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W W W. M A I N E B I Z . B I Z 37 M A R C H 1 8 , 2 0 2 4 AWARD B U S I N E S S L E A D E R S O F T H E Y E A R Mainebiz: How did you get your start and what led you to a career at the Center for Grieving Children? Anne Heros: In 1992, my 10-year- old daughter died suddenly and I found out about the center through her school. I went to the center with my two sons, who were 11 and 8 at that point, and the center was in a warehouse. e center moved a lot in the first 10 years, so I have seen so much of the journey. What was so important in my heart was what the volunteers were doing. I was blown away that they had volunteers who would give up their time and facilitate a group of people who were walking a walk similar to yourself, in terms of the loss of a child or the loss of a partner. at is where the love started and I had that feeling when my boys no longer had to go to the center and I needed to leave the cen- ter as well; it didn't have grief parent groups at that point. But, I had it in my mind that I would like to be strong enough one day to go back and volunteer. In 1995, I trained to be a volunteer and in 1997, I started on the staff and in 2001, I took over as executive director. MB: What inspires you? AH: e name Center for Grieving Children and our tagline — 'Where Families find Hope and Love' — is what really drives me because that is what helped me and so to me, that is as critical now as it was back when the center first started 36 years ago. Supporting a family going through a crisis of a death or life-threatening illness or newly arrived to this country from a war- torn zone are areas where families need support. We don't deal with one person in isolation; we want to deal with a whole family if we can. Back 36 years ago, that wasn't really getting the exposure and proof as a model that it is needed. ere was a desire for education around children and grieving and parenting, having family members understand that and not be afraid to answer a child's questions. Even today, I see it. It is the most natural thing to pro- tect a child from something that is extremely sad. Yet, if we don't kind of keep them in the conversation and answer their questions honestly, they fill that void with something that could be more troubling. MB: What do you hope for the future of the center? AH: I hope it continues to meet the needs of the community but also it will keep the services free. at to me is huge. MB: Name one valuable lesson you've learned during your many years with the center. AH: Volunteerism, really. Part of the magic of the center is its volunteers because they are, I call it, uncondi- tional love. ey are present with families while they are going through a difficult time, and that restores your whole hope in society when you are trying to rebuild your own family after a crisis of some kind. Alexis Wells, Mainebiz staff writer, can be reached at awells @ mainebiz.biz Home Equity Line of Credit QUICK. SIMPLE. LOCAL. B O R R O W U P T O 9 0 % 2 F I X E D F O R 6 M O N T H S 4.99 % APR 1 KatahdinTrust.com/Home-Equity APPLY ONLINE TODAY! All loans are subject to credit approval. Property insurance is required. Loan amounts from $10,000.00 to $500,000.00. 1) 4.99% Annual Percentage Rate (APR) effective 02/11/2023 is fixed for 6 months from closing date, at which time the APR will become variable at the Prime Lending Rate as quoted in The Wall Street Journal (8.50% as of 02/01/2024) plus or minus a margin based on the amount of your credit line. Prime is a variable rate; as it changes, the APR on your account will also change. APR will never exceed 18.00%. Stated APR is effective for line amounts between $10,000-$500,000 with an auto payment from a Katahdin Trust personal checking account. All Bank loan programs, rates, terms and conditions are subject to change at any time without notice. 2) First mortgage must be with Katahdin Trust to borrow up to 90% of home value. If not, maximum loan-to-value ratio is 80%. MEMBER FDIC EQUAL HOUSING LENDER D a m a r i s c o t t a S h o w r o o m H A M M O N D L U M B E R . C O M | 1 - 8 0 0 - H A M M O N D L o o k i n g t o s t a r t a w i n d o w s & d o o r s p r o j e c t ? W e ' d l o v e t o h e l p ! V i s i t o n e o f o u r s t o r e s t o g e t s t a r t e d ! 22 LOCATIONS ACROSS MAINE & NEW HAMPSHIRE SHOWROOMS The name Center for Grieving Children and our tagline — 'Where Families find Hope and Love' — is what really drives me because that is what helped me and so to me that is critical as much now as it was back when the center first started 36 years ago.

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