Grief Support Archives - Widowhood Real Talk with Dr. Tina

What A Hospice Chaplain Wants Every Widow To Know About Grief With Phil Allen

Podcast / September 10, 2026

Widowhood Real Talk with Tina | Phil Allen | Grief And Faith

In this episode of Widowhood Real Talk with Dr. Tina, Dr. Tina welcomes Phil Allen, a hospice chaplain and author who has spent more than three decades walking alongside people facing loss, death, and life’s most difficult seasons. Together, they discuss what grief really looks like, why healing cannot be rushed, and how faith can become a source of comfort rather than pressure during widowhood. Drawing from his book, The Ache in the Ordinary, Phil shares gentle wisdom about finding God’s presence in everyday moments, embracing honest conversations about pain, and discovering hope even when answers are hard to find. Whether you’re newly widowed, supporting someone who is grieving, or seeking encouragement in your own journey, this conversation offers compassionate insight and practical hope. I am sharing my experience of loving the same man for 32 years, a mother to two adult children, a retired military officer, a breast cancer survivor, and my connections with others. Anyone experiencing suicidal thoughts should reach out to a suicide hotline or local emergency number in their country: Psychology Today Suicide Hotlines and Prevention Resources Around the World. — Watch the episode here Listen to the podcast here What A Hospice Chaplain Wants Every Widow To Know About Grief With Phil Allen Our guest is Mr. Phil Allen. He’s worked as a lawyer, a pastor, a counselor, and now as a hospice chaplain. His book grew out of that winding path. Let’s get into this conversation now. Philip, welcome to widowhood. Thank you. It is an honor for me to be here. Honor, thank you, welcome. People usually don’t gravitate that way towards the whole grief thing. Why is that an honor for you in welcome? Naming The Reality Of Universal Pain It’s because we all have it. Often, we think of people in the major seasons of life where it’s just horrible. Certainly, a lot of your readers are in that or have come through that, going through it. The reality is, whether we’re in one of those huge losses or it’s just the pain of life, we all have it. There’s part of me that wonders if somehow culturally, we’re trying to condition ourselves to not admit pain. Probably many years ago, I would not have said if it’s an honor to be on a grief show, but now I do just because so many of us are experiencing it. Having the freedom to talk about it and name it is an honor. What if the world was more welcoming to reality? Life and pain go together. Instead, my life is only amazing when it looks fabulous and airbrushed. Everything is perfect. Can perfection be part of pain in grief? Pain and grief lead to perfection. I suppose that I’d probably need to condition that by saying, I think that so much of perfection is connection. It’s ultimately through connection to God, but connection to each other as well. We most fully become the people we were intended to be. Yes, certainly in this life. Grief is part of perfection. A path to perfection. What a great question. What if the world were open to it? I feel like we’d all be more complete. We’d all be more whole human beings. We’d have space for each other and for ourselves that we don’t always have. For the person that heard everything you said, and was like, “Yes,” and then you said that God word. That’s the part that they wrestle with and feel like, “I’m not sure if that’s part of my story.” Do I understand that? To give you a little bit of my background. I was a pastor for a church for 30 years. I got burned out entirely and it was a spot where I didn’t think I believed anything. I didn’t honestly care if I believed anything or not. I went through a process where the only thing I can say is, from my vantage point, God gradually reintroduced himself to me. Finding Acceptance Through Spiritual Wrestling As he did that, I found a freedom, an acceptance, and an invitation in him that I hadn’t before. I’m a hospice chaplain now. One of the things that I will talk about with patients who don’t believe, but who will let me visit still is, “It’s okay to wrestle with whether you believe, what you believe, or how you believe. God’s bigger than that.” There’s a freedom also in just allowing ourselves the questions and the doubt and saying, “That doesn’t disqualify me from anything.” It can be a place of greater intimacy. Other clergy that are reading and can resonate with the words that you said but they’ve yet to say it out loud or share even come to terms in their own mind that they are there. What would you share with them? On one hand, I’d shared with them a caution because that was part of my burnout. I do have the sense that there are times and places where the church demands an unfair certainty from the clergy. Clergy are expected to have the answers, for their belief to be solid, their family to be healthy, and not to have doubts. I would caution them in maybe recognizing that in themselves that there are probably doubts there. Removing The Burden Of Certainty For Caregivers There’s probably anger and uncertainty. It’s okay. I was a human being 30 years ago, 20 years ago, 10 years ago, but I didn’t let myself be. I didn’t let myself have doubts, anger, and uncertainty that I was so willing to affirm and embrace in other people but not in me. I’m something greater. I’d just like to say it’s okay for you to genuinely feel lost at times, angry at times, mad and uncertain. It’s okay. What is the difference between being a hospice chaplain and a pastor? Someone looking from the outside is like, “Clergy is the same thing.” Share and help educate the

