About Us The
Compassionate Friends is a national organization with chapters in over 660
meeting locations across the U.S. In
small towns and large cities, bereaved parents, siblings, and grandparents meet
together to talk, listen, share, and provide each other emotional support after
the devastating death of a child. The
current Lubbock Chapter of The Compassionate Friends (TCF) was started by two
mothers, Isabel Espinoza and Deneis Arriaga, who lost their beautiful teen-aged
daughters (Felysha and Stephanie respectively) in auto accidents in Lubbock -
just two years apart. Felysha Villa Stephanie Arriaga As we meet together, we learn from each other through our shared experiences. You may find people of all ages attending the meetings - from young adult to seniors. You will find people mourning the loss of an adult child and others who are mourning the loss of a child who never had an opportunity to take its first breath. You may find people whose child died 30 years ago and others with a loss so fresh their pain is measured in days and weeks. A small group of parents who had lost children began meeting to support one another in the summer of 2012 - in the welcoming sanctuary of Holy Ghost Victory Praise Church. In the fall of 2012, a joint effort with Lubbock Christian University's Institute for Strong Families and Hospice of Lubbock resulted in a new meeting location on the Lubbock Christian University campus. We are fortunate that several members of a previous TCF Chapter that existed in Lubbock in the 1990s have returned to reach out to the newly bereaved. They give all of us a much needed perspective - and tremendous hope for the future - as we each try to find our way on our individual grief journeys. |