RICHMOND, Va. — A group of Richmond women who experienced loss and created a Facebook group to help others are now hosting in-person gatherings because "so many people are hurting."
Veruska Brown said she experienced a deep depression after losing her mother.
"I isolated myself; I didn’t come out of the house," Brown said. "I used to have anxiety attacks because I was pretending I was OK, but I wasn't."
As she faced the darkest days of her life, Brown became determined to heal and help others. So she, along with friends Alisha Hawkins and Yvodne Herman, created the Grief Survivors Facebook group.
"Sometimes you just need somebody to listen, so we started a Facebook group," Brown said.
Herman understands the impact of grief well. Her father was murdered when she was a teenager.
"But the anniversary for that was Dec. 7th, so the holidays for me have just not been the best for some time," she said. "Grief is not just about losing loved ones and friends and family to death; grief is losing a boyfriend, a wife, a job."
Herman said she has found ways to lessen the pain and has "come to a place where I can better cope."
"I’m smiling; I’m around people, just able to maneuver better," she said.
As the group quickly grew, they decided to start hosting in-person meetings, seeing attendance increase.
"A lot of hugs and a lot of crying, a lot of comfort and a lot of laughing, you know, and a lot of vulnerability," Hawkins described the group's atmosphere.
One member shared that she had not been out of her house in weeks but decided to attend the group.
The gatherings feature panelists sharing their stories of loss and singers sharing songs to help with healing.
"You might not open bills; you might not answer the phone; you might just let everything go because it's no longer important. You stop living," Hawkins continued. "And so we want people to live. We want them to get their life back."
The group's goal is to comfort grieving hearts and assure them they are not alone.
"Grief can tell you that nobody understands; it's just me, but it's a lot of people out there hurting," Brown said. "It’s OK not to be OK, but you can still enjoy and value the loved ones and people that are here."
The group will meet again on Saturday at Jackie's Restaurant on Laburnum at 4 p.m.
This story was initially reported by a journalist and has been converted to this platform with the assistance of AI. Our editorial team verifies all reporting on all platforms for fairness and accuracy.
CBS 6 is committed to sharing community voices on this important topic. Email your thoughts to the CBS 6 Newsroom.
📲: CONNECT WITH US
Facebook|Instagram|X|Threads|TikTok
