About Compassionate Passages, Inc.

Compassionate Passages, Inc. is an international non-profit 501(c)(3) organization founded by Beth Seyda and Ann Fitzsimons. The death of Beth’s son, Dylan, and Ann’s niece, Riley, inspired them to combine their personal and professional experiences to support dying children and their families.

Beth’s profile:

• Co-founder & Executive Director of Compassionate Passages

• Bereaved parent

• Co-producer of award-winning educational film, When a Child is Dying, and co-author of The Supportive Care Handbook

• Speaker at local, national, and international conferences/workshops and grand rounds on pediatric end-of-life care/bereavement issues

• Pregnancy Loss and Infant Death Alliance (PLIDA), Past-President 2009-2010, Board President 2007-2008

• Contributing writer to Open to Hope Foundation - www.opentohope.com

• Active member of Pediatric Palliative Care Coalition of North Carolina and the Duke Pediatric Quality of Life Program

• Research consultant on NIH-funded project that is developing and evaluating resources for parents, group facilitators, and direct care providers to support family communication when a school-age child has a life-threatening illness.

• Principal investigator with a team of University of NC-Chapel Hill physicians on evaluating directive vs. non-directive counseling methods. Results were published in Pediatrics.

• Ten years as a Community Member, University of NC Hospitals Ethics Committee

Beth's Complete Resume (PDF)

Ann’s profile:

• Co-founder & Assistant Director of Compassionate Passages

• Provided caregiving and family support during the illness and death of her niece, mother, sister, and father.

• Co-author of The Supportive Care Handbook

• Speaker at conferences/workshops on end-of-life care and bereavement-related topics

• Post-Graduate Certificate in Bereavement from the Hospice Education Department at Madonna University

• Professional Member of the Michigan Hospice and Palliative Care Organization (MHPCO) and Pregnancy Loss and Infant Death Alliance (PLIDA)

• Committee Member on NHPCO’s Children Project on Palliative/Hospice Services (chiPPS) Education Workgroup and the Michigan Alliance for Pediatric Palliative Services Committee (MAPPS)

Ann's complete resume (PDF)

Beth and Ann each have more than 25 years of marketing research and consulting experience for Fortune 500 companies.