What A Hospice Chaplain Wants Every Widow To Know About Grief With Phil Allen Read More »

Through Grief-Colored Glasses: Finding Hope After The Unthinkable With Vicky Edgerly

Podcast / August 27, 2026

In this moving episode of Widowhood Real Talk with Dr. Tina, Dr. Tina welcomes grief educator, author, and speaker Vicky Edgerly, whose life was forever changed by the loss of her son to suicide, her daughter to cancer, and her husband to suicide. Rather than allowing grief to define her future, Vicky discovered a path toward healing that transformed her pain into purpose. Today, she helps others navigate life’s most difficult losses with compassion, wisdom, and hope. Together, Dr. Tina and Vicky discuss surviving complex grief, supporting widows and bereaved parents, finding meaning after unimaginable heartbreak, and why healing doesn’t mean forgetting; it means learning to carry love forward. Vicky also shares insights from her memoir, Through Grief-Colored Glasses: A Life Reinvented by Devastating Loss, and the lessons that continue to inspire grieving families worldwide. I am sharing my experience of loving the same man for 32 years, a mother to two adult children, a retired military officer, a breast cancer survivor, and my connections with others. Anyone experiencing suicidal thoughts should reach out to a suicide hotline or local emergency number in their country: Psychology Today Suicide Hotlines and Prevention Resources Around the World. — Watch the episode here Listen to the podcast here Through Grief-Colored Glasses: Finding Hope After The Unthinkable With Vicky Edgerly Widowhood, our conversation with Vicky, she is going to share about suicide. That’s the conversation that people try to shy away from. They do not know what to do when we have no choice but to talk about it, but to experience it and to give you hope of what life can look like. In Vicky’s words, if you choose to, Vicky has dealt with the suicide of her son, her husband, and the cancer death of her daughter. Yet she has found a way to have hope and provide encouragement and support to other grievers. Let’s get into this conversation now. Vicky, welcome to widowhood. Tina, thanks for having me. I’m grateful and humbled to be here. Your story, your life has a lot of layers. When you hear, “Welcome to the Widowhood,” what’s the backstory? What are you thinking about when you hear that? To be honest with you, Tina, I pushed back against that title when it first was applied to me. I want to say maybe 2 or 3 months after my husband Leo died, I went to attend his mother’s funeral. She passed away. I was surrounded by his family members, and one of his sisters started walking me around the room, introducing me as Leo’s widow. I hadn’t had that experience yet. It slammed into me. I wasn’t sure what I felt about it. I cried about it in my hotel room that night. I wore it like one of his old shimmy shirts that I used to put on just so I could smell the wood smoke from our fire pit, the forest that he always walked in. Evolving Beyond The Identity Of Loss I wore the title, Widowhood, as a warm blanket for a while until there came a time and a chapter in my life, about right after the second year, at the end of the second year, that there was an occurrence in my life that made me realize I had to let go of the marital relationship. I dropped the name Widow at that point as well. It still applies to me. I’m not Leo’s wife. I am his widow, but I am no longer approaching the world wearing that title upfront. It just comes out naturally in organic conversation. Thank you for sharing the evolution of that. I know for myself, when someone identified me for the first time, it was shocking. It took my breath away. Someone who has not become a widow, I think it’s hard to understand. It’s just a word. Why does it matter? It’s just like everything encompassing in that. I was like, “That’s where I am. That’s my life right now.” I can appreciate how you shared that over time your connection with that word changed. For someone tuning into this conversation, to realize the way you feel now versus the way it may change later, it has the potential to shift. That is important because some people feel like their death is final, but the way in which we engage it has the opportunity to adjust over time. That is correct. Absolutely true. Your life is layered, and we have an amazing book, Through Grief-Colored Glasses: A Life Reinvented by Devastating Loss, and devastating loss indeed. Before we dive into the book, can you tell us about all three of the people in your life that have brought you to this place? Reframing Devastating Heartbreak Into Love It was a crazy ride for sure. Devastating in the beginning, but by the time I traveled through it all, I learned to actually love my story. It is, I think, a romantic story. Think about movies like The Notebook, which is centered around death. Is it not? However, it celebrates all of life. We all come away with tears, but our hearts are cracked wide open after witnessing such a beautiful story. I feel, just as a caveat to the readers or the audiences, that my story is beautiful. This is the place I’ve come to at this point in my life. It didn’t start out that way. In 2002, my eighteen-year-old son, Adam, took his own life. Unfortunately, twenty minutes after wishing me a happy Mother’s Day on the phone and telling me he loved me, he was gone. That was devastating. I will not get too deep into it, because we could be here all day with that particular story, but it rocked my world. I had no inner compass. I had no guidance for how to deal with grief, pain, and loss. Growing up, religion was just something we dabbled in on Easter and Christmas. It wasn’t

