In 2018, my world was shattered. On December 6th, just one month before his
39th birthday, I lost my partner, my love, and the father of my son, Gregory
Owen Gayle Sr. Big Gregg (as he was affectionately known) died suddenly from
a massive heart attack. Our family was devastated, and I couldn’t comprehend
how I was going to move forward—especially for the sake of our son Little
Greg.
The days that followed Big Gregg’s death are a blur. All I could think about was
how my child would survive without his dad. Soon after a counselor at my job reached out to me and encouraged me to reach out to Imagine.
From the moment my son and I walked into our orientation at Imagine, we felt
seen. The staff met us exactly where we were—with patience, gentleness, and compassion. Imagine’s structure gave us the support we needed to walk hand-in-hand
through our grief. The grief groups provided a community of people who were
experiencing the same pain, which helped us feel less alone in our journey.
In 2024, I became a trained grief facilitator with Imagine and now work directly
with our teen participants in Newark, under the guidance of Mrs. Indira. It’s an
honor and a privilege to serve my community in this capacity, helping young
people navigate their own grief.
I am incredibly grateful to Imagine for being there for my family, and for our
community. It’s been a privilege to join the team and help others heal, as we
continue our collective journey toward hope, resilience, and strength
