Hope After Child & Sibling Loss: An Empty Chair Endeavor Podcast

Clinical depression is no respecter of persons, having impacted approximately 29% of the population of the U.S., according to the latest 2023 statistics, and these numbers continue to rise. Tragically, depression, all too often, results in suicide or attempted suicide, leaving in its path a wave of unspeakable pain and grief forever altering the lives of those left behind. July 18, 2018 would forever mark the lives of Chris Locke and his family when they learned their beautiful 23 year old son Sean had taken his own life, and with no warning. A star athlete with a promising future, and loved by his family and friends, Sean’s private battle with depression would claim his life that day, leaving loved ones shocked and bewildered. Join us as Chris and I talk about his, now, 5 year long journey of how GOD has been restoring his brokenness and turning his pain into a passion for helping young people discover meaning and purpose through the establishment of SL24 Unlocke the Light, and Sean’s House. You can learn more about both through the links below.
Sean's House: www.seanshousesl24.com
SL24 UnLocke the Light: www.unlockethelight.com

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*** If  you find this podcast helpful and encouraging, please leave us a review by clicking one the links below:

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You can contact us by email at: [email protected]
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Suicide deaths continue to rise in the U.S., claiming approximately 49,500 people in 2022. Sadly, this translates into many times that number of survivors left behind to grieve their loved ones. It leaves countless unanswered questions, and lives shattered by the trauma. For Luis and Dora Perez, February 23, 2010 would forever alter their lives as they learned their  beautiful 23 year old son, Luis, Jr. had taken his own life. As in so many cases, there were no obvious warning signs or behaviors, intensifying the shock and trauma for parents, siblings, extended family, and friends left behind.
With refreshing transparency, Luis and Dora talk with me about how GOD showed up in their dark journey of pain and disbelief keeping them from despair, and leading them through a season of healing and restoration. You will hear how GOD strategically placed people in their lives to support, encourage, and grieve with them, eventually restoring meaning, purpose, and joy!
  

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*** If  you find this podcast helpful and encouraging, please leave us a review by clicking one the links below:

https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/hope-after-child-sibling-loss-the-empty-chair-endeavor/ 

https://www.podchaser.com/HopeAfterChildSiblingLossTheEmptyChairEndeavor

You can contact us by email at: [email protected]
If you would like to share your story on an upcoming episode, please send us an email so that we can talk with you about it.
Thank you for listening!

For Tristan and Jill Borland, March 2016 was shaping up to be an exciting and busy month as they anticipated the arrival of their fifth daughter, Lucy Faith. However, a very sudden, tragic turn of events shattered their lives without any warning on March 4th when their precious three(3) year old daughter Maria died at home after briefly displaying symptoms of an apparent flu like virus. Seven(7) days later Jill gave birth to Lucy. “The grief and shock have been overwhelming. We feel stranded between death and life and have no idea how to embrace this new beautiful gift as we prepare to bury our beloved daughter ….. “ Tristan wrote to a friend. Please join us as I talk with Tristan about their remarkable seven(7) year journey marked by unspeakable loss, the joy of new life, and experiencing GOD’s faithfulness to heal and restore their brokenness.
Jill and Tristan are the directors of Smile Again Ministries in Crosslake, Minnesota, a Christian ministry and retreat center for parents and families navigating through the heartbreaking grief of child loss.
“A Life After Death” : the book authored by Jill and Tristan and mentioned in this episode, can be found on Amazon.
https://www.smileagainministries.org/

Send us Fan Mail

*** If  you find this podcast helpful and encouraging, please leave us a review by clicking one the links below:

https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/hope-after-child-sibling-loss-the-empty-chair-endeavor/ 

https://www.podchaser.com/HopeAfterChildSiblingLossTheEmptyChairEndeavor

You can contact us by email at: [email protected]
If you would like to share your story on an upcoming episode, please send us an email so that we can talk with you about it.
Thank you for listening!