Through Grief-Colored Glasses: Finding Hope After The Unthinkable With Vicky Edgerly Read More »

From Widower to Hope Again: Jack Church on Surviving Grief, Healing After Loss & Finding Love Again

Podcast / August 20, 2026

Widowhood Real Talk with Tina | Jack Church | Healing After Loss

Dr. Tina Fornwald welcomes author and broadcaster Jack Church for an honest conversation about finding healing after loss following the passing of his wife. Jack shares how writing daily letters became the foundation for his book, Year One of Grief, and offers honest insight into navigating sorrow, stepping out of isolation, and opening your heart to new possibilities. Whether you’re newly widowed, years into your grief journey, or supporting someone who has experienced profound loss, this conversation offers compassion, practical encouragement, and hope that healing is possible. They address common misunderstandings about how men grieve, the physical release found in tears, and why taking simple steps outdoors can help rebuild daily life. Together, Dr. Tina and Jack explore faith, resilience, and the courage to embrace a new chapter while honoring the past. I am sharing my experience of loving the same man for 32 years, a mother to two adult children, a retired military officer, a breast cancer survivor, and my connections with others. Anyone experiencing suicidal thoughts should reach out to a suicide hotline or local emergency number in their country: Psychology Today Suicide Hotlines and Prevention Resources Around the World. — Watch the episode here Listen to the podcast here From Widower To Hope Again: Jack Church On Surviving Grief, Healing After Loss & Finding Love Again Our conversation is with Jack Church from K-Love. Jack is a widower. Jack has 30 years of experience walking on this journey. What Jack also has is showing us how to hope again, how to walk back into the light, and entertain the possibility of love. Let’s get into this conversation now. Jack, welcome to the Widowhood. Thank you so much. It’s a pleasure to join you. It really is. For somebody that’s tuning in and they’re going, “Pleasure to join you to the Widowhood,” what would make you say that? What would be the backstory to say that’s welcoming? The backstory. See, the front story was you’re warm and inviting. We’ll stick with the front story. As far as the backstory, I know a lot has happened in your life. Take us back to how the moment in your life shifted in the path that you’re on now. Understanding The Sudden Weight Of Spousal Loss As you know, I lost my first wife of over 30 years. It was October of 2019. For those of us who have experienced loss like that, it’s incomprehensible the amount of grief that you will experience. It was hard. I was working in local television as a TV weather guy in Oregon at the time. I was her full-time caregiver as well for about eight months leading up to her passing. I’m doing