Grief Connect: Filling the gap for bereaved Aussies
Content Warning: This article discusses death, grief and loss.
3-minute read
Discover how Grief Connect, overall winner of the 2024 Innovate with nbn® Grants Program, is helping bereaved Australians no matter where they live.
As anyone who has experienced it knows all too well, grief can be one of life’s most intense and confusing experiences – and learning to support and be supported during such times is usually easier said than done.
That’s where Grief Connect® aims to make a big difference.
Based in Roelands, Western Australia, Grief Connect ‘fills the gaps in care’ by providing online grief and bereavement support services.
This includes counselling, widowed support groups and The Grief Language Project®, a grief education course designed to help with conversations around grief and bereavement.
Connecting through grief
Michelle Moriarty, Founder and CEO at Grief Connect, says her personal experience of becoming a young widow at 38 inspired her to start the business.
“In 2018, my partner Nathan died suddenly, and I was left to navigate a world I didn’t ask for.
“It was around four months after Nathan died that I met with other widowed people and created a group that became what is now Grief Connect.
“I didn’t realise how many widowed people were living across Australia. I started by using my social work counselling skills to create counselling services, and we’ve grown from there.”
Grief Connect’s counselling, support group services and The Grief Language Project are designed to connect people online – especially useful for those struggling in isolated areas where support may not be as readily available.
The Project delivers grief education content in webinars and courses, making it accessible to people in regional and remote areas, helping to reduce social and emotional isolation during trying times.
Participants have access to targeted learning modules, including social work practice, knowledge and education, which focus on four pillars: Prepare, Navigate, Survive and Thrive.
Connection at its core
For Michelle, The Grief Language Project is as much about connection as it is about education.
“It’s so important to me to ensure that people who are experiencing grief and loss know and understand what grief looks like and the themes that typically come through.
“Grief is scary. It feels permanent. It feels lonely.
“For me, letting people know that they’re not alone and that this is a process, it’s comforting to people. And teaching them to manage and move forward while honouring those lost is powerful.”
Speaking of moving forward, where to from here for Grief Connect?
Filling the grief gap
Despite losing her partner years ago, Michelle is still struggling with her loss. Such is the nature of grief.
She hopes Grief Connect can provide continued support for widowers and mourners, while also providing a safe space for those newly struggling.
Awarded $35,000 as the Women in Business category winner and overall champion in the 2024 Innovate with nbn Grants Program, Michelle plans to put the funds towards expanding Grief Connect’s programs Australia-wide.
“The aim is to have The Grief Language Project fully rolled out and available to everybody living across Australia, no matter their grief.
“And, most importantly, for grief to be a conversation that everybody across the street is comfortable having.”
While grief may know no bounds, Grief Connect is successfully bridging the tyranny of distance for those that are suffering.
The Innovate with nbn Grants Program
Grief Connect is one of seven Australian businesses that won awards in the 2024 Innovate with nbn Grants Program. Designed to recognise and showcase extraordinary regional and remote businesses that live and breathe technology, grants are awarded across seven categories: Agriculture, Arts, Education, Health, Indigenous Business, Tourism, and Women in Regional Business.
Play the 'Women in Regional Business' and 2024 Innovate with nbn Champion: Grief Connect video (duration 2:40).