It's OK to Talk About Grief

Hi, my name is Judy Foy. When my Loved One died in 2020, I felt called to write the book Buttons and the Butterfly to help me put what I felt in my heart into words. Readers tell me it fills a need for a book that addresses death in a way that young children can understand but is also honest about grief and the emotions accompanying loss. Readers also share that the book brings them comfort about their Loved One being with God and the good news that they will be one day too. "So beautiful" is the most common reaction.

The book is unique for a picture book on grief in that it uses photographs (mine), showing the natural world and inviting curiosity in the beauty around us as a path toward healing. I include many photographs that are close-ups. For example, one is a dandelion which I describe as covered in little stars. A reader said her granddaughter pressed her face up to the page to see them and that afterward, whenever she would see a dandelion she'd show people the little stars - makes adults think differently about dandelions, perhaps! Children also enjoy the related activity book that helps them process their feelings.

Many adults and older children/teens find it as comforting as children, even long after a loss. One adult reader who lost his daughter many years ago said, "I wish we'd had this book back then. It would really have helped."

Both books are available on Amazon, but readers tell me the books "need to be out in the world." For example, a dying parent can read the book with the child and begin to prepare both of them for what will happen next. Or in funeral homes, while adults are occupied, an older child or family member might pick up a copy on the table, read it with the child, and begin to process the death of their loved one. Or in schools or in offices of mental health professionals, a child who has suffered a loss and hasn't been able to talk about their loss might be given a copy of the books.

Together with this fundraiser, we can provide comfort and healing directly to grieving families by distributing free copies of this book to bereavement ministries, hospitals, nursing homes, grief groups, and other related programs. Every $10 you donate gives one child and their family a Buttons and the Butterfly book and related activity book at no cost. Buttons and the Butterfly helps readers navigate through grief, reminding them that change is not an end but the beginning of something new and that God's love endures. Let's share this message with children and their families at a time when they most need comfort and help to show them a way forward.