Westfield High School Senior Ryan Basta Publishes Children’s Book About Grief

Westfield, NJ — Westfield High School senior Ryan Basta is turning his passion for helping others into a meaningful way to support children and families navigating grief.

Basta is the self-published author of Finding Uncle Marko, a heartfelt children’s book about a boy’s journey through grief following the death of his beloved uncle. As the young boy searches for answers and struggles to understand his loss, he begins to discover that the people we love never truly leave us and can continue to be part of our lives through memories, stories and the love we carry with us.

All proceeds from the sale of Finding Uncle Marko will be donated to Imagine, A Center for Coping with Loss, a nonprofit organization that provides free, year-round peer grief support to children, teens, young adults and families coping with the death of someone close to them.

Basta has a personal connection to Imagine as a teen facilitator, giving him the opportunity to see firsthand the importance of providing young people with a safe and supportive place to express their grief.

“I still remember being a kid and hearing everyone say they were ‘sorry for my loss’ after my uncle died,” Basta said. I didn’t totally understand what that meant and actually wondered why no one was looking for him if he was lost. That memory and my experience at Imagine became the idea behind Finding Uncle Marko. I wanted to write something that could make a really confusing experience a little easier for another kid. Donating the proceeds from the book to Imagine felt like a meaningful way to give back and help make sure other kids and families can continue to receive that support."

To celebrate the release of Finding Uncle Marko, Imagine is partnering with Faherty Westfield for a special event on Thursday, October 8, from 5:00–7:00 p.m.

Community members are invited to stop by Faherty, meet Ryan, learn more about his book, and support Imagine. Throughout the evening, Faherty will donate 20% of sales back to Imagine, giving shoppers another way to support children and families who are grieving in the community. In addition, the first 20 guests who make a purchase and/or donation to Imagine will receive a complimentary copy of Finding Uncle Marko.

“Ryan is such a wonderful example of a young person using his own talents and experiences to make a difference for others,” said Lindsay Schambach, Imagine Executive Director “We are incredibly grateful that he chose to support Imagine through this book and especially proud of the thoughtful way he is helping normalize conversations about grief for children and families.”

The event is open to the community and will take place at Faherty Westfield

Event Details:

Thursday, October 8, 2026
5:00–7:00 p.m.
Faherty Westfield
127 Central Avenue

20% of Faherty sales during the event will be donated to Imagine.

Imagine, A Center for Coping with Loss is a 501c3 that offers training and education on loss and grief to the community and free year-round grief support groups for children ages 3-18 and young adults 19-30 who are coping with a loss due to death. Concurrently, support groups are available for the parents and caregivers of the children in the groups and offered in English and Spanish. Imagine has centers in Newark and Mountainside and offers virtual groups as well. For more information, please contact Imagine at 908-264-3100 or info@imaginenj.org or visit our website at www.imaginenj.org.