Pieces That Matter – September 2026
When Life Feels Hard, Connection Matters.
Hard moments are part of growing up, but children shouldn’t have to navigate them alone. This September, we’re sharing simple ways caring adults can help kids feel supported, connected, and safe through life’s difficult moments.
Hard things can look very different through a child’s eyes. Sometimes they are easy for adults to recognize, like the death of someone they love, changes at home, bullying, violence or a frightening experience. Other times, what feels enormous to a child may look small from the outside. A friendship changes. School feels overwhelming. They make a mistake they’re embarrassed about. Something happens that they don’t have the words to explain.
Children also don’t always show us they’re struggling in ways we expect. A child who is worried, overwhelmed or hurting may become quieter, more irritable, have trouble sleeping or suddenly struggle with things that normally come easily. Sometimes what looks like defiance, withdrawal or a bad attitude is really a child doing the best they can with feelings they don’t yet know how to manage.
What helps?
Start with connection. When a child is having a hard time, our instinct may be to solve the problem, ask a lot of questions or reassure them that everything will be okay. Sometimes the most helpful first step is simply to slow down and listen. Let them know you’re there, you believe what they’re feeling is important and they don’t have to figure it out alone.
WORDS THAT CAN HELP
“You don’t have to tell me everything right now. I’m here when you’re ready, and we’ll figure it out together.”
The goal isn’t to get the whole story at once. It’s to let your child know they can come to you when they’re ready.
Sometimes knowing what to expect can make a hard situation feel a little more manageable.
FROM THE RESOUCE LIBRARY
What to Expect at Your Child’s Place Visit
Walking into a Children’s Advocacy Center for the first time can feel overwhelming. Knowing what to expect can make the day a little easier. Take a look inside a Child’s Place visit, from the moment a family arrives to what happens after the interview.
Of course, connection doesn’t begin when something goes wrong. The way we respond in everyday moments can help children know they can come to us when something is hard to say.
FOR PARENTS & CAREGIVERS
When Your Child Is Carrying Something They Don’t Know How to Tell You
Children and teens don’t always tell us when something is wrong. Sometimes they’re afraid they’ll get in trouble. They may worry we’ll be angry, disappointed or embarrassed. They may be protecting a friend or someone they care about. And sometimes they simply don’t know how to put what happened, or how they’re feeling, into words.
That can be hard for caregivers, especially when you sense that something has changed. You may notice they’re quieter than usual, avoiding someone or something, getting upset more easily or behaving in ways that don’t seem like them. It’s natural to want to know what’s going on. But how we respond in those moments can make a difference in whether a child feels safe coming to us later.
Making It Easier to Come to You
When children are deciding whether to tell an adult something difficult, they may be paying close attention to how that adult reacts to smaller things. What happens when they admit they made a mistake? When they tell you something you don’t want to hear? When they talk about a friend who got in trouble? Those everyday moments can teach children whether honesty leads to conversation, or immediately to anger, punishment or disappointment.
Creating safety doesn’t mean there are no rules or consequences. It means a child can trust that they will be heard before conclusions are made. You can be upset about something that happened, and still make room for your child to talk. You can disagree with a choice, and still make it clear that asking for help was the right thing to do.
What This Can Sound Like
When you’re surprised:
Instead of needing all the answers right away, you can begin with, “I’m glad you told me. We can take this one step at a time.”
When your child made a choice you’re not happy about:
“You may still have to deal with what happened, but you did the right thing by coming to me. We can talk about the rest together.”
When they aren’t ready to talk:
“You don’t have to tell me right now. I’m here when you’re ready, and if you’d rather talk to someone else you trust, I can help with that too.”
Children may not always come to us when we hope they will, and even the safest relationships don’t guarantee that they’ll tell us everything. What we can do is keep showing them that difficult conversations are welcome, that asking for help is never something to be ashamed of, and that they don’t have to handle hard things alone.
September is Suicide Prevention Month
Sometimes helping a child or teen through something hard means recognizing when they may need more support than we can provide on our own. Changes in behavior, withdrawing from others, significant changes in sleep, extreme mood changes, or talking about feeling hopeless, trapped, like a burden, or wanting to die can be signs that someone may need help, especially when these behaviors are new or have increased.
You don’t have to be a mental health professional to take someone seriously, listen without judgment and help them connect with support. If you’re worried about someone, or struggling yourself, the 988 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline is available 24/7. Call or text 988, or connect online for support and additional resources.
Resources for Youth & Young Adults
Support and information for teens and young adults who may be struggling, including guidance on asking for help, difficult relationships, school pressures, bullying and creating a safety plan.
Worried About Someone?
Guidance for parents, caregivers, friends and others who are concerned about someone they care about, including how to recognize warning signs, start a conversation and help someone connect with support.
COMMUNITY SPOTLIGHT
Carter Bremseth Memorial Foundation
The Carter Bremseth Memorial Foundation was created in memory of Carter Bremseth, and today his family, friends and community continue to honor him through work that supports children, young people and families.
The foundation focuses on grief support, mental health, suicide awareness and education, with particular care for children and families navigating loss. Their work includes grief programming for children, support for people who have lost someone to suicide, educational and speaking opportunities, and resources for families and communities.
Carter’s belief in friendship and community continues to be part of the foundation’s identity and the work being carried forward in his name. Their message is a simple and important one: you are not alone, and you matter.
NEW AT CHILD’S PLACE
Our New Website Is Here
We’ve been working on something big. The new Child’s Place website was built to be more than a place to learn about our organization — we want it to be a resource families, caregivers and community members can actually use.
Whether you’re preparing for a visit to Child’s Place, looking for guidance after a child tells you something concerning, or simply trying to learn more about keeping kids safe, we want trustworthy information to be easier to find. Our growing Resource Library brings those tools together in one place, with practical information written for families, caregivers and the people who support them.
Understand
Learn what Child’s Place does, what to expect during a visit, and how the children’s advocacy center process works.
Learn
Find practical information about child safety, abuse, disclosure, and supporting children through difficult experiences.
Connect
Find trusted resources, additional support, and information to help you decide what to do next.
WITH GRATITUDE
Thank You, Pamela Ebbesen Donor Advised Fund
We extend our sincere gratitude for a generous $10,000 gift made through the Pamela Ebbesen Donor Advised Fund, a fund of the Redwood Area Communities Foundation (RACF).
This support helps Child’s Place continue providing children and caregivers throughout southwest Minnesota with compassionate advocacy and support close to home when they need it most. We’re grateful for this investment in our community and in the belief that every child deserves to feel safe, supported, and believed.
ONE FINAL PIECE
Connection Makes a Difference
Hard things don’t always come with easy answers. But listening, showing up and helping someone know they don’t have to face them alone can make a difference.
Whether you’re a parent, caregiver, professional, friend or community member, you can be one of the pieces that helps a child feel safe, supported and believed.
Sometimes that piece is knowing what to say. Sometimes it’s noticing when something has changed, connecting a family with support, sharing a trusted resource or simply being the person who stays. None of us has to have every answer to make a difference.
That’s what connection looks like — one person, one conversation, one piece at a time.