The Compassionate Friends Sacramento Valley Chapter

04/14/2026

Shari O'Loughlin, CEO of The Compassionate Friends, shares part of her response to a mother who wrote in to the column "Ask Amy." Visit our website to read the full column.

04/14/2026

Read the current issue as well as past issues of The Compassionate Friends national magazine, "We Need Not Walk Alone" online.

04/14/2026

The Compassionate Friends Sacramento Valley Chapter
Sponsored
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APRIL 17, 2026 TCF MEETING 7:30 PM Dear Members, Posting this as a reminder that our next meeting will be Friday, April 17, 2026 at 7:30 PM. This will be a sharing meeting. We can talk about whatever subjects you would like to share with us. *****************************************************
IN LOVING MEMORY:

Hubert, It was 3 years on March 29th since our last Sunday, Funday with you at home. We love you. We miss you every day.
With love, Your family, Kam (mom), Jorge (dad) Dahlia (sister) Howard (brother).

Happy Birthday Chris, We celebrate you on April 11 on what would have been your 49th birthday. We Love you and miss you every day.
With Love, Abbey and Chad Biehl - Ted and Beverly Borstad - Stacey, Dagny, Leni and Bo Borstad

***************************************************** - Come and receive support from other grieving parents and siblings. We will share our experiences and talk about how we are coping and managing our grief. We find that the support from other TCF members is very valuable on our journey. You are encouraged to bring pictures of your loved ones to share at the meeting. Location: St Mark's United Methodist Church 2391 St. Marks Way Sacramento, CA 95864 Room E-25 2nd floor - Elevator Available Park in the lot facing Lusk Drive We hope to see you there. IF YOU WOULD LIKE TO CALL OR EMAIL THE CHAPTER: EMAIL IS PREFERABLE. [email protected] Our message phone number is: 916/282-4699. This is a 30 second message. Please leave your phone number first and speak clearly so your call can be returned promptly.

Send a message to learn more

03/17/2026

Lindsay Simmons shares in her article, "Grief is Complicated." View our website to read the full article.

03/17/2026

Join us for this free webinar on March 23rd at 12:00 pm EDT. This webinar will provide hope to those bereaved who do not believe they will ever find anything positive in life again. It will help them recognize the gifts or positives that they may have received following the death of their child, sibling or grandchild. We would give anything to have them alive again; however, since we know that cannot happen, we will open their hearts and minds to the gifts they may have received but did not realize them as such. These “gifts” can come in a number of ways, I.e., gifts we give ourselves (hope, courage), gifts given to us (kindness, compassion, understanding), and gifts that evolve with our “new normal” life (personality changes, awareness of nature, compassion, and friendships that are so very priceless). These are positives/gifts we would not have acquired without this loss in our life.

Presenter: Donna Goodrich is a member of the TCF Board of Directors and, (along with her husband, Ralph) is the recipient of the 2020 TCF Recognition award. Donna has had three children to die, a miscarriage, her son, Garth, at birth who was an identical twin and her 17 year old daughter, Lauren in an auto accident. Six months after the death of her daughter, Donna found a chapter of TCF and has been involved in some aspect of the organization for the past 26 years including chartering a new TCF chapter in Charlotte, NC, chapter leader, newsletter editor, served on the committees for the 2010 and 2018 TCF National Conferences, and has conducted 14 Chapter Leadership Training Programs in both North and South Carolina, Virginia and Tennessee. She is currently Co-Regional Coordinator (with her husband) for North and South Carolina. Donna has presented her workshop “Gifts of Grief” at the past 10 National Conferences, and is a moderator for the TCF private page “Loss of a Child” since it began in 2015.

03/17/2026

March 20, 2026 TCF MEETING 7:30 PM
Dear Members, Posting this as a reminder that our next meeting will be Friday, March 20, 2026 at 7:30 PM. This will be a sharing meeting. We can talk about whatever subjects you would like to share with us. Kathy will lead the meeting. Pam is traveling with her family.
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In Loving Memory of Tyler Routt, We miss you every day. We think of you and think about all our happy memories with you. It has been 28 years this month since you passed. It seems so long ago and no time at all. We long to give you hugs and to receive hugs from you. Families are Forever!
LOVE ALWAYS! Dad, (David) Mom, (Kathy) and loving brother Jason.
*****************************************************
- Come and receive support from other grieving parents and siblings. We will share our experiences and talk about how we are coping and managing our grief. We find that the support from other TCF members is very valuable on our journey. You are encouraged to bring pictures of your loved ones to share at the meeting. Location: St Mark's United Methodist Church 2391 St. Marks Way Sacramento, CA 95864 Room E-25 2nd floor - Elevator Available Park in the lot facing Lusk Drive We hope to see you there. IF YOU WOULD LIKE TO CALL OR EMAIL THE CHAPTER: EMAIL IS PREFERABLE. [email protected] Our message phone number is: 916/282-4699. This is a 30 second message. Please leave your phone number first and speak clearly so your call can be returned promptly.

Send a message to learn more

02/07/2026

FEBRUARY 20, 2026 TCF MEETING 7:30 PM
Dear Members,
Posting this as a reminder that our next meeting will be Friday, February 20, 2026 at 7:30 PM. This will be a sharing meeting. We can talk about whatever subjects you would like to share with us.

