April 7, 2008
Washington, D.C. - Former Georgetown University football player David Fajgenbaum (B'07) is calling it his life's work.
When he was a freshman on the Hilltop in 2003, he found out that his mother, Anne Marie, had been diagnosed with a brain tumor As he traveled back and forth from Washington to his home in North Carolina throughout his freshman year, he found out that outside of typical counseling, there was not much else offered for grieving students at the University.
That resulted in the formation of Students of Ailing Mothers and Fathers (AMF, the acronym coming from his mother's name), Anne Marie Fajgenbaum passed away in December 2004 from a brain tumor and Students of AMF aims to help students at college campuses cope with the psychological, spiritual, social, and academic difficulties associated with having a sick loved one through service, support, and mentoring. Since graduating in 2007, Fajgenbaum has continued his work with the organization he started.
The National Students of AMF is putting on the first-ever National College Student Grief Awareness Week, from April 13-20. The goal is to share the group's message - that grieving students are not alone, and that they can find support and understanding in peers through the programs that National Students of Ailing Mothers and Fathers and our campus chapters provide- with as many students across the nation as possible.
"We are looking for volunteers (any age, in any location) to be an "Awareness Week Leader,"" Fajgenbaum wrote on the organization's website, www.studentsofamf.org. "Awareness Week Leaders" will represent Students of AMF in their communities and amongst their peers by sending out a few e-mails, passing out flyers and spreading information about this cause by word of mouth.
"This role requires little time or effort on your part, as we have developed a Leadership packet containing an agenda and instructions, and of course, we are here to help. Most importantly, your role is not to take this week on yourself but to recruit as many friends as possible to help us spread the word!
Please email Stephanie@studentsofamf.org if you are interested in helping to spread awareness about the organization during National College Student Grief Awareness Week.
Fajgenbaum and the National Students of AMF were featured in Psychology Today Magazine in the March/April 2008 issue and will appear in the May issue of Reader's Digest. The group will also be featured on NBC's Today Show Weekend Edition on April 19, between 7 a.m. and 9 a.m.
In addition, the first-ever national conference on College Student Grief will be hosted by the National Students of AMF in Raleigh, N.C. on August 22-23, 2008. The Inaugural National Conference on College Student Grief will be held at Meredith College. The mission of the conference is to provide a national forum for student leaders, bereaved college students, the college mental health community, college administrators and other interested parties to discuss current issues and future directions in college student bereavement. This Conference will take place during an energizing and inspiring weekend that includes educational seminars, networking opportunities, grief support workshops, and the Boot Camp 2 Beat Cancer.
The conference will begin at 3 p.m. on Friday, August 22 with presentations, seminars, and forums focused on the "problems" college students face when coping with illness or death. Following dinner that evening, David Balk, the leading expert in the field of college student bereavement, will offer the keynote address. On August 23, conference attendees will participate in, or volunteer for, the Boot Camp 2 Beat Cancer. At 2 p.m., sessions will reconvene to build upon Friday's discussions and talk about "solutions" for the problem of college student grief.
