Tearful Goodbye to Historic Dougy Center

This afternoon 150 or so patients, staffers and friends gathered at the Dougy Center to remember the space where thousands of children and families have been helped for almost three decades.

The center, at 3909 SE 52nd Avenue, is a nationally-recognized nonprofit that provides counseling for children and families grieving from the loss of a parent or family member.

Last Father’s Day an arsonist burned down the historic building where this good work was happening. Today, approaching the 1st anniversary of the fire, former patients and other supporters took a last look at the space and swapped stories about how much the Dougy Center has meant to them. Starting this week, the remains of the 100-year-old building will be demolished to make way for a new facility that will carry on the center’s work.

At today’s “Goodbye Ceremony,” it was clear that the emotional impact of the senseless fire was still being felt. Police have yet to make an arrest in the case.

I was privileged to speak with Bev Chapell, the former nurse who founded the center in her living room in 1982. She told me that while the center has been displaced, it has never stopped being a resource for grieving families. Using temporary space, the Center hasn’t cancelled a single meeting in the year since the fire. Bev told me that they’ve continued to train groups of visitors from throughout the world, helping to create hundreds of similar programs in places as diverse as Africa and Japan.