that in the day and the evening and doing the weather at night and praying and praying that she’s going to be fine. It didn’t work out that way. I lost her. I’m like, “This hurts way more than I ever thought it could. I will never forget, Tina. I do not know why this popped into my head. She and I used to talk about which one of us would go first. I now realize I would say, “Hopefully I’ll go first. I want you to live a full life.” Now, knowing the pain of the loss, it’s like that’s an unfair statement. It really is because it is so hard. I would never wish that upon anyone to go through this, but for any of us that have been married for any length of time, it’s inevitable. It’s going to happen. I mean, it really is, unless you go down in a plane crash, a car crash, something like that, one of us in a relationship will experience that loss. Thank you for sharing that, Jack. Let’s go back a little bit further. First of all, what is her name? Her name is Pam. What was life like meeting Pam and before her passing? I met her in high school. We went to two different high schools, two different counties. My dad had an industrial supply company. Her dad was a bivocational preacher, but he was also a purchasing agent for a local factory. My dad called on him, and they mentioned that my parents had a son. Reverend Prince, Claude Prince, said, “I’ve got a daughter.” The parents went out to dinner, and they said maybe they should meet. An arranged relationship, basically. The thing is, my parents gave me her number and I waited like six months to ever call her. I was very shy. I was getting ready to be a senior in high school, and I finally called her. Our first date, I still remember. We went to Jackson, Tennessee. We saw the movie Star Wars, and we ate at a restaurant called Skeeter’s. It was magical. She was great. We just had a lot of fun. We laughed a lot. We had fun, and we dated. Roll forward, though. Senior year high school, senior prom night. I’m getting ready to go off to college in Jackson, where we would go on our dates, which is like 40 miles from the town we lived in, which to high school kids, that seems like an eternity. She wasn’t sure what she was going to do. I suggested on our prom night, said, “We probably should break up since I’m going to be going to Jackson.” I know we broke up. What was her response? It’s funny. I could probably cry thinking about it. She was shattered. She was like, “Really?” I went, “Yeah. I’m going to be in Jackson. You do not know where you’re going to be. We probably should do this.” Roll forward, though. The other thing is different. She was a Christian. I was not a practicing Christian at the time. Not really a true believer. I think God had his hand in that as well because sometimes I felt a little pressure because her dad was

From Widower to Hope Again: Jack Church on Surviving Grief, Healing After Loss & Finding Love Again Read More »

