Dr. Robert A. Neimeyer, Director of Oregon’s Portland Institute for Loss and Transition and a Professor of Psychology at the University of Memphis, will present “Loss, Grief and the Quest for Meaning” at the ninth annual Dr. and Mrs. Max Littner Memorial Lecture Series for Bereavement.
The lecture is scheduled for 7:30 p.m. Wednesday, May 8 at Central Moravian Church, 73 W. Church Street in Bethlehem.
“Dr. Neimeyer is a world-renowned expert on end-of-life and grief issues,” said Wendy Littner-Thomson, founder of the lecture series. “His hour-long lecture will focus on not only what’s effective when coping with loss but also on ways to adapt to loss that are meaningful for those who are going through it.”
In his lecture, Dr. Neimeyer will draw on contemporary understandings of grieving as a meaning-making process and consider what this implies for individuals and families negotiating loss as they strive to manage the emotional challenges of mourning and reconstruct a continuing bond with a loved one who is physically absent but psychologically present, Littner-Thomson said. Ultimately, he will teach his audience how people can move from grief to growth and reaffirm a life of meaning that has been challenged and changed by bereavement.
Dr. Neimeyer is also a published poet.
Copies of his poetry collection as well as his book, Lessons of Loss: A Guide to Coping, may be available for purchase and signing after the lecture.
Audience members will have the chance to participate in a “question, answer and dialogue session” with Dr. Neimeyer and be able to ask for his thoughts on personal concerns and issues. The Q&A will last about 30 minutes.
The Dr. and Mrs. Max Littner Memorial Lecture Series for Bereavement was created to raise consciousness of the big issues in life: living meaningfully and well and sparking necessary conversations with loved ones about issues that truly are a matter of life and death.
The annual lecture features prominent guests who discuss the importance of mind and body in healing and care, and ways people can cultivate hope, take action, and be more responsible for their mental and physical health.
Tickets are $10. For more information or to buy tickets, visit Slhn.org/littnerlectureseries. Tickets will be mailed prior to the lecture.
The lecture is co-sponsored by St. Luke’s University Health Network, Heintzelman Funeral Home Inc., Wendy Littner-Thomson Counseling Services, LLC and Cancer Support Community Greater Lehigh Valley.