Pam will be leading the meeting. Kathy will be out of town.
----------------------------------------------------y
IN LOVING MEMORY:
In loving memory of Hubert Eng from Mom, Dad, Dahlia and Howard. Gung Hay Fat Choy Dear Hubert. We miss you every day.
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A Special Moment by Cecelia Gabrielli - Mom of Beloved son, MAX.

There I was in my chaise lounge, wrapped in my quilt, sick, but still working away. A prickle in my airways making me cough again and again. The warmth of the quilt against my skin, pulled up around my neck. In walked my husband, asking to look at the quilt., which I had recently taken down from the high shelf, where it sat for so many years. The quilt was made of pieces of cloth, all around the same size, so many colors and textures. Alien Workshop and Thrasher, Billabong, Mill Creek Resort, and more. So many colors! A little polo pony on red, white and blue plaid. The soft inner layer snuggly and warm. Just like a hug. "Can I see your quilt?" "Yes, I replied. I moved it away from my body. and noticed that something had been stitched to the inside blue flannel lining. It was an "A". A red "A". I held it further away, when I finally saw it. "MAX". She had hand-stitched his name! What a wonderful surprise. After 24 years, my son, Max's clothes, his name, his essence., held close against me, was giving me the hug that I so longed to have. In that moment, he was there with me. My Max. My sweet boy.

Thank you, Kota, Your love shines eternal.
-I.M. Victorious
In Loving Memory of Maximillian Alexander Sanchez 1.
12/03/1987 - 2/17/2002 Forever 14
Special thanks to Dakota, quiltmaker extraordinaire, gone to soon at 38.

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Come and receive support from other grieving parents and siblings. We will share our experiences and talk about how we are coping and managing our grief. We find that the support from other TCF members is very valuable on our journey.
You are encouraged to bring pictures of your loved ones to share at the meeting.
Location:
St Mark's United Methodist Church
2391 St. Marks Way
Sacramento, CA 95864
Room E-25
2nd floor - Elevator Available
Park in the lot facing Lusk Drive
We hope to see you there.
IF YOU WOULD LIKE TO CALL OR EMAIL THE CHAPTER:
EMAIL IS PREFERABLE.
[email protected]
Our message phone number is: 916/282-4699.
This is a 30 second message.
Please leave your phone number first and speak clearly so your call can be returned promptly.

Send a message to learn more

01/22/2026

This is so well said about the kind of friend that a newly bereaved person needs, as well as in the early days, months, and years of grief. The kind of friend who shows up in the darkest of our days, not only when the sun is shining. That is a true friend indeed.

01/22/2026

At our TCF chapters and online groups, you will find bereaved parents, grandparents, and siblings mourning children who have died from all causes at all ages. Some share similar grief experiences, while others have a different but equally painful loss.

We embrace any grieving family, regardless of the circumstances of your child’s death, offering a space for understanding and support.

No shame, no judgment—just compassion.

Visit our website to find a local chapter or online group.

01/14/2026

JANUARY 16, 2026 TCF MEETING 7:30 PM
Dear Members,
Posting this as a reminder that our next meeting will be this coming Friday, January 16, 2026 at 7:30 PM. This will be a sharing meeting. We can talk about facing the new year or whatever subjects you would like to share with us.

( I try to post this reminder earlier in the month. I apologize for being so late).

IN LOVING MEMORY:

Chris it has been 2 years since we lost you. (11-15-23). We think of you every day & miss our time with you.
We love you,
Ted & Bev Borstad, Abbey and Chad Biehl, Stacey Sherwood, Dagny, Leni and Bo Borstad.

Dear Hubert, It will be 1000 days since we heard you sing in December. We love you and miss you
every day.
Love, George, Kam, Dahlia and Howard

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Come and receive support from other grieving parents and siblings. We will share our experiences and talk about how we are coping and managing our grief. We find that the support from other TCF members is very valuable on our journey.
You are encouraged to bring pictures of your loved ones to share at the meeting.
Location:
St Mark's United Methodist Church
2391 St. Marks Way
Sacramento, CA 95864
Room E-25
2nd floor - Elevator Available
Park in the lot facing Lusk Drive
We hope to see you there.
IF YOU WOULD LIKE TO CALL OR EMAIL THE CHAPTER:
EMAIL IS PREFERABLE.
[email protected]
Our message phone number is: 916/282-4699.
This is a 30 second message.
Please leave your phone number first and speak clearly so your call can be returned promptly.

Send a message to learn more

12/13/2025

This Sunday, December 14th, is TCF's 29th Annual Worldwide Candle Lighting. Chapters throughout the United States as well as TCF's sister organizations throughout the world will be holding local candle lightings. TCF National will host a virtual candle lighting and many will participate by lighting a candle at home. Where do you plan to light your candle this Sunday?

12/12/2025

Join us for this free webinar on December 17th at 12:00 pm EST. The holiday season can intensify grief, highlighting what - and who - is missing. In this compassionate and practical session, we will explore why grief often feels different during the holidays and how to navigate the secondary losses that surface this time of year. Participants will learn how to create a personalized plan for coping, approach traditions with intention, and find meaningful ways to honor both loved ones and themselves throughout the season. Visit our website to register to attend.