The Angel Connection
A Newsletter and Support Group for Bereaved Parents

The Angel Connection was created
in loving memory of my daughter Jaymi

It began as a tiny newsletter that grew across my home state of North Carolina.

I believe it does so well because it simply focuses on recovery after a loss not for parents of miscarriage, stillbirth, older children, accidents, suicide or homicide as a separate entity, but as bereaved parents as a whole, who while touching and reaching out, learn from each other, teach each other and love each other.

I want the Angel Connection to cover the entire spectrum of loss for parents because when we first lost Jaymi I didn't feel a place of belonging anywhere. I went to meetings of parents who lost their babies, but they were mostly miscarriage and still births. I went to bereavement groups with parents that lost older children, but many of them had watched their children grow, and many of them already had grandchildren and again I felt misplaced. When I began The Angel Connection (newsletter), my thought was I'd mail it to anyone that needed it, and anyone that needed me I was there for. Many of the older parents, especially those that lost daughters let me momentarily fill those empty places with love and support. And the younger parents looked to me for love and support merely as someone who had been down there beside them and who suffered the loss of losing a child as they had.

Since Feb. 1995 I have been publishing The Angel Connection counseling individuals in their healing and facilitating bereavement groups.

I know on the web there are millions of places to find help and information. But it seems my helping others in any way possible, whether through friendship or through a kind word; that is my mission in life. I thank all of you that have been with me from the beginning of Angel Connection. I thank those of you who take the time to mail me poems, graphics and letters to help with this site and the newsletter. And I thank God for all the blessings he has bestowed on my life. Please sign my new guest book and let me know you have visited The Angel Connection... Thanks so much!

Offering a shoulder when you cry, holding your hand while you heal, Cyssi







Angel Jaymi:
5-16-1989 to 2-2-1990

In loving memory of Jaymi.

Sweet little babe, wrapped in lavendar and lace.
You've a darling smile, on your angelic face.
You're a gift from God of his loving grace.

You're forever loved, held high in our thoughts.
You've given so much, as a teacher, you've taught.
You're remembered with love, so don't worry naught!

You can never be forgotten, for you are so rare.
A diamond or ruby, no jem can compare!
For Jaymi sweet angel, you're far more fair!

You're more beautiful, more exquisite, than any imagined dream.
A cherished angel of love, flowing freely like a stream.
Far more brighter than any star, for angel Jaymi, you gleam!

Shirley M. (Mark's Mom)
August 14th, 2008



How The Angel Connection has helped some of our members:

The Angel Connection:

The angel connection has touched my soul.
Healing my sorrows, making me whole.
Cyssi and Jaymi have created a safe and warm place.
Full of love, peace and healing with an angels grace.
God bless us all, on this weary path.
God save us all, from this awful wrath.
It's a pain so raw, forever a wound.
Never forgotten, they were gone too soon!
Our angels' are amongst us, we're never apart.
Our creator, within us heals our hearts.
For today and always, we'll see you through.
Love, peace and healing.
From The Angel Connection, to you.

Shirley M. (Mom of Mark)
August 14th, 2008




Name : Rene Jones
Mother of : Tricia Jones
I live in : Arkansas

How I was helped by The Angel Connection : Gosh where to start. How have you all not helped me. When I First joined this group I was very new in my Grief and drowning in it. I can remember the first time I wrote. I don't think I had breathed in days. I was lost and hurt and in total disbelief of what had happened to my family and my lil girl. Everyone listened and let me vent even things that now doesn't make sense to me but there you all were nonjudgmental, always loving and caring, not once were my emails not answered by many, comforting words of encouragement. I seldom write anything but I am forever reading and trying to get my life back in order. I guess the best thing I have gotten from this group is simply "I am still alive" and I will get through the day whether I want to or not. Even 3 months ago, I was drowning, I hadn't wrote anything in a long while, Tricia angel date had just passed and there in my inbox was an ecard from cyssi. It was simple and may have been sent to everyone in the group but for that day it was addressed only to me and it was exactly what I needed to get through that day. I believe I even sent you a thank you note. Cause I really did need it and there it was. I am getting stronger in this and feel soon maybe I will be able to give someone comfort and strength the way you have given me. I don't know you personally and I've never met you but I love you all Cyssi, you all have been my backbone through this and I will never forget it.

Blessings to you all Rene Jones mom to Tricia my forever angel



Name : Diana
Mother/Father of : Mommy to angel Christopher Josef
I live in : Jacksonville Florida

How I was helped by The Angel Connection :
The support I recieved when I most needed it. I didn't want to go out to a group meeting and internet seemed to be the easiest when you don't want to go any where or see anyone. It was easier for me to deal with my grief through the love and support of strangers who have become dear friends than to have to look someone in the eyes and try to hold back the tears.
John Plourde, Cyssi , Terry Heath and several others were and continue to be the most support I could have ever dreamed of.



