About Beyond Words Co.
Our Mission is simple but significant:
Ensure no one feels alone through life’s hardest times.
About Us
Where We Come From + Where We’re Going
Before grief came for me, I thought I understood it well enough.
Twenty years in patient safety and medical errors regularly exposed me to grief among patients, their families, and clinical teams. I learned how to lead and communicate through difficult and sensitive times. As a professional, I familiarized myself with the avenues one could take to “get through it.”
Then grief came for me, and everything I understood about and intended for my life came to an abrupt halt.
But I had seen grief. Ever-the-pragmatic, I thought I knew just what to do.
I *knew* I should find a community of support. I *knew* I should take the time to process what had happened and acquire the tools to rebuild. I *knew* I needed to figure it out.
I knew—in my head—what to do. I just ... couldn’t do it.
There were days my depression and anxiety was so severe that basic self-care was unmanageable. Brain fog was at times so thick, I couldn’t organize my thoughts; emotions so raw, my desire and ability to socialize or communicate at all were unpredictable. And with a six-month-old baby to care for, I had no time to be still and process.
In all my time witnessing other grieving individuals, I had never understood the weight of this side of grief.
When you shift your perspective and consider grief in this way, you might see why flowers or gift cards to a favorite restaurant may not carry the same uplift that they would on a birthday or holiday. When someone is in the throes of grief, they’re often in survival mode.
Through my own grieving experience, I came to realize that the typical gift responses we offer our hurting or anxious loved ones could do SO much better to serve their needs.
I created Beyond Words Co. to offer beautiful, research-driven gifts designed to meaningfully address grief and uncertainty, not just acknowledge it.
I hope our packages make you feel like you’ve finally found something that makes a positive impact on a friend or family member in pain. Recipient feedback we receive daily indicates you have!
Thank you for coming here—and for going beyond.
Warmly,
Catherine Hinz
Owner + Founder, BWCo
Our Name and Logo Design
Our broken letters represent the brokenness one feels during times of loss. A token of thoughtfulness from a loved one helps close those gaps and provides comfort that words sometimes can’t.
Gray is our primary color. Grief isn’t black and white. There are many paths and many answers in the healing journey. We advocate embracing uncertainty and being “in the gray” for as long as it takes.
Our Partners
We love and respect who we work with.
We support businesses who give back to their communities, those with purposeful missions, women and minority-owned, and family businesses. We love finding makers and artisans who may not yet be “discovered” (we love sourcing at farmer’s markets!).
Most of all, we love working with others who put a special touch on what they send to us because they know it’s going on a special mission to care and comfort.
Our Products and Packaging
Products are thoughtful and sensitive to various characteristics in the grief journey. Our selected items are useful, beautiful, and honor self-care. Many of our products are meant to be eaten or used and eventually disappear—including the recycled shipping box it comes in.
Our selected products are often made and handcrafted in the USA, sustainable, eco-friendly, responsibly sourced, and organic.
Shipping packaging: Our packages are shipped with kindness and care. First, it is our intent that all products arrive safe and sound. We also strive for earth-friendly packaging and aim to reduce unnecessary waste. Packaging materials are carefully selected as part of our ongoing efforts to support sustainability and protect our planet. We don’t believe in putting “box in a box” for the shipping journey due to unnecessary waste and it’s one less task for our recipients to break down! Thoughtfulness includes:
Recycled cardboard box, recycled crinkle paper, recycled paper void fill, recycled insert paper.
Work to do: eliminate plastic tape, more eco-friendly sticker closures, strive for all individual item packaging to be more eco-friendly.
Simple Labels
Easily understood labels; preserving as much mental energy as possible.
Small Touches
Spices, flavors, scents, and essential oils are intentionally chosen. For example, you’ll find cinnamon in our “Calm” care package, which is believed to be a grounding spice.
Mindful of Caffeine
For example, our first care package promotes rest, the tea is caffeine-free. Coffee in other care packages has caffeine for a bit of a boost.
Mindful of Color
We are mindful of how color can affect mood and our care packages are coordinated to comfort during times of grief.
