MEET PARISHIONER DENNIS SCHMITZ NAVIGATING THE DIFFICULT JOURNEY OF LOSS THROUGH GRIEFSHARE
S
andy (Underwood) Schmitz grew up in Milbank, S.D. She moved to Alexandria, Minn., to study accounting at Alexandria Tech, graduating in 1988. Sandy married Dennis Schmitz in 1994 at St. Donatus Church in Brooten. The couple made their home near Brooten on the Schmitz home farm. There, they raised their children, Justin and Sarah. Sadly, Sandy passed away on April 26, 2021. She is greatly missed by everyone who knew her, most of all Dennis, Justin and his fiancée, Brooke, and Sarah. When someone goes through the loss of a spouse, it would be easy to turn away from God — to ask Him, “How could You let this happen?” But Dennis is doing just the opposite. A year after Sandy’s death, he’s working through the grief process and trying to help others do the same. After Sandy’s death, Dennis knew he needed to reach out for help. He called one of the leaders of Sauk Centre GriefShare, Deb Himsl, and the rest is history. Dennis is now in his second session of the program, which meets weekly in the fall and spring at the Centre for Christ. GriefShare is an ecumenical, international program that includes 13 sessions. “When you lose a spouse, you become part of a club that you didn’t want to join,” Dennis says. Some GriefShare participants go through multiple sessions. Each of the sessions includes videos, discussion, journaling, and individual reflection. Dennis says one of the most important parts of the program is friendship building — he has met so many people who have been a blessing during this time. “There are so many people I have met who would have hit it off with Sandy,” Dennis continued on back cover
Dennis Schmitz and his late wife, Sandy
