The Grey association supports families grieving the loss of a child

The association's bodega during the Feria in August.

Created in June 2024, the collective works with families who have lost a child.

During the Feria, the Grey association became known to the people of Béziers by running a bodega on Avenue Saint-Saëns. This collective was created last June, following a tragedy.

The president, Nathalie Giroux, lost her daughter Mélissa in a car accident on March 6, 2021.

In her diary, the ordeals she had to go through following this loss are still recorded. “The mayor and a municipal police officer were waiting for me in front of my house. That's how it happens, it's pretty raw. We don't understand, we have a lot of questions, we don't know where our child is. No one is able to help me, it's just me and my other children”, Nathalie relates.

This first shock is all the more difficult to get over because the grieving family has to face a whole series of administrative procedures, some of which are penalizing. “We had to notify the CAF, social security, the State. I was receiving benefits on March 5, the CAF demanded the money I had received in excess. There are files to be done for insurance, we have to notify the bank, prepare the funeral, renegotiate with the owner following the loss of CAF assistance…”

Building a network of whistleblowers

It is to help those who are going through the same ordeal that she founded Grey with the help of her partner Chakib Baha. The goal is to set up a crisis unit to intervene with parents who suddenly lose a child in their care.

"It is not the family that comes to us, it is we who go to them. We want to create a network of whistleblowers in the institutions of Béziers such as hospitals, gendarmeries, police stations, etc. In the event of an alert, we take stock of the families. We go to see them, explain who we are, and ask them if they agree with the principle", explains Nathalie. “If they accept, the first thing we put in place is home help, in particular by taking care of meals. People in shock have other things to think about and can no longer take care of daily tasks. In a second step, we answer all the questions they may have and support them in the procedures. We know that things are different depending on the community. We are secular from A to Z, we do things according to the families, not according to us”.

The group already has a lot of volunteers in the health and social sectors. It still needs funds, in particular to be able to set up specialized training for its volunteers. If the concept works, it is planned to extend it to other departments. As for the name, Grey, it designates the color gray, between the black of mourning and the white of hope.

Midi Libre correspondent: 06 46 32 13 96.

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