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Contact: Jackie Shelton

jackieshelton@sbcglobal.net / 775.772.6543

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:

Emilio Parga Named Recipient of the University of Phoenix
2012 Alumni Community Service Award

Reno, NV (August 18, 2012) –

Solace Tree Executive Director, Emilio Parga, has been selected as the recipient of the University of Phoenix (UOP) 2012 Alumni Community Service Award. His story will be featured in the UOP alumni magazine. He has also been invited to throw out the first pitch at the UOP Alumni event, being held at the Reno Aces game, Sunday, August 26 at 1:10pm.

In addition to the Solace Tree, Parga has co-founded four other grief centers in Nevada, as well as one in New York, with more planned for the future. He is the author of No Child Should Grieve Alone and four journals written with children for children who have experienced a death, all of which are sold internationally. You’ll Always Be With Me, the Solace Tree documentary he worked on with the local KNPB (the Reno PBS affiliate), was selected as a 2011 Silver Communicator Award winner.

Emilio also serves as an Clinical Assistant Professor at the University of Nevada School of Medicine, as a bereavement consultant to local schools, social service agencies, universities, hospitals and funeral homes, as well as providing in-service credits, trainings and lectures related to children and teens dealing with death. Working as a volunteer for the Tragedy Assistance Program for Survivors (TAPS), he has provided counseling for military families, as well as the families of 9-11 victims. He is also a national speaker for the

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Reno, NV (May 14, 2012) – The Solace Tree has received a grant of $35,000 from the Chicago-based William C. McGowan Charitable Fund, which has a vision to “impact lives today, create sustainable change, and empower future generations to achieve their greatest potential.” The grant, which is subject to the Solace Tree matching it with $31,200, will be used to launch “Virtual Solace,” a web-based program that will allow the Solace Tree to offer grief support group services to remote or underserved communities. “We’re doing good work on a local level, and this program will allow us to leverage our proven model beyond the Reno-Sparks area,” said David Wertzberger, Solace Tree Board Chair. “We get requests for help from all over the country, but it’s not feasible for us to set up a Solace Tree in all these places just yet. With Virtual Solace, we can still help these people.”

“Unresolved grief and community depression can lead to delinquency and crime. Our work alleviates that for communities like Douglas County, Fallon, Fernley, Elko, and Austin, pretty much anywhere there’s an Internet connection”, says Emilio Parga, Executive Director. ”And, there is not currently grief support available for children and teens in much of Nevada and in many areas of the country.”

Money raised will go toward staff and technology necessary to implement the program, including:

• Go-To-Meeting software
• Adequate bandwidth
• Internet media specialist
• Directional cameras for groups

The Solace Tree has raised $6,000 from John Worthington toward the matching grant so far, and is now asking the community for donations

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I’m Here With You: A Community Forum on Understanding Children and Grief May 7th

Understanding how young children grieve is the focus of

I’m Here With You: A Forum on Children and Grief
on May 7, 2012 from 6:30 PM – 9:30 PM
at the Jewish Community Center in York.

Please click here to reserve your seat for this FREE community event.

The witf and Facing Cancer Together sponsored community forum is designed for adults who care for young children—families, teachers, principals, child care professionals.

In this special community forum, child grief experts Leslie Delp, M.A. (founder and bereavement specialist at Olivia’s House in York, PA) along with Emilio Parga, M.A. (founder and director at The Solace Tree in Reno, Nevada), will help us sort through myths, fears, and questions related to children’s grief.  Many of us just want to figure out what to say.

“You will never scar a child for life by talking about death,” says Leslie Delp, the founder and bereavement specialist at Olivia’s House in York.  Olivia’s House is a grief and loss center that offers no cost services for children and young adults whose family member, close friend, or even pet has died.   As adults, death can be a confusing and overwhelming topic for us. What must that all seem like to a young child?  Sometimes in our efforts to protect a child from something that scares us, are we really just creating more confusion?

“I often ask parents what they would say if their child asked them about rocket science, “ says Delp, “It is a great opportunity

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