This episode is the finale of Season 1 of Dying to Know. But the end, is only the beginning. 

In this episode Chaplain Annie is dying to know what you do when someone you have a complex relationship with, dies before you’ve reconciled? So she speaks with Reverend Kerry Kesey who was raised by hippy parents, yes, she is related to Ken Kesey author of "One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest" and infamous Merry Prankster, Kerry’s father, Dale, was on the infamous bus Further and as a child, her family lived on the Kesey farm commune. They lived in a bus, and even in tents in Northern Idaho while her parents tried to build a log cabin. She had her 3rd birthday at Woodstock.

Though her childhood may seem like a fun dreamland for many folks, Kerry wanted to follow a very different path from her hippy parents. Her grandmother in Arkansas always brought her to church, and the stability there drew her to Jesus and the Church. So she felt called into ministry, graduating from Northwest Christian University in Eugene, Oregon with a B.S. in Church, Society and Family.  She then attended Lexington Theological Seminary, receiving her Masters in Divinity in 1999 and was ordained as a minister in the Christian Church (Disciples of Christ).  Like her nomadic parents, she has served churches in Oregon, Texas, Kentucky, Kansas, Washington and Hawaii, and just recently began a ministry with the First Christian Church Fayette in Missouri.

Kerry's hippy mother died suddenly in 2018.

In this episode I speak with David Pope who is a private counsellor specializing in bereavement, depression and anxiety, currently counseling clients over zoom and face-to-face. David has struggled with depression anxiety and suicidal ideation for most of his life and his battles with mental illness began at six years old. He was bullied throughout school and suffered a double bereavement when he was 25 years old, losing both his parents within a year of each other. His continuous battles with depression and anxiety fuelled his quest to find daily coping mechanisms and strategies to combat his mental illness. 

David is passionate about sharing physical and cognitive techniques to deal with mental illness and launched an online video course called Depression A New Hope. He also has a guided meditation podcast entitled "The Minds That Matter Guided Meditations".

His website is healyourgrief.co.uk

And his podcast can be found on Spotify https://open.spotify.com/show/5aji0nwAlmrWVLsL7bgXda

If you or someone you know needs support around depression, suicidal thoughts or survival, or substance use please know you are not alone and there is support:

National Suicide Prevention Lifeline at 1-800-273-8255 https://suicidepreventionlifeline.org/

Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration Hotline 1-800-662-4357 https://www.samhsa.gov/

In this episode, I talk with Greg Payan, whose partner, Holly, suffered a brain aneurysm in 2014. Their experience together inspired Greg to write a book entitled “Please Stay” where he shares his perspective of caregiving, grief, hope, and recovery, sharing also the words of encouragement and love sent to Holly from friends, students and family throughout.

In this episode, I talk with hospice nurse, Jim Courson, about what is commonly still referred to as "physician assisted suicide." The correct terminology is actually medical aid in dying and end of life options. We discuss how one controls their dying process, or not.

If you or someone you know needs support around depression, suicidal thoughts or survival, or substance use please know you are not alone and there is support:

National Suicide Prevention Lifeline at 1-800-273-8255 https://suicidepreventionlifeline.org/

Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration Hotline 1-800-662-4357 https://www.samhsa.gov/

In this episode, I talk with my cousin Nicole Miller about being an orphan in her 30’s. My aunt Gail died in 2013 from numerous heart and lung complications, a few years later in 2019, my uncle Dwight died in a house fire. We discuss her experience of their deaths and her continued grieving process.

In this episode, Chaplain Annie speaks with Rev. Cara Gilger about how families cope through continued medical trauma. She is a recipient of the 2020 Louisville Institute’s Pastoral Study Program grant and is exploring the intersection of grief and joy in caring for families who have experienced medical trauma. Cara is also the editor of 99 Prayers Your Church Needs but Doesn’t Know It Yet as well the newly released Prepare: An Advent Devotional. She also serves as a preacher and congregational consultant helping church align their practices and structures with their vision for how God is calling them to serve their community. In her personal time she is an uncoordinated fitness enthusiast, avid reader and traveler with her partner Tim, and their two daughters in North Texas as they work on their goal of hiking every National Park. 

Authors Referenced: Shelly Rambo and Peter Block

Chaplain Annie speaks with Hospice Social Worker, Andrea Thompson, about logistics of what you need to know, and do, before you die. 

In this episode, I talk with Melissa McChristian. A mom whose son, Radley, died of Acute Myeloid Leukemia just under the age of 3. We discuss their journey throughout treatments and the struggle of grief and healing after his death. 

In this episode Nurse Jeana Woody and I discuss how our work in hospice care impacts the ways we choose to lead our lives.