ITASCA, Ill. (Jan. 15, 2013) – Suzy Yehl Marta, an Open to Hope writer and the founder of Rainbows For All Children, passed away on Jan. 13, 2013 after a battle with pancreatic cancer. Suzy is an award-winning leader in the nonprofit industry and the author of Healing the Hurt, Restoring the Hope.

Millions of children worldwide have Suzy to thank for building an international support network to help them through their most challenging life struggles, whether they were grieving the loss of a parent, a divorce, or some other life altering event, such as incarceration of a loved one or having a parent deployed overseas.

Suzy’s mission to heal the hearts of children started in the Chicago area more than 30 years ago after going through her own divorce. As a single mom and working several part-time jobs, Suzy knew her sons were hurting just as much as she was ─ and her divorce was to blame. Frustrated by professionals who told her kids were resilient and discovering a void in outreach to grieving children, Suzy gathered other parent volunteers and launched weekend retreats for grieving youth through her local church and the Chicago archdiocese. In three years, 800 kids came – each one broken-hearted, angry, confused and isolated in pain.

Holding these children in her arms, and wiping away their tears, Suzy encouraged them to share and then (more importantly) listened to what they had to say. This vivid understanding of the need to reach hurting children compelled Suzy to write a curriculum that was later picked up in three Chicago-area schools. Suzy named the program “Rainbows” to note the great promise of life after one comes through the storm of hurt and grief.

The effectiveness of the program coupled with the great needs of hurting children has moved Rainbows far beyond the Chicago area. Nearly 30 years since those weekend retreats, Rainbows is now in all 50 states and 18 countries. All told, Rainbows has helped more than 2.7 million children grieve and grow after loss.

“When I think about people who truly make a difference in the world, Suzy Marta always comes to mind,” said Karyn Esbrook, Rainbows alumna and current Young Professionals Board member. “Rainbows was a program where I felt safe when I was growing up and it is the reason why I still volunteer on its board. Suzy will be greatly missed.”

Rainbows, with the leadership and direction from Suzy, provides age-appropriate programs to serve children from pre-school to young adulthood. Rainbows also offers Silver Linings, a crisis response program designed for teachers and youth group leaders following community or large-scale disasters. More than 600 editions of the program were distributed nationwide following the terrorist attacks of 9/11 and thousands after the Gulf Coast Hurricanes.

Suzy was a leading expert on grief and was interviewed by countless media outlets, including Oprah, NBC’s TODAY Show, WGN-TV, Chicago Tribune and more. Suzy received numerous media honors including Family Circle’s “Women Who Make a Difference,” USA Today’s “People Who Make a Difference in the USA,” Newsweek’s “A New American Hero,” Woman’s Day’s “Outstanding Woman Award” and NBC’s Jefferson Award. Suzy also was the recipient of several organizational awards, including but not limited to the Mercedes Mentor Award, American Cardinals Encouragement Award from Catholic University of America and the Distinguished Service to Families Award from the Illinois Association for Marriage and Family Therapy. In 2011, Ireland’s President, Mary McAleese, honored 40 Rainbows directors and Suzy at Áras an Uachtaráin, Ireland’s White House.

“Suzy’s life work was helping families as they faced some of their toughest challenges, such as death of parent, divorce or deployment,” said David Christian, II, Rainbows’ Governing Board Chair and partner at Seyfarth Shaw, LLP. “Rainbows will continue its mission to help and heal more children who are grieving.”

Suzy is survived by her loving husband, Marty Marta, her three sons, Michael Yehl, Thomas Yehl and Timothy Yehl and three stepchildren, Peter Marta, David Marta and Katie Marta. Suzy also was a loving mother-in-law and grandmother to eight grandchildren.

The entire family said the best tribute to Suzy is the continuation of her mission to heal the hearts of any child or teen who is hurting, which is exactly the plan of the organization. To learn more about Rainbows or to make a donation, please visit www.rainbows.org. To remember her vision and how she was able to touch the lives of so many, Rainbows is collecting “Stories about Suzy” and we would appreciate any contributions via email to remembersuzy@rainbows.org.

More About Rainbows For All Children

Rainbows For All Children is an international, nonprofit organization that gives children and teens the guidance to grieve and grow after loss. Since 1983, Rainbows has helped more than 2.7 million children in the wake of their personal or community tragedies. The goals include helping children to develop and strengthen coping skills, learn appropriate behavior and anger management, alleviate depression, and reduce emotional pain and suffering. These coping tools will build the confidence and self-esteem of these hurting children, improve communication in their families and peer relationships, prevent destructive behaviors such as involvement with gangs, alcohol and drug abuse, and ultimately improve school attendance and academic performance.

For more information about Rainbows, please visit www.rainbows.org. To join Rainbows on Facebook and Twitter, please visit www.facebook.com/rainbowsforkids and www.twitter.com/rainbowsforkids, respectively.