The COPE Foundation

 

When Lillian and Robert Julien received that life-changing phone call on January 25, 1992 informing them that their 20-year old daughter Michelle had been killed in a car accident while away at school at the University of Arizona, they had no idea how to cope with such a devastating loss, and couldn’t have imagined at the time being able to rise above the tragedy in their own lives to reach out to others in their situation.

When Judy and Richard Berg’s 15-year-old son David was killed in a skiing accident on January 19, 1992, they could not foresee having the strength to go on with their own lives, as well as playing an integral part in an organization whose purpose is to support other families living with a similar loss.

And when Patti Greenberg lost her 19-year-old daughter Sharon Gallucci on May 26, 1997 to a drug overdose, she could not envision the important organization that COPE would become, an organization she helped to found as a way of turning her grief and her memories of her child into something tangible - something that could help others.


COPE (Connecting Our Paths Eternally) is a non-profit grief and healing organization dedicated to helping parents and families living with the loss of a child.  The organization was literally the outcome of a dream Lillian Julien had one night, shortly after her daughter Michelle’s untimely passing.  A dream in which her daughter appeared before her and said: “I’m OK, Mommy. You’re the ones who aren’t OK.  You need to reach out and help each other.”

Michelle’s message became Lillian’s mission. Lillian awoke with a vision of a healing center, a warm, safe, tranquil and nurturing place where parents and siblings could come together for emotional support and a variety of healing modalities: yoga, meditation, art therapy, movement therapy, music therapy, massage, reflexology, and Reiki. There would be a library, illuminated with warm, soft lighting, furnished with soft, comfortable chairs and couches, and equipped with the resources bereaved families would need to deal with their unimaginable grief. Parents helping parents. Siblings helping siblings. Families helping families.  And yes, friends helping friends. Helping each other to live as well as to grieve.

Based on this dream, Lillian created a spiritual center at her temple for planting seeds.  This organization later moved outside the temple and became COPE.  COPE was recognized as a 501(c) (3) organization in 1999 and has grown from a select group of families meeting in each other’s homes to a support network of over 250 families meeting, gathering and healing in dedicated space in The Elias Hicks Historical Home in Jericho, as well as in generously donated space at the Oceanside Jewish Center, Temple Emanuel in East Meadow, and local libraries.

 

COPE’s programs have expanded to include art, movement and music therapy, special events and workshops, professional forums, a grief hotline and an extensive website, in addition to weekly support group meetings and individual one-on-one support. Lillian still maintains her dream to someday have the COPE house that was part of her initial vision. “Since the inception of COPE, Michelle’s message has been my ongoing inspiration,” says Lillian.  “Her energy is the driving force within me, and she continues to co-create the path of COPE.”

Thanks to the vision of Lillian and Robert Julien, Richard and Judy Berg and Patti Greenberg, COPE is a vital resource for families facing the unimaginable tragedy of the death of a child. While nothing can erase the pain these parents and siblings feel, COPE hopes that through its programs and through the support of its members, bereaved families can learn to lean on each other and take some comfort in the fact that they are not alone.