About Us

Resolve Through Sharing is a nonprofit organization providing thought leadership and an evidence-based, yet compassion-first, approach to bereavement care.

Vision and Mission

Our vision is to lead the communities we serve in developing a culture of understanding and acceptance for supporting those navigating grief, thereby easing the emotional and financial burdens of all.

Our mission is to transform bereavement care by providing relationship-and evidence-based programming to professionals and by offering compassionate resources to grieving individuals.

Values

RTS: Respect, Trust, Sincerity

History

RTS was founded in 1981 at Lutheran Hospital in La Crosse, WI as a pioneering perinatal bereavement care program. Developed by an interprofessional team including nursing, social work, spiritual care, and medicine, RTS set the standard for evidence-based bereavement education and patient support when a baby died.

1981

RTS Was Founded

1983

The first national perinatal bereavement training was held.

1983

The icon RTS leaf and teardrop was designed.

1985

The first national coordinator training was held.

1986

Patient support materials became available.

1986

RTS held Walk to Remember—one of the first of its kind.

1987

A respectful disposition program for early pregnancy loss was established.

2004

RTS added course materials focused on adult death.

2008

RTS designed a course on perinatal bereavement for genetic counseling students.

2015

RTS added course materials focused on neonatal and pediatric death.

2019

Compassionate Goodbyes was launched.

2020

RTS began offering virtual training experiences.

2023

RTS Bereavement Coordinator Certification was introduced.

2024

RTS added course materials on supporting grief in any setting. 

2026

RTS became an independent nonprofit.

The Reach of RTS

Top health systems across the country use RTS programming.

RTS Certified Bereavement Coordinators practice in urban, rural, and multi-system healthcare settings.

Resolve Through Sharing has an international presence, with programs or RTS-trained staff in the following locations:

All 50 U.S. states

Canada

Colombia

England

Germany

Guam

Japan

Ireland

New Zealand

Spain

Switzerland

Partner Program:
Compassionate Goodbyes

Compassionate Goodbyes (CG), a partner program of RTS dedicated to supporting veterinary professionals and the clients they serve when animal companions die, was launched in 2019. The RTS model, with its transferrable concepts and properties, provided a logical framework for creating CG. This is one of many steps RTS is taking to improve bereavement support in a variety of settings.