Giving Back Magazine July 2018 | Page 88

Healing Life Perspectives R HONORING MARGOT KYD ecent Mother’s and Father’s Day celebrations can be a particularly painful time for men and women who have experienced a reproductive loss. Whether that loss – through miscarriage, stillbirth, infertility or abortion occurred recently or years ago, many silently mourn missing members of their families. The lack of cultural acknowledgement of their loss can unnecessarily prolong the grieving process and even lead to mental health problems. Certainly, each person’s experience is unique, and with more than two million losses occurring through miscarriage and abortion alone in the United States each year, the variability is enormous. However, in most cases, people long for their loss to be acknowledged, their children to be remembered, and to have the ability to process the experience. 88 GBSAN.COM | JULY 2018 Life Perspectives, a 501(c)3 non-profit organization, works towards helping anyone who is hurting. Not only does Life Perspectives provide healing resources for those directly affected, but also offers specialized training and guidance for family, friends, and health professionals who want to learn how to help in a caring and beneficial way. Founded in San Diego in 2000, the organization continues to grow as the demand for this type of help increases across the country. Margot Kyd, a retired utility company representative and a Life Perspectives’ board member and past board chair, is a key contributor to this growth. She began her involvement with the organization in 2003 and was recently honored as the first recipient of the Igniting Hope Award at the Life Perspectives’ Annual Spring Reception at the Prado in Balboa Park.