Community Crisis and Grief

"Com" = "With." Our "com"-passion support for persons experiencing community crisis and collective grief.


Honoring All Affected by Hurricane Katrina, 20 Years Later – August 29, 2025

Twenty years have passed, yet Katrina’s memories remain close.
We pause to honor the many lives lost and the survivors whose lives were forever changed.
We tune into the lasting impact of trauma–wherever and whenever it occurs–and how it continues to shape the ways we live, respond, and care for one another.
This week, we hold New Orleans and all “Katrina” communities in our hearts, sharing “Do You Know What It Means to Miss New Orleans?” as a tribute of remembrance and healing.

Song by Louis Armstrong. Sung by Cherie Mannino. Video by Joy Berger.

Cherie Mannino, LISW-S, the singer of this recording is the

 

Reflections on this 20th Anniversary from Jamey Boudreaux, Executive Director for the Louisiana-Mississippi Hospice & Palliative Care Organization, in Hospice & Palliative Care Today, 8/29/2025

“As I think back to the horror of Katrina – 20 years ago – I remember the eerie silence of a dead city, mostly evacuated – a neighborhood with no cityscape background noise, no sounds of birds chirping or people talking, no music nor even the hum of powerlines or cars.

That silence still haunts me to this day but what I remember most are the folks who helped us put this region of the country back together! In short: I’m grateful for …”

Read Jamey’s Reflections on this 20th Anniversary of Hurricane Katrina
Jamey Boudreaux, Executive Director
Louisiana-Mississippi Hospice & Palliative Care Organization

 

Public Service Education: Community Crisis and Grief

We send support to the many communities, families, and individuals affected by current community crises.
This public service education video describes different kinds of community crises; different groups of persons impacted with basic roles and tasks before and during a community crisis; community grief; and potential effects of community crisis/grief for persons who are already experiencing the “normal” bereavement of a loved one.

Video Segments (click on the video’s progress bar): 0:00 Com = With; 0:31 Different Kinds of Community Loss; 1:24 Who Is Affected? How?; 6:57 Re-Lation-Ships; 8:22 Impact for Already-Bereaved Persons; 9:39 Care for Your Whole Self; 13:58 Months and Years Ahead

 

Calls to Action for All

  • What’s important? A hurricane lets you know. ~ Author unknown.
  • Whether it is a tsunami, or whether it is a hurricane, whether it’s an earthquake – when we see these great fatal and natural acts, men and women of every ethnic persuasion come together and they just want to help. ~ Martin Luther King III
  • In unity, there is strength; when communities come together during a crisis, they can accomplish the impossible. ~ Amanda Ripley, The Unthinkable
  • The greatness of a community is most accurately measured by the compassionate actions of its members. ~ Coretta Scott King

 

CMS Emergency Disaster Preparedness Requirements for All Hospice Providers 

 

Key National Organizations for Community Crisis Preparation, Relief, and Recovery

 

More Personal Resources for Coping with Loss and Grief, from Composing Life Out of Loss

For Organizations: our Grief Video Library (English and Spanish)
For Individuals: our Portal to Grief Care
For Musicians: book, Music of the Soul – Composing Life Out of Loss