For those suffering any kind of loss, from personal to financial, a local church offers help and comfort.
"It's a place to come and say, 'Yes, there is a part of my life that hurts," said Rev.
Elizabeth Steele of the First Congregational Church in Southwest Bakersfield.
On Tuesday night at 7, Rev. Steele will conduct a special service to help those who are grieving. It's called a "Blue Christmas" service.
"Nobody has to identify what their grief is. They can keep quiet if they want or they can share," Steele said Monday.
Parishioners who find comfort in going to church shared their stories of loss with 17 News.
Frances Amerio lost her husband, Richard, of 46 years. She said he had been suffering from a heart ailment for several years, but did not expect him to pass away as quickly as he did on Oct. 31.
Amerio says the evenings are especially tough now.
"Because I have one chair on my side of the room, and his chair is on the other side of the room," she said as she choked back tears, "and I'm sitting there in the evening alone, watching TV and I look over where he's supposed to be, and he's gone. He's not there."
Alice Brown wears her late husband's wedding ring around her neck. Tom Brown died from injuries of a motorcycle crash on Oct. 2. The day before her husband's funeral, her 92-year-old father passed away.
She said this year, she did not want to uphold the tradition of putting up the Christmas lights the weekend after Thanksgiving. But with encouragement from her family and close friends, they put up the lights in her husband's memory.
"it is really hard because now I'm not going to see either one of them," Brown said. "All I have are memories."
Kamala Kruszka and her husband are going on their second holiday season without their only child, Peter Alexander. He was a full term stillborn. Two days after her due date, the doctors were going to induce labor but found out the child had no heartbeat.
"My world fell apart," she said. "I wanted to know why the world was so cruel. I wanted to know why the doctors couldn't help me. I wanted to know why nobody told me why it was happening."
Psychologist Corey Gonzales says a Blue Christmas service is a good part of the healing process for those who are grieving.
"Being sad and letting the tears flow and putting feelings in order is all part of the healing process."
The service will be held at the First Congregational Church on Stockdale Highway and Real Road in Southwest Bakersfield, Tuesday at 7 p.m.