Navigating Widowhood: Updates And The 2026 Retreat

Podcast / July 21, 2026

Widowhood Real Talk with Tina | Widowhood Community

This episode provides vital updates for the widowhood community as we progress through 2026. Dr. Tina shares details about the Children of Widowhood Secret Santa program and the upcoming Walk for Love initiative designed to foster connection. Listeners will hear about the exclusive Real Widowhood Weekend #NextYou retreat taking place in Virginia Beach this December. We discuss the success of the Hope Grows Here 2026 event and how it supports our new educational scholarship fund. Dr. Tina also outlines the upcoming annual butterfly release ceremony and the men’s grief support group led by James Price. Tune in to learn how you can participate, donate, or find the support you need today. I am sharing my experience of loving the same man for 32 years, a mother to two adult children, a retired military officer, a breast cancer survivor, and my connections with others. Anyone experiencing suicidal thoughts should reach out to a suicide hotline or local emergency number in their country: Psychology Today Suicide Hotlines and Prevention Resources Around the World. — Watch the episode here Listen to the podcast here Navigating Widowhood: Updates And The 2026 Retreat Introduction to Widowhood Updates One of the things I hear often in this widowhood community is, who am I now that my spouse has died? What should I do next? Have I been grieving so long that I’m stuck and I can’t get out of this? Those questions are going to be answered at a retreat that we are hosting. December 3rd through the 6th here at Virginia Beach, Virginia. Let’s get into this episode so I can share those details with you. — Children of Widowhood Secret Santa Widowhood, I have a lot to catch you up on. This is a conversation between the two of us. The first thing that I want to do, and mostly part of this conversation, is give you an update of all the things that’s happening in widowhood. First of all, I want to let that our Children of Widowhood Secret Santa program. We took our last application on June 30th. In 2026, we received 42 applications. That’s doubled in the first year than we did Children of Widowhood Secret Santa. If you’re saying, “What is it anyway?” Let me give you some details. Children of Widowhood Secret Santa is an opportunity for the nonprofit Widowhood Real Talk with Tina to help children who have lost one or both of their parents receive gifts for the Christmas holiday. You may have been reading this show, but let me roll it back and remind you. This show is part of the nonprofit 501(c)(3 Widowhood Real Talk with Tina, registered here in the State of Virginia. This show is often the gateway where people find out about the nonprofit and get involved. Children of Widowhood Secret Santa is managed by two widows, Lisa and Tiffany. They manage the program. I do a little bit to help them out, but they are doing the heavy lifting. The program allows us to work with parents or guardians of children who have lost one or both of their parents. Lisa and Tiffany work with these people to create an anonymous Amazon wish list where each child gets to select one to five gifts. Those gifts are under $50 or less. When I say anonymous, those Amazon wish lists will only show the city and the state for the recipient. On our website, starting October 1st, all those items will be listed and we’re looking for you, other sponsors, churches, places of faith, works, organizations where you work, civic clubs, and all sorts of organizations like funeral homes or hospice to come together to help make sure that these children receive Christmas gifts. Individuals, too. You can sponsor one gift. You may sponsor a child for all five gifts, or maybe a family. Maybe you’re like me, who doesn’t like shopping. The idea of being able to just donate to the program is enough for you. We have that option available also. The application process for Children of Widowhood Secret Santa closed on June 30th, and starting on October 1st, the list of all the gifts will be available on our website, but on August 1st, we will reach out and let all the applicants that were approved know that they are in the program. Lisa and Tiffany will start working with them. Walk For Love Details I am excited. Of those 42 applications, I don’t particularly know how many children are in total, but I’m sure it will be more than what we did for 2026. Also, I want you to know that Walk for Love is coming up soon. In fact, it is August 2nd through the 8th of 2026. You may be saying, “What is Walk for Love?” It is an opportunity for you to get involved with the widowhood community and what that looks like is, we’re asking people from August 2nd to August 8th to walk one mile a day. Only one mile. You may walk it outside. You may walk it inside. You may have a medical device. I have my right knee replaced, so I’m probably going to be using my walker to scoot down the road and accomplish my one mile a day. Depending on your situation, but before you do it, please check with your health provider to make sure that you’re in a good place to go for a walk every day. We specifically chose one mile a day because maybe you’ve been thinking about returning to exercise. One of the things that we know that can happen when we are dealing with grief. We don’t take care of ourselves as much as we want to. We don’t exercise. We’re sad. We’re sitting back and we’re disassociated from a lot of things around us. Being able to walk one mile a day can often get us back outside, getting into the sun, connecting with nature, and being

Navigating Widowhood: Updates And The 2026 Retreat Read More »

Crying + Trying: The Messy, Honest Work Of Healing After Heartbreak With Kim Murray

