Jacksonville organization hosting free group therapy, counseling session for kids and teenagers

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – Kids and teenagers are invited to be a part of a group therapy and counseling session in Jacksonville on March 22.

The organizers say the goal is to help those experiencing grief or just in need to talk with someone.

Three mothers News4JAX spoke with say therapy can be a vital option for children.

Inside the James Graham Public Library on Myrtle Avenue on March 6, three Jacksonville mothers shared their stories about how they and their families are coping with the deaths of loved ones.

They say kids and teenagers are among those who can face the same pain.

It prompted Nikki Carswell to launch a free group therapy and counseling session scheduled for March 22 at the library to be a space for young people to feel comfortable expressing how they feel.

“For me, it is really to dig deep to find out what it is they are looking for and what they need,” Carswell said who established the Youth Giving Back Sports Mentor Program in 2020. “My goal is to help bridge that so families can heal together.”

Carswell said the event targets kids between 10 and 16 years old. It will be a group setting and feature several speakers from 10:30 a.m. until 1 p.m. that day. All of this is in partnership with Kids Hope Alliance.

The three mothers are among the speakers.

Lakeisha Washington is a licensed therapist and offers free short term counseling to kids, consisting of up to six sessions.

In 2019, her son, Terrance, was shot and killed in El Paso, Texas while on his way to a party. He was 20 years old.

Washington says 11 people are currently facing capital murder charges in connection to her son’s death.

She said therapy helps her regulate emotions.

“A lot of times the siblings are the ones who get kind of lost,” Washington said. “A lot of adults would go and get therapy for themselves and I think about the child and how the death has impacted the child. I work with children, so my heart is for the children, and I see that things like this tend to make them very angry, especially when they are not getting the help that they need.”

Washington said she continues going to counseling as she continuously addresses the grief she encounters. She hopes the kids who attend the event can experience the same kind of breakthroughs emotionally that she has.

“I hope they walk away knowing that it is okay to get therapy,” Washington said. “In the Black community, it is a stigma that therapy is for those who are considered crazy. But therapy is something that really can change your whole life for the better. I still do therapy for myself. I have to do therapy for myself because if I don’t, maybe my emotions will get the best of me, knowing that I had to bury my child.”

Tiki Stafford lost two brothers in her life. One of them was killed back in 2006 in Jacksonville.

Then in May 2019, News4Jax told you about her daughter, Khina, who was shot and killed in a domestic violence case by the father of her three children.

Khina was killed on Stafford’s birthday. Stafford’s other brother died in his sleep not too long after Khina’s death.

“I was so caught up in my moment of grieving that I did not pay attention to [my son],” Stafford said. “I did not pay attention to my other older daughter and my baby boy. It is hard. When you lose a sibling, it is hard because it is someone that you grew up with, who was a part of your life that you saw every day. When you lose your sibling, it is like you have this absence. There’s a presence of absence in your life.”

Stafford said she tried therapy a different parts of her journey and believes there is power in it.

“It will help them be able to deal with the emotional stress that they are going through in day-to-day activities,” she said.

Tanya Cummings used her personal pain to launch the theme for the event planned called “It’s Okay 2 Live,” considered the youth edition.

Cummings’s son, Jo’Colby, lost his life 2018. Two years later, her sister, Tanisha, was murdered.

“When my son got killed, my daughter woke up the next day to go to school. She was clearly in shock,” Cummings said. “I watched her inwardly suffer. The benefit of this [event scheduled] is if a child is suffering, they have an outlet because when those things are inside, it just causes a cancer.”

Following the group therapy and counseling session on March 22, Carswell said kids who may need or want additional services beyond that day can receive more resources through her organization.

“I am also a DJ and I believe that healing starts with music,” Cummings said. “So when they come in, I’m going to have music playing for them so that they will be in a comfortable environment. I want them to just take away that you will always have somewhere to go if you need someone to talk to.”

Carswell and Cummings added the event is not just catered to unpacking grief, but is extended to those who just need to talk about whatever they are facing in life.

In the future, they hope to have this kind of workshop twice a month.

“These kids are suffering because of social media,” Cummings said. “Comparison to other kids when they don’t have things. The main thing is let it out, get it out. It is a safe space and then you will be able to have that brain space to do other things.”

“I have to dig and find out what is really going on,” Carswell said. “When we get down to the bottom of it, a lot of them are dealing with grief and trauma.”

These women say they want the kids who show up to be empowered, uplifted, encouraged and know they do not have to keep their pain bottled up inside.

For those interested in attending the event, you can click here to register.