After enduring months of a complicated pregnancy, the arrival of her beautiful baby daughter, Delia Grace, brought instant joy, a heart filled with thanksgiving, and a sense of relief for Elizabeth. However, she and her husband were soon to learn that Delia Grace was diagnosed with a rare blood condition, but otherwise, appeared and acted healthy. Her condition took a sudden turn, however, when she was only 8 weeks old. We invite you to listen as Elizabeth and I talk about her journey from the sudden, traumatic loss of her sweet daughter through a physically and emotionally debilitating season of grief that led to a diagnosis of PTSD. Although filled with heart wrenching pain, Elizabeth's story is also one of her faith in Jesus that lead to a renewed meaning and purpose in helping other grieving parents through the establishment of the Forever Our Angel Foundation.  

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*** If  you find this podcast helpful and encouraging, please leave us a review by clicking one the links below:

https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/hope-after-child-sibling-loss-the-empty-chair-endeavor/ 

https://www.podchaser.com/HopeAfterChildSiblingLossTheEmptyChairEndeavor

You can contact us by email at: [email protected]
If you would like to share your story on an upcoming episode, please send us an email so that we can talk with you about it.
Thank you for listening!

Our lives are all marked by seasons. Some, we anticipate with excitement such as marriage, a new career, or the arrival of a child into our life. Then, there are those that ambush us without any warning, leaving us completely unprepared for their devastation, how long they would last, and radically change us. February 14, 2021 marked the beginning of such a season for Sitrena Woodson with an unexpected phone call breaking the news that her beautiful daughter Tiffany had just died of a heart attack at the young age of 37. Transparent and raw, Sitrena's story is one that, I believe, will inspire hope, encouragement, and renewed purpose for others in their own season of grief. 

Send us Fan Mail

*** If  you find this podcast helpful and encouraging, please leave us a review by clicking one the links below:

https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/hope-after-child-sibling-loss-the-empty-chair-endeavor/ 

https://www.podchaser.com/HopeAfterChildSiblingLossTheEmptyChairEndeavor

You can contact us by email at: [email protected]
If you would like to share your story on an upcoming episode, please send us an email so that we can talk with you about it.
Thank you for listening!

Christmas is a season of joy, festivities, and celebrations with family and friends in our homes, churches and communities that we look forward to for weeks. For Ronaldlyn, however, December 20, 2016 brought the tragic, heartbreaking news that her precious, beautiful son JaKeith had been murdered at the age of 34. We invite you to listen as she shares how this unthinkable loss turned her and her husband's world upside down in a single moment. Two weeks later, unbelievably, tragedy struck again when Ronaldlyn's husband died suddenly from what she believes was Broken Heart Syndrome or Stress Cardiomyopathy. Suddenly Ronaldlyn found herself not only a grieving parent, but also a widow. How does one survive this level of trauma and loss back to back? I believe you'll discover much encouragement as "Ronnie" and I talk about the hope and strength she found in her relationship with Jesus, and now, 8 years later, a life full of meaning and purpose helping other grieving moms through her role with Mending Hearts Ministry.
 http://www.mendingheartsministry.org/

Send us Fan Mail

*** If  you find this podcast helpful and encouraging, please leave us a review by clicking one the links below:

https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/hope-after-child-sibling-loss-the-empty-chair-endeavor/ 

https://www.podchaser.com/HopeAfterChildSiblingLossTheEmptyChairEndeavor

You can contact us by email at: [email protected]
If you would like to share your story on an upcoming episode, please send us an email so that we can talk with you about it.
Thank you for listening!

One of life's greatest treasures and sources of joy is our children. They fill our homes with laughter and sometimes make us so proud we feel like we'll explode. And because they don't come with an instruction book, GOD often teaches us as we try to teach and instruct them. The Bible offers plenty of wisdom for parenting ......... but not so much for losing a child. In this episode, Jimmy Sprayberry and I talk about he and his wife, Sherry's  grief journey that began one fall day in October, 2006, when they received a call that their precious 22 year old son, Lee, had been tragically killed in a traffic accident. With emotions tempered by time, Jimmy's transparency and honesty offer a message filled with hope as he shares his personal struggles through years of deep grief to a place of renewed meaning, purpose, and joy through his relationship with Jesus Christ and the love and support of others. 

Send us Fan Mail

*** If  you find this podcast helpful and encouraging, please leave us a review by clicking one the links below:

https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/hope-after-child-sibling-loss-the-empty-chair-endeavor/ 

https://www.podchaser.com/HopeAfterChildSiblingLossTheEmptyChairEndeavor

You can contact us by email at: [email protected]
If you would like to share your story on an upcoming episode, please send us an email so that we can talk with you about it.
Thank you for listening!

