence on the risk of not paying bills because I was emotionally breaking down.

Our world was so totally shattered. Then, I learned about The BeliEve Foundation. We reached out desperate for a little grace as a year after child loss… many people have moved on while our world continued to stand still. The Believe Foundation gave us the financial security to take that leave from work and I actually now have gone to lesser part time and found a new job that is much calmer.

Without the help of The BeliEve Foundation, we would be drowning in debt. They saved us from losing the footing we had gained while our minds and hearts had a little more time to heal. What they are doing is an incredibly needed service in a world no one even wants to think about, but sometimes we do lose children and they make it so that doesn’t also mean we lose homes, cars, or good credit we worked hard for. Money unfortunately does have to matter in these situations, so it’s good to have an amazing foundation like this serving this heartbroken community. Thank you so much from the bottom of our healing hearts!

~Kari O., Bereaved Mother and BeliEver

As Executive Director of Faith’s Lodge, few people are as well equipped to help others begin to rebuild following the death of a child than Kelly McDyre. But nothing could prepare her for the call she would receive last November.

Four children murdered. Their mother assaulted and left for dead by her husband. A costly hospital stay and a lifetime of recovery ahead. What’s more, visual impairment caused by the assault only added to the challenge of a mother seeing her way through unimaginable grief.  She decided she wanted to go to Faith’s Lodge to connect with other parents, and she would travel there alone.

Mary, the lodge manager, called McDyre. “She needs help getting to us. Can we help her?” The answer was easy. The hurdles were not.

The woman’s church was able to pay for her plane ticket to Minneapolis through community donations. But her medical conditions would require special accommodations—and even greater leaps of faith—throughout her journey, starting with transportation logistics for the two-hour long car ride from the airport to Faith’s Lodge in Danbury, Wisconsin.

McDyre is quick to explain that transportation arrangements are not typically a service provided by Faith’s Lodge. “We’re great at taking care of people once they come through our door. But getting them to our door sometimes proves a challenge.” Of course, this situation was anything but typical so McDyre and her staff put their heads together. Then they picked up the phone.

A Minneapolis transportation company offered free use of one of their vehicles. However, the professional driver would require compensation, and a gap in funding threatened to stop the conversation in its tracks. That’s when McDyre reached out to The BeliEve Foundation.

“Their donation enabled us to cover the cost of the driver and more,” said McDyre. The BeliEve Foundation provided this guest with extra massage time, individual counseling sessions and food preparation. “They kept asking how else they could help her.”

When asked what makes The BeliEve Foundation such a valuable partner in helping bereaved parents begin to rebuild after incomprehensible loss, McDyre shared this simple observation: “They do more than step forward; they go above and beyond.”

A long weekend. A much longer journey ahead. Hope for this bereaved mother grew out of her experience at Faith’s Lodge and the generosity of so many others.  “My time at Faith’s Lodge meant so much.  It really helped to be around other parents that feel the same sense of loss that I do.  Now I don’t feel so alone.”

The BeliEve Foundation provided this mother a ray of hope on her long journey of grief.