In this month’s edition of Fox 8’s Cleveland’s Own, Matt Kaulig meets with Mark Tripodi from Cornerstone of Hope.
Cornerstone of Hope is a comprehensive bereavement support center dedicated to providing support, education, and hope for grieving children, teens, and adults. Cornerstone of Hope is dedicated to providing support, education, and hope for the grieving. Guided by Christian values of compassion and service, we welcome and serve all seeking support.
In 2000, Mark and Christi Tripodi rushed their only son, Bobby, to the emergency room with a high fever. Though we knew something was wrong, both expected it to be only a matter of hours until they were home again. Unfortunately, they did not come home until the following evening, and they did so without their son. Bobby died from bacterial meningitis at the age of three years old. Soon after, they started attending a hospital support group. And while they desperately needed those monthly meetings, the gatherings were not enough. They needed more support during the initial shock of grief. They were emotionally and spiritually drained with no real hope. They had to seek financial support from their family due to the drastic cost of counseling. After their devastating loss, they felt called to do something more; they wanted families like their own to have access to grief care, regardless of their finances. They began to investigate other grief centers and found organizations around the country dedicated to bereavement care.
Through their research, their vision for Cornerstone of Hope emerged. They felt called to establish a bereavement care center to provide professionally-led grief support for children, teens, and adults. The healing campus in Cleveland (Independence) features therapy rooms and art rooms specifically designed for children and families, as well as a therapeutic treehouse that was featured on the television series Treehouse Masters. Mark and Christi’s hope was to turn their pain into purpose and give others who are grieving the opportunity to heal.
Fox 8 Cleveland’s Own
Fox 8 Cleveland’s Own is about good people doing good work in Northeast Ohio. WJW Fox 8 and Kaulig Charitable Giving Programs team up to celebrate Cleveland’s Own by highlighting the best of our region in a big way! Each month, Fox 8’s Stefani Schaefer and Kaulig Companies and LeafFilter Executive Chairman Matt Kaulig, share a story about a person or organization from Northeast Ohio doing good work.
To see more Cleveland’s Own stories, or to nominate an organization to be featured, visit Kaulig Giving’s Cleveland’s Own page.