Within minutes of meeting Deborah Grassman you realize two things – this is a woman who is passionate about helping people and she is a woman on a mission. Deborah and her five fellow nurses spent their careers tending to over 10,000 dying veterans in the VA hospital. Veterans who had seen combat or had other traumas in their lives carried inner wounds that were revealed when they could no longer keep up the façade. You see, the dying no longer have the energy or time to wear a mask. On their deathbeds, these veterans shared their stories, their regrets, their pain, their unforgiven guilt/shame and their unmourned loss. These caring nurses bore witness to people finally acknowledging a part of themselves that they had disconnected from. By accepting these parts of their life stories, they finally found peace – peace in their soul. They learned how to be loving, gentle, and compassionate with themselves. They died healed. They died having taught one final lesson that these six women now carry to the rest of the world. They revealed what a Soul Injury looks like.

  Opus Peace, a non-profit organization founded to identify and respond to Soul Injuries, has dedicated 2017 to informing professionals and the public about Soul Injuries and has partnered with Hospice Foundation of America, Veterans Funeral Care, AseraCare Hospice and Tragedy Assistance Program for Survivors (TAPS) in producing a 90-minute documentary about Soul Injury. You will learn how most of us have acquired a Soul Injury in one form or another. Responding to Soul Injuries requires a different approach – an approach that includes responding to unmourned loss and unforgiven guilt/shame. Designed to include a 30-minute panel discussion following the film, this program provides two hours of continuing education credits for nurses, social workers, chaplains, psychologists, counselors and other professionals.

  This is a wonderful opportunity for your company to be a change-agent in your community by hosting a Soul Injury event. Hospices, Veterans, families of veterans, healthcare organizations, clergy and faith-based communities will thank you for recognizing the value of this film and including them in the discussion. The cost is minimal and includes DVD, instruction manual, panel-discussion guide, and handouts. For complete information, visit the HFA website at www.hospicefoundation.org

  I recently took part in a four-day training to become a Soul Injury Ambassador and I have seen firsthand the power of this healing process. Working with the bereaved I am excited to know about Soul Injuries and be able to bring comfort and peace in a new way to those I serve. This is your opportunity to become a part of a growing movement that is being taken to the halls of Congress (via a proclamation declaring January national Soul Injury Awareness month), into churches, health-care systems, and now funeral homes and cemeteries. To learn more, visit the Opus Peace website at www.SoulInjury.org or give me a call. I’d love to tell you more about what I have learned and why you need to be a part of this pioneering event in 2017.