What happens when unthinkable tragedy intersects our dreams, our plans, and our faith? We’re shattered, left in utter disbelief, a state where nothing seems to make any sense. 
In this episode, Amy Sylvestre shares the story of her and her family’s journey from a heartbreaking diagnosis several weeks into her second pregnancy requiring a move from their home to a hospital hundreds of miles away. Born months premature, and with only 2 chambers in his heart, their son, Hudson would spend the next 9 months undergoing surgeries and treatment in the only home he would ever know. Transparent and, at times, raw, Amy is candidly honest about the impact of this journey, which sadly ended with Hudson losing that long battle for life, on her mental, emotional, physical and spiritual well being. Listen as Amy shares how she found hope in her relationship with JESUS, and through the love and support of caring friends and family. Amy is now a gifted author, coach, and speaker who dedicates her life to helping others rediscover meaning, purpose and hope on their grief journey. To learn more about what Amy's doing, please check out these links:

https://www.youtube.com/@thiswholeheartedlife

www.amysylvestre.com

https://www.facebook.com/amyasylvestre/

www.nothingiswasted.com/podcast

Send us Fan Mail

*** If  you find this podcast helpful and encouraging, please leave us a review by clicking one the links below:

https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/hope-after-child-sibling-loss-the-empty-chair-endeavor/ 

https://www.podchaser.com/HopeAfterChildSiblingLossTheEmptyChairEndeavor

You can contact us by email at: [email protected]
If you would like to share your story on an upcoming episode, please send us an email so that we can talk with you about it.
Thank you for listening!

Our children are such sweet, beautiful gifts from GOD, and bring unimaginable joy to their parents. Even as toddlers, we have dreams and aspirations of who and what they will become. We can’t imagine a future without them. As you listen to this episode, I believe you will be inspired and find hope as Cory and Heather Wessman share the tragic story of losing their beautiful son, Micah, at only 9 months of age, and how they’ve been able to navigate a grief journey that eventually led them to establish Hope for the Mourning, an amazing ministry, founded in Micah’s honor, to offer helpful resources and support to other grieving parents, such as grief mentoring, grief care groups, and care packages.
If you would like to learn more about Hope for the Mourning, or get in contact with Cory and Heather, please visit their website:
https://www.hopeforthemourning.com/

Send us Fan Mail

*** If  you find this podcast helpful and encouraging, please leave us a review by clicking one the links below:

https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/hope-after-child-sibling-loss-the-empty-chair-endeavor/ 

https://www.podchaser.com/HopeAfterChildSiblingLossTheEmptyChairEndeavor

You can contact us by email at: [email protected]
If you would like to share your story on an upcoming episode, please send us an email so that we can talk with you about it.
Thank you for listening!

May 7, 2014 found Jeff and Mackenzie Rollins off to another day filled with the same activities as so many other young parents; feeding, dressing and  dropping kids off at the sitter's, then on to a busy day of work. But then came the phone call that changed everything and turned their world upside down. It was the call that every parent fears. How could their sweet, beautiful, healthy 3 month old baby daughter, Zoe be gone, afterall, she was just fine when they had dropped her off at daycare earlier? Listen as Jeff talks about losing Zoe to SIDS and how he and Mackenzie began a journey of trying to navigate the trauma of grief they were suddenly thrust into. I believe you will be inspired, encouraged, and blessed as Jeff shares how GOD’s faithfulness carried them through such a dark season and restored hope, joy and a new found purpose called Hope Family Care Ministries.
Discover more about this incredible ministry at:
http://www.hopefamilycare.net/

Send us Fan Mail

*** If  you find this podcast helpful and encouraging, please leave us a review by clicking one the links below:

https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/hope-after-child-sibling-loss-the-empty-chair-endeavor/ 

https://www.podchaser.com/HopeAfterChildSiblingLossTheEmptyChairEndeavor

You can contact us by email at: [email protected]
If you would like to share your story on an upcoming episode, please send us an email so that we can talk with you about it.
Thank you for listening!