Our Mission

 Monarch Grief Center is a nonprofit organization in Northwest Ohio dedicated to providing professional, compassionate grief support. Our mission is to offer those who are grieving a place to turn so they feel less alone in their grief journey. We provide individual counseling, specialized support groups, and community outreach and education, all rooted in the belief that grief deserves focused, expert care. We accept all major insurance plans, including Medicare and Medicaid. Thanks to the generosity of our community, we also offer financial assistance—including help with deductibles and copays—so that cost is not a barrier to getting the support people want and need. We understand how isolating and overwhelming grief can be. At Monarch, you don't have to go through it alone.

The idea for Monarch Grief Center was born from a shared vision between cofounders Tim and Amy, both seasoned social workers, while working together at a local hospice. One day, Amy shared with Tim an idea a friend and mentor had planted in her years ago: the creation of a stand-alone, nonprofit grief center. At first, Tim laughed it off, joking that “only crazy people start nonprofits.” But the idea stuck—and kept him awake for two nights—because he knew deep down it was not only possible, but necessary.

Though they found their work in hospice deeply meaningful, Tim and Amy recognized that while robust systems exist for caring for those at the end of life, far fewer resources exist for those left behind—especially for individuals facing sudden or traumatic loss.

They also saw that, although some local grief support services were available, they were often difficult to find, not always a good fit, or treated grief as a secondary or occasional offering. Tim and Amy believed something different: that grief is never ancillary. It deserves to be the central focus.

So they took a leap. Together, they began the work of establishing a nonprofit—applying for 501(c)(3) status, raising funds, and building the foundation for what would become Monarch Grief Center. In just ten months, what began as a spark of an idea became a full-fledged organization. Monarch opened its doors to clients in February 2023. To help make it possible, Tim and Amy even donated their first few months’ salaries.

Since then, Monarch Grief Center has grown steadily, fueled by community support, professional dedication, and a deep belief in the importance of its mission. It has been a humbling, rewarding journey—one made possible by the dozens (if not hundreds) of people who believed in the vision and continue to stand beside it.

Why did we choose the name Monarch Grief Center? Well, let’s just say Black Swallowtail Grief Center didn’t quite have the same ring to it. :)

In truth, the name came to Amy during the early planning stages, after she and Tim had talked about someday hosting a Monarch butterfly release event as part of the Center’s offerings. While Tim initially hesitated—grief, after all, doesn’t always feel like a graceful transformation—both agreed that the Monarch symbol held deep meaning.

The Monarch butterfly evokes powerful associations for many people—symbolic, ecological, metaphorical, aesthetic, cultural and/or spiritual. It represents cycles of change, resilience, migration, and metamorphosis. In the face of grief, it’s a gentle yet profound reminder that transformation, though difficult, is possible—and that loss, like a Monarch’s journey, leads us through darkness into something new.

Ultimately, Monarch felt like the right name to carry the heart and purpose of our work.