TYLER, Texas — The Children’s Park of Tyler hosted Putt Putt in the Park event Saturday for some family fun and in celebration of the nonprofit's 20th anniversary.
The Children’s Park of Tyler is a resource that supports families suffering through various stages of loss for a child.
“Loss is loss,” board member Anna Zumwalt said. “If someone loses a child, we do not grieve alone, and there is hope on the other side of grief.”
Putt Putt in the Park was part of a 20-year anniversary celebration to highlight the park’s mission to help families.
“We're just celebrating all the families that we've touched, and hope to help and touch more lives,” board member Jessica Devilibiss said.
Daisy Phillips, who experienced a miscarriage less than a year ago, and her family know that loss all too well.
“It's a club that you never want to be a part of and you never want new members,” Phillips said.
This was a chance for Phillips to help herself open up about her pain and reach out to others in similar situations for comfort.
“When you do find out that someone has experienced loss, it's an opportunity to really shepherd and be vulnerable and to let somebody know, 'hey, if I've experienced this as well, and it was hard for me, and I'm here for you,'” Phillips said.
Devilbiss said there are experiences that people walking through grief have that other people don't understand.
Devilbiss said opening up and asking for help can be one of the biggest challenges after losing a child.
“I was a little weary, but I took a deep breath and walked through that threshold, and they greeted me with open arms and said, whatever you feel is OK to feel here,” Devilbiss said.
Devilbiss lost her child at 34 weeks as a stillborn.
“There was no way I was going to survive without some kind of support and this group really helped launch me into this new part of my life,” she said.
The Children's Park of Tyler will be holding its next event in October Day of Remembrance, where the park will celebrate those children lost.