Podcast / January 8, 2026

Widowhood Real Talk with Tina | Kim Murray | Crying Trying

Grief doesn’t follow rules, timelines, or tidy emotional stages, and Kim Murray knows that deeply. A young widow at forty-four with two children, Kim learned firsthand how confusing, exhausting, and disorienting life becomes when the world keeps moving but yours stops. She opens up about the early days of widowhood, parenting through grief, the pressure to keep traditions alive, the weight of other people’s expectations, and the process of learning to honor both sadness and joy. Kim also shares practical wisdom around boundaries, emotional permission, navigating finances during grief, and the mindset shift that helped her believe she was still allowed to live, love, and build a future. Through honesty, humor, and vulnerability, this conversation reminds widows they are not broken, they are not alone, and there is no “right way” to grieve — only the next step forward. I am sharing my experience of loving the same man for 32 years, a mother to two adult children, a retired military officer, a breast cancer survivor, and my connections with others. Anyone experiencing suicidal thoughts should reach out to a suicide hotline or local emergency number in their country: Psychology Today Suicide Hotlines and Prevention Resources Around the World. — Watch the episode here Listen to the podcast here Crying + Trying: The Messy, Honest Work Of Healing After Heartbreak With Kim Murray Voices Of Widowhood Healing Through The Holiday Welcome to Voices of Widowhood, Healing Through the Holidays. Our guest, Kim Murray, is going to talk about boundaries, confidence, and bad financial choices during the holidays. Let us get into this conversation now. Kim, welcome to the Widowhood. Thank you, Tina. I am so happy to be here with you. When you think of “Welcome to the Widowhood,” you think, “Thank you.” Thanks for having me. I am so excited to be here. Don’t you hear that all the time? I am so excited to be here. I know, but the circumstances, though. It is a weird circumstance, but I am happy to talk to you. I am excited to talk to you, not because of the reasons that brought us together, but because of the topic. That is the sense of this widow community at large. It is often said that the club that nobody wants to belong to, but the people are amazing. They are very good people. I want to say thank you for being part of this mini series, Voices of Widowhood Healing Through the Holidays, because you and I understand from our own unique perspective that holidays can be trash. It is extremely difficult. Anybody tuning in, if you are going through a hard time over the holidays, it is normal. We have all been there. Widow 411: From Young Widow To Resource Hub Founder When you talk about being there, Kim, if you can share a little bit about Widow 411 and why you started that, and just your place in doing that. I was obviously widowed in 2014. I was a young widow. I was 44 years old. My kids were 8 and 10. I ended up being a widow and a solo parent all at once. It was a very complicated, confusing, stressful, overwhelming time. I know that I had a hard time getting through a lot of those early days of widowhood. I assume that most widows go through the same experiences. I really wanted to start Widow 411. It is a resource hub for widows to talk to other people and say, “I have been where you are. Here is what I learned in the process.” That is really what started the whole website and resource hub for me, was just wanting to let other widows know that it is going to be okay. It is hard in the beginning, but it is going to be okay. We are going to help you get there. That is really the reason why I wanted to get through my own grief at the same time, helping other people. It was a win-win situation for me. How has that changed over the years, from the website you started to what it has evolved to now? It’s evolved to, and tremendous resource for one thing, but I can see my own stages through grief starting from the beginning, and to where I am now. I am eleven years out of widowhood. I am actually a remarried widow now. I have another husband experience. I have owned businesses. I have raised my kids. They are adults now. There have been a lot of changes through the years. Grief never goes away. I just want to make that clear that you do not reach some point where you are never grieving anymore. You remarried, you are over that. You move on, you get over it, and everything is fine. It does not happen that way. We all know that. I just like to try to be realistic with other widows and say like, “I still have my moments.” Eleven years later, I still have my moments. I am still brought to my knees. I still cry. Even though I am remarried, my husband and I still talk about my deceased husband. That never goes away. You just learn to make room for it. Over the years, I have seen how different phases of widowhood evolve, and how it goes from being, “I will never be happy again. My life is over, too.” I can make some changes and make some decisions in my life that make it better for me. You just get out of that dark cloud after the first couple of years. I am not saying there is a specific timeframe for people. The Mindset Shift: Their Life Ended, Not Mine Thank you for the idea that it does change. I would dare say it is not just a lapse in time. It is what you do during that process. I would say that if I stay

Crying + Trying: The Messy, Honest Work Of Healing After Heartbreak With Kim Murray Read More »

