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Pediatric Chaplains Network provides support for chaplains nationally

Chaplains provide spiritual and emotional support to people during times of crisis, illness, transition and celebration. Chaplains work tirelessly to support people in their time of need, but how are chaplains supported after they have encountered challenging situations?

The answer is, Pediatric Chaplains Network. It is a professional organization and is designed to provide education, research and fellowship for pediatric chaplains, according to the organization's president, the Rev. Mark Brown of St. Jude's Research Hospital.

The Rev. Lavender Kelley of Ann and Robert H. Lurie Children's Hospital of Chicago, and Brown both mentioned chaplains work in diverse professional settings. Kelley mentioned that most Pediatric Chaplains Network chaplains work in hospitals or rehabilitation facilities.

"A chaplain's goal is not to promote a particular religion but to help people identify and utilize the spiritual resources that are meaningful to them in order to sustain through times of difficulty and make meaning of their experiences," said Kelley.

"Pediatric Chaplains Network benefits me personally in many ways. I have a gigantic network of friends from all over the country," said Mark. "I am able to reach out to them any time of the year and I know they will be able to add a different perspective and richness to my work as a chaplain."

According to Kelley, Pediatric Chaplains Network has personally benefitted her in several ways. "We provide outstanding educational content that helps us deepen skills, employ best practices, and strengthen our own spiritual experience. But more importantly, it provides a community of support, accountability, and enrichment. The relationships I have with other chaplains throughout the world is in large part what helps sustain me when holding people through the most difficult matters such as child abuse and death."

Pediatric Chaplains Network offers an annual three-day conference in which pediatric chaplains are offered a platform to present research, gain new knowledge and have fellowship with chaplains from across the nation.

The 2016 Pediatric Chaplains Network Conference, to be held in Scottsdale, Ariz. May 3-5 at the Franciscan Retreat Center, will be centered around the theme desert streams. A detailed schedule of events for the conference can be found online at www.pediatricchaplains.org.

Kelley is looking forward to the conference and said, "It brings deeper meaning to my life and helps me to see what I make sense of in my faith tradition as God's movement in the world."

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