MADAM, Many of your readers, like us, will have been touched by the story of the young people whose mother Marie Roberts-Mallinson has just died. Our hearts go out to them in their grief. Loss of a loved one is a hard thing to face and the repercussions can be felt at any time - sometimes even years later. The support of family, friends and the local community can ease the burden and help us to face a new life without that person. Sometimes the pain of the loss becomes too much to bear and we need someone outside the family or our immediate friends to help. This is where Cruse Bereavement Volunteers may be able to help. Bereavement volunteers are ordinary people who are trained to offer support to those who are grieving. This is usually through meeting on a one to one basis for a period of time either in the person's home or a convenient place. Anyone feeling in need of this kind of help should contact our telephone line on 01432 359469. Cruse is always looking for more volunteers, so for anyone who might like to become a Cruse volunteer, we are running a training course over eight Saturdays through the winter months. The course covers all aspects of loss and bereavement and leads towards a greater understanding of grief. Interviews for a place on the course are being held on October 4th. Further information is available by contacting Cruse Bereavement Care, PO Box 166, Herefordshire HR9 9BQ, email [email protected]">[email protected] or telephone 01989 763746. We will be pleased to hear from you. Julia Richardson