Hope Grows Here: Building A Grief Support Community Beyond The Mic

Podcast / October 9, 2025

Widowhood Real Talk with Tina | Tina Fornwald | Hope Grows Here

Grief support isn’t just a conversation—it’s a lifeline. In this heartfelt episode, Tina Fornwald steps out from behind the mic to reveal how Widowhood Real Talk with Tina has grown into a registered 501(c)(3) nonprofit offering concrete ways to help widows, widowers, and families heal. She shares exciting details about the upcoming “Hope Grows Here” 1960s-themed event in Norfolk, Virginia; explains how listeners can participate in the Children of Widowhood Secret Santa program; and highlights peer-to-peer grief support groups for men and for all adults. From scholarships to vendor opportunities, donations, and volunteering, this episode is a roadmap for anyone who wants to give or receive meaningful support on the journey through loss. I am sharing my experience of loving the same man for 32 years, a mother to two adult children, a retired military officer, a breast cancer survivor, and my connections with others. Anyone experiencing suicidal thoughts should reach out to a suicide hotline or local emergency number in their country: Psychology Today Suicide Hotlines and Prevention Resources Around the World. — Watch the episode here Listen to the podcast here Hope Grows Here: Building A Grief Support Community Beyond The Mic You have been reading to Widowhood Real Talk with Tina for maybe a week, months or maybe years. Did you know there are ways to connect with this community? That’s what this show is about, sharing with you how to be a part of this amazing community. Let’s get into this conversation now. Welcome to Widowhood Real Talk with Tina. I’m pausing from talking to other people to share with you that we are more than sharing stories. Widowhood Real Talk with Tina is a registered 501(c)(3) nonprofit, and I want to give you an opportunity to connect. The first way that you can connect with us is to go to our website Widowhood-RealTalkWithTina.org. There is a free 90 days dealing with grief guides. Go to the website, provide your name and your email address. What that will do, it will also give you an opportunity to start receiving our newsletter on a regular basis. Hope Grows Here: A 60s Themed Event In May 2026 I want to share with you some of the information that you probably want to participate in. The first thing I want to share with you is the idea of our event, Hope Grows Here in May of 2026. I know you’re going, “May of 2026, Tina?” You need time to plan. You need time to get your ‘60s outfit together. You need time to register for the event here in Norfolk, Virginia and reserve your room at the DoubleTree Hotel. You need time to think about the widow or family that you want to support. You need time to be able to think about, “Do I want to be a vendor? Is this the opportunity to bring my arts and crafts, my skills, or my oils?” Maybe you have something that you design. Maybe you need time to figure out what you want to donate to the silent auction. We are planners here at Widowhood Real Talk with Tina and we know that you want to show up with your best. Sometimes, this may be the first opportunity for you as a widow, a widower, or someone in the grief community to travel since your loved one has passed. It may take time to be able to prepare yourself mentally, physically, and spiritually to step out, to come and do something fun for you. That’s why we’re planning early. If you go to our website Widowhood-RealTalkWithTina.org, select the event in the drop-down menu from there, and select Hope Grows Here. You will see details about being a vendor. The vendor fee is $50 for a table, and then to purchase your tickets. The tickets are $65 for your plated meal. You may want to sponsor a widow. Maybe you are not able to attend but you would like to sponsor for a widow to attend. You can email me at WidowhoodRealTalk@Gmail.com, and I can provide you details on that. Maybe you would like to donate to the college scholarship fund and you go, “Why do we need a college scholarship fund?” Let me tell you why. When someone loses a partner or a parent, they may no longer have the funds to be able to cover college for children. Maybe that widow or widower needs to go back into the workforce to obtain a livable wage. They may need some type of educational training to be able to attain a better job. Widowhood Real Talk with Tina would like to be able to support them in obtaining the education, the skill and the trade that they would need to return to the workforce to obtain a livable wage. This event of Hope Grows Here was specifically geared to have fun and also to help others. I understand the idea of going to a dress-up event may be triggering the last time that you did something with your spouse and that’s why we’re dressing in ‘60s. Yes, we are also celebrating my 60th birthday at this event, but this is the opportunity for the community at large to get together, to have fun, dance, celebrate and to meet each other and know that we are growing in this process together. Other ways that you can support is a one-time donation. You could share the link on social media. You could share this show with someone that you think would enjoy the opportunity to come to the greater Hampton Roads area. The airport is literally around the corner from the event, and there’s a shopping center close by too, called the Outlets. If you like shopping, that’s something to consider also. Secret Santa: Supporting Children In The Widowhood Community There’s golfing and a lot of other different things to do. Look up what you can do while you’re here in Norfolk, Virginia. Virginia Beach is just

