POTSDAM – Grief expert Dr. Louis LaGrand recently hosted a presentation at Hospice and Palliative Care of St. Lawrence Valley.

Staff, volunteers and community members learned of the differences in those experiencing grief who adjust well and those who suffer long term difficulties in coping with the death of a loved one.

LaGrand is a distinguished Professor Emeritus at the State University of New York. He started the first course on bereavement and death at SUNY Potsdam. He has served in many roles providing schools, hospices and health agencies with education on grief support and was a member of the debriefing team for the TWA Flight 800 disaster.

Although LaGrand now calls Florida home, he has roots in the area. He was a member of a group of volunteers which founded Hospice and Palliative Care of St. Lawrence Valley. For more information about bereavement services at Hospice of St. Lawrence Valley visit www.seriousillness.org/slv.