A new location for Dustin’s Place in Plymouth brings new opportunities

PLYMOUTH, Ind. — Dustin's Place, a grief support center in Plymouth has moved to the Life Plex. This new space offers some new opportunities for kids and adults navigating through grief.

Viki Brown, Executive Director says, "It was really just a giant shell. I had no idea what it could become. I saw their drawings, but until you walk in here and you feel the energy, you feel it feels like home, you don't really understand. You can't share this in a picture. And so being in this space, feeling the energy, seeing the kids last week, the community today, it just sparks so much hope, and It inspires me."

Brown says that one in every ten people will experience the death of a parent or sibling before the age of 18. Dustin’s Place is only one of four grief support centers in the state, and they offer grief counseling and support free of cost.

One of the cool features of this new location is the “volcano room.” This is a space with padded walls and floors for young kids to play in.

Theres a deeper story behind the name of this non-profit which started after the death of a loved one. Dustin Cullen died in a single car accident on his way home from work in 2016, leaving behind his wife and three children.

Brown explains, “That grief is going to be a part of my children's story for the rest of their life. Their dad's death and the fact that they had only a mom when they were so young, doesn't have to be their entire story.”

Upon Cullen’s death Viki Brown realized there is a lack of resources for grief support in the community which led her to create Dustin’s place a few years later. Brown says, "Providing a space for those adults to experience their grief alongside their children experiencing their own grief journeys is so crucial.”

She now works alongside many individuals like herself and her family, finding purpose in the heartbreak. She says, “No longer did Dustin just die, but there was a purpose to me being a widow. There was a purpose for me walking through grief, because now my heart breaks for the entire grieving community. I don't just look at someone grieving and feeling bad. I get it, and I can walk alongside them.”

As the ribbon cuts and their new home opens brown and her team will have more opportunities to support others during their dark times. Brown tells ABC 57’s Sidney Moore, "We don't the hard things, but the reality is, it's through those hard things that the good comes.”

While Dustin’s life was cut short his family carries on his name as a reminder that no one should walk through this journey alone.

Dustin’s Place has already begun bringing children and families in, offering them a safe place with endless opportunities for growth.