Loss of a Family Member

After Loss of a parent

Stories of others who have lost parents will inspire and support you. Read, listen and watch. Hope is the bridge between loss and recovery.

Open to Hope Radio

Articles

  • Impact of Both Parents’ Deaths

    Posted on October 12, 2020 - by Susan Berger

    This is an excerpt from The Five Ways We Grieve, by Susan Berger, available at Barnes & Noble and Amazon:   Although I have been an orphan for more than half […]

    Read More

  • When Grief Resurfaces: How News of the Coronavirus Brings Back Anxiety About Death

    Posted on February 3, 2020 - by Gloria Horsley

    The news about the rapid spread of the Coronavirus, including quarantines and regularly updated statistics about the dead and the infected, is enough to cause anyone anxiety. However, we recently […]

    Read More

  • A Southern Baptist Family’s First Cremation

    Posted on August 31, 2019 - by Tracey Wallace

    By 2040, they say more than 80% of Americans will be cremated. Also, more than 53% of us choose that over burial. And while for some this may seem normal […]

    Read More

  • 21-Year-Old Wonders How to Deal With Pain of Mother-Loss

    Posted on January 22, 2019 - by Carol O'Dell

    Sally from California asks: I lost my mother two months back. I’m 21, the elder child and suddenly feel that my world has been turned upside down. I’m studying away […]

    Read More

  • From the Ashes of my Father’s Death

    Posted on January 9, 2019 - by Emily Kil

    (Contributing writer Emily Kil co-wrote this article with her husband based on his childhood experience.) A 9-year old boy should be playing with friends, going to school, and making lifetime […]

    Read More

  • Dear Dad Letters: Father Figures

    Posted on November 10, 2018 - by Gary Jaworski

    Dear Dad, It is hard living without a father to show the ways of becoming a man.  Mom eventually dated some men, but they either frightened or bored me.  One, a swarthy […]

    Read More

  • Dear Dad Letters: Catastrophism

    Posted on November 9, 2018 - by Gary Jaworski

    Dear Dad, Here is a neologism.  “Catastrophism, noun.  The unfounded fear that one’s life is about to meet a sudden and catastrophic end.”  I have lived all my life with this […]

    Read More

  • Dear Dad Letters: #5 and #6

    Posted on November 8, 2018 - by Gary Jaworski

    Introduction Dear Dad is the story of my life told in the form of letters to my father, Walter Michael Jaworski, who died of a heart attack when I was five […]

    Read More

  • Look Who is Coming to Holiday Dinner! What to Do When a Parent Remarries

    Posted on October 22, 2018 - by Mary Joye

    When holidays come, grief can go haywire. Most everyone knows that. But what do you do if you are grieving a parent and your remaining father or mother is dating […]

    Read More

  • Saying Goodbye to Dad

    Posted on September 30, 2018 - by Thomas Attig

    I remember my last visit before Dad died in 1969. Mom called me at graduate school to tell me that he was quite ill (he’d suffered a stroke four years […]

    Read More

  • Continuing Bonds After The Loss Of A Parent: Interview with Brittany Trauthwein

    Posted on September 8, 2018 - by Heidi Horsley

    At the annual ADEC (Association of Death Education and Counseling), I spoke with Brittany Trauthwein about continuing bonds after loss. Brittany is a doctorate student at the Chicago Professional School […]

    Read More

  • Dear Dad: Letters to a Man I Never Knew

    Posted on August 26, 2018 - by Gary Jaworski

    Introduction Dear Dad is the story of my life told in the form of letters to my father, Walter Michael Jaworski, who died of a heart attack when I was five […]

    Read More

  • Dear Dad: A Letter to the Long Deceased

    Posted on August 24, 2018 - by Gary Jaworski

    Introduction Dear Dad is the story of my life told in the form of letters to my father, Walter Michael Jaworski, who died of a heart attack when I was five […]

    Read More

  • On Your First Father’s Day Without Dad

    Posted on June 7, 2018 - by Beth Marshall

    This year might be your first Father’s Day since losing your Dad, a beloved child or another important person in your life. Or maybe it’s been a while. Either way, […]

    Read More

Open to Hope TV

  • Episode 178: The Whys and Hows of Grief Support

    Posted on December 15, 2019 - by admin

    On this show Dr. Gloria and Dr. Heidi Horsley interview ADEC President, Dr. Phyllis Kosminsky and former ADEC President, Dr. Jon Reid, about getting back to life, after the death […]

    Watch

  • Episode 173: Life Without My Dad

    Posted on September 25, 2019 - by admin

    On this show Dr. Gloria and Dr. Heidi Horsley talk with Carrie Pike, Anne Castaldo, and Barbara Redfield about life without their Dad’s. Carrie Pike, is the founder of Carrie […]

    Watch

  • Episode 159: Navigating Life After Parent Loss

    Posted on March 8, 2019 - by admin

    On this show Dr. Gloria and Dr. Heidi Horsley explore navigating life after parent loss. Guests include Paul Alexander, singer, songwriter, and psychotherapist, and Daniel Kenner, actor, playwright, and co-author […]

    Watch
  • Open to hope

    Episode 137: How Does A Father’s Death Impact Life?

    Posted on July 30, 2018 - by admin

    On this show Dr. Heidi Horsley explores with Dr. Gary Jaworski, whose father died when he was 5 years old and Barbara Rubel MS, whose father died by suicide when […]

    Watch
  • Open to hope

    Episode 134: Parent Death A Discounted Loss

    Posted on June 27, 2018 - by admin

    On this show Dr. Gloria and Dr. Heidi Horsley interview Open to Hope writers Lauren Muscarella author of Alice’s Law: Finding Deeper Meaning and Honoring Lost Loved Ones, and founder […]

    Watch

Foundation

Get Involved

Resources

Copyright © 2021 Open to Hope