Hope Reger

Hope Reger is a grief advocate, published author, and inspirational speaker who lives in Xenia, Ohio, with her husband, Mike. She has two sons: Brian, who is 35, and Justin, who will forever be 19. Hope also has a daughter-in-law, Mollie, and three beautiful grandchildren: Haylynn, Adalynn, and Brilie. After 27 years in a corporate role, Hope recently retired to focus primarily on her nonprofit organization, Grief 2 Hope, which she founded in 2020 following the tragic murder of her son in 2016. Grief 2 Hope serves as a peer grief support group, offering a safe space for anyone grieving, along with support, hope, compassion, and inspiration throughout their healing journey. One of Hope's favorite quotes, which she shares at the end of each session, is: "Grief changes your entire world; it can also inspire you to change the world."

Articles:

Rethinking Sympathy in Times of Loss

Judgment in Grief: A Societal Reflection As a society, we must ask ourselves: have we reached a point where the level of sympathy offered to grieving families depends on the choices made by their loved ones? It is troubling to consider that families may receive varying degrees of compassion based on how their loved one passed away—whether from cancer, overdose, accident, suicide, heart attack, or murder. This raises the question: are we so critical of others that we allow our judgments to influence who is deserving of more or less sympathy? Debating Irrelevant Issues While debates about whether addiction is […]

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How to Support Those Grieving

The Limitations of “Let Me Know If You Need Anything” Phrases like “If you need anything, just ask” or “I’m here if you need me” are commonly offered after the loss of a loved one. While often well-intentioned, these words can serve more to relieve the speaker than to provide real help. In my five years running a nonprofit grief support program and listening to participants, I’ve learned that such offers rarely translate into meaningful support. People often say, “I offered to help, but I never heard back,” as though their responsibility ends with the offer. Why the Bereaved Struggle […]

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