Haven of Northern Virginia provides emotional support to the bereaved, the seriously ill, the dying, and their families and friends.
Nestled in the woods on Ravensworth Road in Annandale, Haven offers a place of safety or refuge. Dorothy Garrett, who founded Haven in 1976, wanted that for clients.
Garrett founded two other organizations in the 1970s that continue to serve to this day: Birthright (now Hope) of Northern Virginia and Hospice of Northern Virginia (now Capital Caring).
The idea of Haven came to Garrett as she read about the work of Mother Teresa of Kolkata and after a visit to Rome where she attended the canonization of Elizabeth Ann Seton with the late Arlington Bishop Thomas J Welsh. Her vision of what Haven could and should be continues to animate Haven to this day.
While Garrett’s Catholicism, she was a convert, informed Haven’s founding, it is nonsectarian, serving the needs of anyone who is grieving and has suffered the loss of a loved one. Haven’s services are provided by a cadre of some 30 volunteers as no one associated with Haven is paid. It offers a variety of programs, such as spousal groups, those dealing with parental loss, in-person and Zoom suicide loss support groups, in-person individual support, and an upcoming, first-ever new workshop designed for those who have experienced the loss of a sibling.
Since its inception nearly 50 years ago, Haven has provided its free services to thousands. One client, Susan from Springfield, was married for nine years to George. It was the second marriage for both. They had a shared interest in sailing. He was 13 years older than she, and while they always understood it was quite likely he might pass before she, his passing was totally unexpected as he died suddenly, 24 hours after the onset of pneumonia.
Susan did not get a chance to say goodbye and the suddenness of George’s loss was “a blow to the gut with a startling impact.” Susan was 65 when she lost George in the spring and by the following fall she learned of Haven, which was promoting a program on how to deal with the loss of a spouse. She joined the group of eight members for a six-week session. She was provided concrete suggestions about dealing with her grief, with handouts, readings, exchanges of ideas about how to cope with the holidays. Susan describes Haven as a “lifeline … totally non-threatening.” Even years later, the grieving can still come over her in waves, and there are good and bad days, she said. “When you are grieving, you are vulnerable, and you need to reach out to people you trust such as you find at Haven.”
Haven services are provided by volunteers, not therapists, who have been vetted and gone through a rigorous training process. Joni Greene, a parishioner of Our Lady of Hope Church in Potomac Falls, is Haven’s longest serving volunteer, having started with Haven in 1989. She is still quite enthusiastic about Haven and its mission. Greene has filled a variety of roles at Haven over the years — answering the phone, a member of the staff, unofficial historian, public relations director, speaker bureau organizer, even executive director and webmaster.
“I enjoy helping the client,” she said, adding that she sees the need for it in the community and she’s seen the benefits of Haven’s work.
Greene believes that when speaking with someone who has suffered a loss, no matter how recent or far in the past, the most important question to ask is “How are you doing today?”
Suicide loss is an important focus of Haven’s mission and it has a number of upcoming and ongoing activities to address those grieving. There will be a Suicide Loss Workshop June 1, 10 a.m.-3 p.m. There is an online Zoom support group that meets the first and third Saturday of every month from 11 a.m.-12:30 p.m. as well as a “drop-in” support group the second Saturday of every month from 11 a.m.-12:30 p.m.
Starting June 8 and for the following three Saturdays, Haven will hold a spousal loss group from 1:30-3 p.m.
Find out more
To learn more about the programs or to volunteer, call 703-941-7000, go to havenofnova.org or email [email protected].
