I’m Patrick Johns. My son, Toby, and I have been finding strength and healing at Hope Floats since 2018, after the loss of his mom, Sarah. Inspired by the incredible support we’ve received, I’m honored to be a peer facilitator, offering a listening ear and a helping hand to other grieving parents and guardians within Mike’s Club.

I was fortunate to find a community of heartfelt support at Hope Floats over the loss of my daughter Jamie. The empathy and insight I received from two beautiful group leaders and other group members was instrumental in guiding me forward in my grief journey. For the past ten years I have facilitated two grief groups for suicide loss. I have been inspired by meeting so many courageous, open-hearted, deeply compassionate individuals and families who have helped each other move forward after such a devastating loss. I also volunteer at Mike’s Club. It has been a joy for me to work with such honest and resilient kids, who continue to put a smile on my face at each meeting.

 I’m retired living in Plymouth with my husband. I enjoy reading, hiking, biking, kayaking and walking my 90lb exuberant lab Hudson who never stops wagging his tail.
Sara Weiss, co-facilitator of the Child Loss I group, experienced the profound loss of her 9-year-old son, Jordan, in 2003 due to complications because of a missed type 1 diabetes diagnosis.
Motivated by this tragedy, Sara and her husband initiated a warning signs of diabetes awareness campaign in Massachusetts, which has since contributed to the diagnosis of 35 children. Her advocacy includes service on the American Diabetes Association’s New England Chapter Advocacy Committee, presenting at the Massachusetts State House, and receiving national recognition at the ADA’s scientific session. Sara has also shared her story and awareness campaign in training sessions for school nurses at the Joslin Diabetes Center in Boston.
Sara is an ambassador for Beyond Type 1’s diabetes awareness campaign and has collaborated with the Massachusetts chapter of the American Academy of Pediatrics to expand this campaign within the state. Her insights are featured in her published story, “A Mother’s Cautionary Tale,” on the BT1 website. Beyond her advocacy work, Sara has also found healing and purpose in music. She performed professionally in a vocal trio throughout Boston and currently sings with Pilgrim Festival Chorus, a premier South Shore choral ensemble, where she serves as president. Sara continues to honor Jordan’s memory while offering support and hope to others facing similar challenges.

Bio Coming Soon!

Ken supports Hope Floats’ outreach and operations as board treasurer and also as caretaker of the grounds and buildings. Alongside Denise, he spearheads financial planning, grant writing, and networking. Since 2018, Ken has also helped facilitate a support group for Dads who have lost a child.

A nonfiction author who has also worked as a journalist, in business publishing, and as a teacher, Ken has a M.Ed. in Curriculum and Instruction from Northeastern University. He taught high school English at TechBoston Academy in Dorchester, Ma.

His second book, Especially For You, tells the uplifting stories of people who find a new purpose after unspeakable loss and how people grow through their catastrophic trials. He also wrote Closer By The Mile, the story of the Pan-Mass Challenge bike-a-thon for cancer research. Ken contributes a blog for Psychology Today’s website and on his author’s site, http://www.kenbrack.com.

My husband, Rob, was diagnosed with stage IV malignant melanoma cancer in June of 2013 and died on January 24, 2014. The grief was unbearable. I found myself crying and feeling so alone. I had lost not only my partner in life but my best friend. I didn’t want to go on without him. I just wanted to give up.

Two months later I found myself sitting in a grief support group at Hope Floats in Kingston. I found it so helpful to hear others share their feelings and their personal walk through loss and grief. We all had one thing in common, the person we loved died. I found people just like me and I no longer felt alone. We all were looking for answers while needing to talk about the person we loved. Being together gave us hope and the most important thing we learned is that nobody should have to grieve alone. The group was instrumental in giving me the tools I needed to find peace and happiness again in my shattered life.

After a year passed and I had attended a couple of groups I decided I never wanted anyone to feel alone. I signed up to take a nine week training class through Cranberry Hospice in Plymouth to train to be a grief support group facilitator. I wanted to pass forward the knowledge, support and encouragement that was given to me on my grief journey.

I have learned that groups are all so unique and different and so are the people in them. One of the best things about each group is the reminder that nobody is alone. Grief can feel very lonely and isolating, especially when nobody else around you seems to be grieving. Although no two people experience grief in the exact same way, by attending a support group people find others with the same experiences, feelings and struggles as their own. It feels good to be a part of a group and to feel accepted and validated. Experiencing the death of a loved one can make people feel different. Grief is not a club anyone wants to belong to but once they are in it there is a great benefit to surrounding themselves with other members.

There is healing in helping and giving. Facilitating grief support groups has taught me a lot about myself and has provided me the opportunity to use my own experience to help others. I didn’t realize how much I had learned in my own journey until I found myself guiding and supporting others in their struggle with grief. It is truly a gift to be able to help others navigate their way through the maze of grief in a very personal and meaningful way.