Hello......My name is Diane Whelton and I am MOM to Angel David Jr. (10/8/80-6/15/05). My Husband Dave, daughter Gwen (single mom), 3 grandchildren are now living back in the Boston area. Angel Connection has been a part of my busy life for almost 3 years now and I still need the group to vent, ramble, and the need to know I am not alone. I still have dreams and visions, voices, as I am on medication and still have problems sleeping. Angel Connections is there when I want to write at three in morning or eleven at night. If I'm having a bad day it is there in the morning or at one in the afternoon. To read and understand everyone's input is so a part of the healing.
Thank you for this opportunity....
Sincerely,
Diane Whelton
Boston



Name: Reeny
Mother of Dustin Lee and Becky Lynn
I live in the great state of Oklahoma
How I was helped by The Angel Connection :
I can not count the times just a post,poem or knowing some one was out there going though what I was at a down time over the last few years since becoming a part of the Angel Connection . To have our angels acknowledged and to know that they live on in memory of other's as well as your own memory is awesome in it 's self . To be able to share our angels with each other and never be afraid of a rude or unkind remark no matter how they gained their wings is another way the group is so unique. Cyssi has done a Super jog over the years keeping this a safe and beautiful group to be a part of ..And i want to thank her and let all here know i care deeply for you all and your angels .



Name: Trina
Mother of: Nathan Daniel
I live in Charlotte NC

I have been a member of The Angel Connection since 1997. My husband and I read about a bereavement group in a town about an hour from us. We had been wanting and NEEDING to go to one, but you see; our son Nathan killed himself. The stigma that goes with that is and was one of horror and judgement, so we didn't want to go to a group in our home town even if it would have been much closer. I remember I called Cyssi late one night, around 11:00. I expected to get an answering machine or voice mail or something by this very kind voiced gentlemen answered the phone. I asked for the lady that had the grief groups and I could hear him tell his wife (in a very sleepy voice), Honey it's one of your angel people. Cyssi quickly picked up the phone. We spoke for three hours. She was so open compassionate and nonjudgmental that I knew we would be safe at one of her meetings. We went to her meetings at the local library, at a local church, at a local community center and finally in her own office/angel store, a place that was created just for us. Cyssi reaches out and helps everyone that asks for it and she has taught us that we can too. She and her newsletter have brought us tears, laughter, memories, healing and many new and wonderful friends. God blessed us when he brought this young lady into our world. Thank you Cyssi, thank you Angel Connection, Thank you God.



Name : Lori Hall
Mother/Father of : Mother to Danielle Marie Hall
I live in : Imlay City, Michigan

How I was helped by The Angel Connection :
To know that while I am here, living and breathing, I am not alone. I believe that the only other time a person will feel the depth of what it is like to loose their child is when your time comes and you are standing totally alone, awaiting our Lord's blessing to enter heaven....You cannot truly describe what it is like to be us....but to us who live this way now, it helps me to know I am not alone. The Angel Connection has given me a place where I can totally be my new self....speak unspeakable thoughts out loud to all of you and know that you understand. When I am on the ground sobbing uncontrollably and cannot even crawl through my grief, I know my creator is here with me....but I am a human being and I need other contact with living souls to not feel so alone....I need to love all of you....and your angel's.
Lori Hall mother to Angel Danielle M. Hall 6-21-1987 to 4-1-2005



Name: Terry
Mom to: Tina

The angel connection has changed my life is so many ways, knowing that (unfortunately) I'm not alone in my pain and grieving, that someone else has walked there before me and understands the horrible path that we journey every day. I appreciate the fact that when ever I need to cry, vent or whatever, there are people listening to me. And most of all I appreciate Cyssi for having this group, because without you(Cyssi)where would we all be.
Terry mom to Tina



Name: Bobby and Diane Davis
Parent's of Stephanie Dawn
We live in Hickory NC

Our daughter was killed in Myrtle Beach SC in 2001. We found CYssi and the angel connection in 2002. We were separated and about to file for divorce. Diane asked me to go with her to one of those support groups to see if it would do any good. I didn't want to air our laundry in front of a bunch of strangers. As soon as we met Cyssi we knew we weren't among strangers we were among people that knew how we felt and would share their experiences with us and help us to not feel so alone. My wife and I attended all of the group sessions that were held, then we began getting counseling privately with Cyssi and slowly working through our grief separately then together. We will celebrate our 30 wedding anniversary in August and we owe much of our renewed success to The Angel Connection and all the members that listened and shared, celebrated the beautiful life of our daughter Stephanie and cried at the tragic ending of her life.



