Students often help friends and family deal with the loss of a loved one, but Monday afternoon, it was their required homework.
Students in Social Work 7807, focusing on grief and bereavement, put on a remembrance ceremony to honor those who have died this past year, including those in the military and those who have died because of illness or natural disasters.
Professor Sherry Smelley said the class helps social workers develop their skills as grief counselors because ceremonies and rituals are important in the grieving process.
“It’s a very important skill for the students to learn to use with their clients,” Smelley said.
The students who planned the ceremony passed out ribbons, balloons and candy, which symbolized those who have lost their lives.
“We also have an incense pot [for grievers to light] from Sri Lanka that I bought when I was overseas,” Smelley said.
Faye London, second-year master’s student, said the students have been planning the ceremony for weeks to help them learn to help people grieve.
“There’s all sorts of different ways to help people grieve,” London said.
Along with selected poetry readings such as “We Need One Another,” a bagpiper played songs such as “Amazing Grace” during the ceremony.
Stanley Masinter, licensed social worker and LSU alumnus, has played the bagpipes during the ceremony for the past three years.
“Music certainly touches the heart, bagpipes more than most,” Masinter said. “They are often heard at ceremonies and rituals.”
The LSU Pershing Rifles also gave their services to the ceremony by representing the troops and by carrying the American flag.
“This is not only for the military but for all first responders [such as] firefighters and policemen,” Smelley said.
The class of 13 students organized the event and was pleased with the outcome of the ceremony.
“Grief is an expression not of pain but of love,” Smelley said. “It’s impossible to not feel grief if you lose someone or something we love.”
 
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