Hope After Child Loss/The Empty Chair Endeavor

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In the U.S., approximately 270 people die of a drug overdose every day based upon May, 2024 statistics. For Kellie Sipos and her family, these statistics became very personal on July 22, 2018 when their precious 24 year old daughter, Emilie, lost her battle with an addiction. Far too many parents have have had their lives shattered as a result of this insidious blight in our nation. Listen as Kellie shares her story, with refreshing authenticity and transparency, about a journey that began with unspeakable, crushing grief resulting in her own personal battle with substance dependency as she tied to deal with the pain.  Kellie shares how GOD met her in some of her darkest moments comforting, healing, and restoring hope, eventually leading Kellie to start My Child Left Home for Heaven, a non-profit whose mission is "serving grieving families through podcasts and support groups, as well as burial/cremation expenses for families in financial need ..." Please visit her website for additional information as well as her podcast by the same name. I believe you'll find hope and encouragement as you listen to today's episode.
https://mychildlefthomeforheaven.org/

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April 7, 2011 was the day Heather and her husband Mac had been anticipating with such excitement for 9 months. It was the day their precious, beautiful son Bowen was born. However, within a few short minutes he was whisked away by medical staff because something was very wrong. A day that was supposed to be filled with celebration, suddenly took a tragic turn as Heather and Mac began learning that Bowen was born with Polycystic kidney disease (PKD), a condition incompatible with life. Join us as Heather shares the story of her journey from Bowen’s terminal diagnosis, his all too brief life, disbelief and heart wrenching pain, to a place of experiencing GOD’s healing and restoration of purpose and meaning through helping other grieving parents, as well as authoring a book entitled: Waiting for Heaven: Finding Beauty in the Pain and the Struggle
Heather’s heartwarming authenticity and transparency offer hope and encouragement to anyone trying to process and navigate the grief of child loss.

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Every 39 minutes of every day, someone in the U.S. dies senselessly at the hands of an intoxicated driver! On January 20, 2015, Yolanda Martinez and her family experienced their worst nightmare when their 14 year old son, David, was killed when their family van was hit by a speeding drunk driver. Although badly injured, their daughter and a niece survived. Listen as "Yolie" and I talk about the trauma of losing her only son that evening, how she and her husband began trying to process the unthinkable, and navigating their grief journey. Yolie's honesty and transparency allow us glimpses into the deep pain and suffering parents experience after the death of a child. I believe you will find encouragement and hope as Yolie shares how GOD continues to heal their deep wounds as He's taking all those shattered pieces of their lives and making something beautiful from them. 

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The unthinkable happened on January 17, 2023. David Szweda and his family’s lives would never again be the same, as they learned their 24 year old dearly loved son, Hudson had taken his own life. Such pain and loss leave parents utterly broken, wondering if they’ll survive it … and if they even want to.
A father’s heart is to protect and care for his spouse and children; the death of a child not only leaves him broken, but often dealing with a sense of guilt because he failed to protect, and anger because he couldn’t control the circumstances.
Join us as David and I discuss how GOD’s helped him begin processing and navigating a grief journey towards healing and wholeness. David’s transparency and authenticity will inspire and encourage you with the hope that is found in the One “who is close to the brokenhearted, and saves those who are crushed in spirit.” Psalm 34:18.

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After nine long months of waiting for the much anticipated arrival of their first child, a daughter,Ashlie, Erin Maroon and her husband Anthony were crushed and heartbroken as her doctor delivered Ashlie and discovered she was stillborn at full term. Without warning, their long awaited joy and dreams abruptly vanished. How do young parents even begin trying to process something so unspeakable with the unbearable pain and unanswered questions? Grief isn’t supposed to accompany the birth of a child. Join us as Erin talks about her grief journey and we discuss some of the challenges she and Anthony faced in a culture where the impact of stillbirth and miscarriage are so minimized. Discover how GOD healed and restored Erin, giving her a passion to help comfort and bless other grieving parents through the ministry of Ashlie’s Embrace, a non-profit founded by she and her husband in 2016.
https://www.ashliesembrace.org/

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 "GOD rescued me when Austin went to Heaven by allowing me to understand that Heaven is a real place, more wonderful than we can imagine."  Kim Erickson, noted speaker, and author of "Surviving Sorrow: A Mother's Guide to Living with Loss." Losing her beautiful 3 year old son, Austin, to a strep throat infection in April 2008, Kim's life was shattered and put on a trajectory she could never have imagined. Join us as Kim and I talk about her grief journey, how she and her husband Devon navigated their new reality as a couple while giving each other space to grief individually, and most importantly, how GOD revealed His love and compassion in her deepest pain and trauma. Kim's story is one that's filled with raw, transparent honesty while offering hope and encouragement to the listener. 
https://www.kimaerickson.com/

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A continuation of Greg and Cathy Buffkin's story of losing our beautiful 26 year old son Ryan to suicide in October 2015. Ours is a journey from the brokenness of unspeakable loss and pain to experiencing GOD's goodness as He began making something beautiful from all those broken pieces and restoring meaning, purpose and hope to our lives. 

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In this 2 part interview, our friend Danielle Zapchenck , host of The Parable Podcast, guest-hosts for me as we dive into the journey my wife Cathy and I have been living since October 25, 2015 when our beautiful 26 year old son Ryan took his own life. While our story is one of deep tragedy and brokenness, it's more than that. It's one where GOD enters into our pain and suffering and demonstrates His love, kindness, compassion and grace in ways that we could never have imagined. You will learn how He has continued to meet us in the darkest season of our lives to heal and restore us, as well as taking what was meant for evil, and turning it into something good and beautiful. We hope you'll be encouraged.

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What do we do when our deepest fear suddenly becomes our new reality? How do we even begin to process and navigate the pain and grief we never could have imagined? This is where Teresa Davis found herself on November 28, 2018 when she learned that her 32 year old son, Andrew had died when the plane he was piloting crashed in a very remote area, leaving behind a young wife and two children. Desperately wanting answers to so many questions, Teresa experienced a crisis of faith for the first time in her life. " The eyes of grief sent me on a quest to see if I believed GOD was what He said He was." In our conversation you will learn what she discovered on this quest and how GOD began to heal her brokenness and restored hope, meaning and purpose. Today Teresa hosts her own podcast called the Grief Mentor Show, and offers personal grief mentoring to other bereaved moms. She is the author of a devotional entitled " Finding Hope and Healing in the Midst of Grief" available through most major book outlets. I believe you will find Teresa's story refreshingly transparent and relatable. 
https://thegriefmentor.com/author/tdtldavis83/

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