Name: Shirley
Mother of: Mark Andrew

The Angel Connection has helped me in many ways, from the first day that I joined, and even now. I love coming here, whether I'm happy or sad. I'm always dealing with the loss of my son Mark Andrew. There is always someone here to talk to, someone who understands my feelings. Grief is a chore, it is very hard work. And the hardest thing a parent will ever deal with. It takes alot of time, understanding, faith and most of love to heal through. Cyssi, has created a place just for that. A place to sit back have a cup of coffee a place to find another who shares your sorrow. A place where someone is there to give you all of the time, and understanding you need. It's a place to regain your faith, you've possibly lost your faith in God. It's a place to find compassionate people who will help you as you walk this hard and lonely path. And it's a place that no parent would want to go, but once you've found it, you are allowed to grieve. And through your grief, you will heal.
God bless you. Shirley



Name : Padie
Mother/Father of : Amelia
I live in : Concord, CA

How I was helped by The Angel Connection : Where do I start? I found this group about 3 weeks after Amelia was stillborn. I was so lost, I missed her and being pregnant with her so much. I tryed to get into contact with other groups, but they took too long to respond. I needed to get out how I was feeling, yet everyone around me kept telling me that they had no idea how I felt, how it felt to lose a child. This group welcomed me with open arms and slowly I started feeling like I wasn't alone, that there were people that knew how I felt. Slowly I started to accept that everything that I felt was "normal". The group "held" me when I needed to cry, heck they encouraged me to. Here it is just over a year since I found them, I am stronger today then I have ever been and it is the love that I was shown here that helped me go on. Now I try to help when I can, I try to be a part of someone else's light in the dark.
Padie ~sweet baby Amelia's Mama



Name: John
Mother/Father of: Danielle Marie Plourde
I live in: Southington, Connecticut

How I was helped by The Angel Connection:
The help that I have received from the “Angel Connection” goes far beyond any words that I can use to describe. After the death of my daughter, Danielle, I felt so alone, desolate and like I was the ONLY parent experiencing this horrific tragedy. When I first joined the Angel Connection, Cyssi and many of the wonderful members gave the reassurance that I was NOT the only parent who has had a child die. Each and every day I received comfort, understanding and compassion form so many who actually understood what I was feeling and experiencing as I was new to this “journey”. To this day, I have no regrets about being one of the only fathers in this group. As it is difficult not to have another grieving father to share my feelings with, I realize that ALL of here share the same mental, emotional and even physical torment after the deaths of our precious sons or daughters.

What is amazing to me is that through the wonderful, supporting members have helped me realize that I NEED to LIVE and I NEED to take care of my family and I NEED to CARRY ON the legacy of my daughter Danielle Marie.

Each and every member of the ANGEL CONNECTION and all our precious sons and daughters hold a very special place in my heart. I would have NOT made it without you all…Thank You For Being Here!
Wishing You Comfort & Peace,
John Plourde-Danielle Marie’s Daddy



Name : Rene Jones
Mother of : Tricia Jones
I live in : Arkansas

How I was helped by The Angel Connection :
Gosh where to start. How have you all not helped me. When I First joined this group I was very new in my Grief and drowning in it. I can remember the first time I wrote. I don't think I had breathed in days. I was lost and hurt and in total disbelief of what had happened to my family and my lil girl. Everyone listened and let me vent even things that now doesn't make sense to me but there you all were nonjudgmental, always loving and caring, not once were my emails not answered by many, comforting words of encouragement. I seldom write anything but I am forever reading and trying to get my life back in order. I guess the best thing I have gotten from this group is simply "I am still alive" and I will get through the day whether I want to or not. Even 3 months ago, I was drowning, I hadn't wrote anything in a long while, Tricia angel date had just passed and there in my inbox was an ecard from cyssi. It was simple and may have been sent to everyone in the group but for that day it was addressed only to me and it was exactly what I needed to get through that day. I believe I even sent you a thank you note. Cause I really did need it and there it was. I am getting stronger in this and feel soon maybe I will be able to give someone comfort and strength the way you have given me. I don't know you personally and I've never met you but I love you all Cyssi, you all have been my backbone through this and I will never forget it.
Blessings to you all
Rene Jones mom to Tricia my forever angel



Name: Elisabeth
Mom to: Daniel Christopher
I live in Australia

How The Angel Connection has helped me:
Is when I first came here in the first year that the group was on line Cyssi was always here. I've only mailed in a half dozen times in total but I read every word through the group. I feel like I know all the members and all of their children by heart. Danny was killed in an automobile accident by a drunk driver. They said that he didn't suffer but I have suffered enough for everyone involved. When I came here I was broken and completely disconnected but while reading all the other posts and feeling the pain of the newly bereaved and then seeing them gradually begin to heal and offer their help to others I know this group can heal. Now several years later I see it has helped me to heal also. I still grieve but I know longer die each day. I wake up in the mornings in search of another way to live instead of a quicker way to die. I owe that to the loving compassionate members of this group.
I love the Angel Connection.
Thank you from the bottom of my heart. Elisabeth.