Partner of mine accident victim welcomes Saskatoon support group for families affected by workplace deaths

A new support group is launching in Saskatoon this month that aims to help families affected by workplace fatalities cope with grief and share their experiences.

Threads of Life is bringing a six-week program to offer "a safe, non-judgemental place to find hope and healing by sharing experiences," according to a media release from program managers. 

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The sessions will focus on healthy coping skills and will also give families a chance to talk about and learn from each other's losses. 

"We've had some good interest," said family support manager Kate Kennington. "We're still in the beginning stages of getting the word out there."

Kennington said the group is hoping to accommodate about a dozen people.

"To have others who understand what they are really going through … it becomes very complicated for families in their whole grieving process," she said. 

The sessions will focus on healthy coping skills and will also give families a chance to talk about and learn from each other's losses. 

Support starting at a good time

The program comes on the heels of a deadly summer for workers in Saskatchewan. 

Eric Ndayishimiye, 21, died after an accident at the construction site of the Saskatchewan Children's Hospital on July 21. 

On Aug. 22, Dustin Pratt, an operator with Panther Drilling, died at a work site near Alameda, Sask.

One worker was seriously injured and another, Chad Wiklun, was killed after two separate incidents in a two-week span at Agrium's potash mine near Vanscoy, Sask.

Wiklun's partner, Celina Danis, said she and her two young daughters are still coming to grips with the tragedy.

She said she would welcome a face-to-face support group.

"It gives a chance to talk to somebody in the same situation as us and get their side of how they've been dealing with it," Danis told CBC News on Thursday. 

"There's so many people who have reached out to me saying, 'hey, we're here to support you,' but it's all online based," Danis added. "It would be nice to get together with a group of people to say 'hey here is my story and that's how I'm dealing with it'," she said. 

When asked if she would consider joining, she said 'absolutely'. 

Jesse Todd is a workplace health and safety advocate in Saskatchewan. He lost his stepfather Howard Willems to a form of cancer linked to asbestos in 2012. Willems believed he contracted the disease while inspecting a number of older food plants in Saskatchewan during his time as a building inspector. 

Todd believes there is a need for this type of group in the province.

"I think bringing other families that might be going through the same process would be a good thing," he said. "You feel like you're not alone."

"Giving them that environment to grieve openly … they do feel like they have people that are there for them," Todd added. 

Others need support too

The sessions in Saskatoon will begin on Tuesday, Sept. 27. They are open to people 18 and older who are family members of people who died in workplace accidents up to five years ago. 

Todd, however, would like to see the group opened up beyond the family. 

"Maybe the coworkers of the people that have passed away over the past couple of months," Todd said. "When you go to work everyday you see the same people everyday and you become quite close."

"It would be good to have those support groups, those types of outlets that people can grieve openly and they can have someone to talk to," he said.