On the morning after his wife was struck and killed by an alleged hit-and-run driver, Dan Reaveley was left with four young kids and a burning question: "What's next?"
Kaeden, 11, Rebecca, seven, Alicia, four, and two-year-old Tristan would need grief counselling - as would he - after their mother, Charlene, 30, died along with Lorraine Cruz, 26, whom she had stopped to help on a Coquitlam roadside.
The kids would also need full-time childcare and eventually, perhaps, post-secondary education, all of which would be tough to provide as a newly single parent.
Still, Dan considers himself fortunate.
He thanks the support - both emotional and financial - from his family, friends and community for getting him through the darkest time in his life that began last February.
But, as he told The Tri-City News Wednesday, not everyone in similar situations can count themselves so lucky.
"Financially, I'm not doing too, too bad," Dan said in an interview, "but when you think about people that aren't, it's really hard what this could do to you."
And so, on April 4 - what would have been Charlene's 31st birthday - Dan applied to the provincial government to establish a not-for-profit society in Charlene Reaveley's name to provide assistance to families with children experiencing the loss of a loved one.
That application was approved just days ago and, while Dan is still working out the details of exactly who will qualify for assistance from the Charlene Reaveley Children's Charity Society, the society is now mandated to help grieving families by providing funding for grief counsellors and everyday expenses as well as distributing legal information packages and tips on helping kids coping with loss.
In the few days that the society has been operating, it has already raised about $2,000 through donations and the sale of baby-blue bracelets featuring the Charlene Reaveley Children's Charity Society butterfly logo chosen by Rebecca and the society's web address, crccs.ca.
Dan said he hopes to soon have more items for sale like lanyards, gift baskets and water bottles for sale through the website and has already applied with the federal government to register the society as a fully realized charity.
"With the amount of money I've poured into this now - $15,000 to $20,000 - the hope is to get the ball rolling and then keep it going as long as possible," Dan said, adding that he hopes his children one day take over the charity as a way to remember their mom.
Society co-director and Reaveley family friend Kim Moore said they're not putting any limits on how far they see the society branching out in the future, perhaps even turning it into an international aid foundation.
"My wife was big into the situation in Haiti and always wanted to adopt from over there," Dan said.
"And they would have done it too," Moore added. "And it wouldn't have been just one because they would have had to bring a friend too."
But for now, they're focusing their efforts locally and are asking anyone one who wants to volunteer for the society or who may need its services to contact them through the Charlene Reaveley Children's Charity Society website.
tcoyne@tricitynews.com