Hope Grows Here: Building A Grief Support Community Beyond The Mic Read More »

The Miracle Of Marrying My Heart: A Journey From Heartbreak To Hope With Susan Peters

Podcast / June 19, 2025

Widowhood Real Talk with Tina | Susan Peters | Reconnecting With The Heart

Imagine being thrown into the depths of grief and coming out the other side with a heart that’s not just healed, but stronger than ever. Today’s guest, Susan Peters, shares her transformative journey from heartbreak to hope. After the sudden loss of her beloved husband, Susan embarked on a path that not only helped her reconnect with her heart but also led her to embrace new dreams and a deeper purpose. In this heartfelt conversation, she shares lessons on how heartbreak can be a gateway to greater strength, resilience, and authenticity. Whether you’re navigating grief or simply seeking a fresh perspective on life’s challenges, Susan’s wisdom and courage will guide you toward embracing your own heart’s journey. Stay tuned for an enlightening discussion on how to transform loss into an opportunity for profound personal growth. I am sharing my experience of loving the same man for 32 years, a mother to two adult children, a retired military officer, a breast cancer survivor, and my connections with others. Anyone experiencing suicidal thoughts should reach out to a suicide hotline or local emergency number in their country: Psychology Today Suicide Hotlines and Prevention Resources Around the World. — Watch the episode here Listen to the podcast here The Miracle Of Marrying My Heart: A Journey From Heartbreak To Hope With Susan Peters Hello, Widowhood. Our guest is Ms. Susan Peters. She is going to share with you from her heart. The lessons that she has learned are going to be vital to your own healing journey. The ability to go from someone who may have been shy to brave, the steps in healing, and the interesting facts of how our heart breaks and light coming in make us stronger. Allow me to share a little bit of Susan’s bio with you. After an unexpected and devastating loss of her beloved husband, John, Susan began a transformational journey of the heart to move through her grief. She discovered how creating new dreams, helping bring her heart back into wholeness, and authentic connections allowed her to embrace the fullness of life. She hopes to inspire others to reconnect more deeply with their own heart and loss, thus giving them a chance to discover their new identity by opening up to the possibilities of new dreams so they will be able to live out their authentic purpose. She is in love with the life she has chosen and truly believes that connecting with the depths of her own heart and each other will transform the world. Let’s get into this conversation, and you can purchase Susan’s book. Hello, Susan. Welcome to the Widowhood. Thanks, Tina. I’m so glad to be here with you. When you hear, “Welcome to the Widowhood,” what’s the first thing that comes to your mind? Reframing Widowhood As Bravery To tell you the truth, when I first heard the term widow, I did not like it at all. If you had said to me, “Welcome to the widowhood,” when I was first in loss, I would have been like, “I don’t like that.” I learned from Emily Tanner in the Brave Widow that widow is a brave word. Widows are brave. Widows step forward. They have to step into a lot of different things that they didn’t want to and didn’t have a choice to. Once she said that, it switched something in my brain to say that being a widow is honorable. It’s not fun, and it’s not where you want to be. You don’t wish it upon anybody, but it’s also honorable. It also gives us a chance to step forward and share with others to see that we can help and support each other through something very difficult, and we can get through it together. There’s a lot there. Thank you for sharing that. I don’t know anybody who liked hearing the word widow. I remember we were taking care of some paperwork shortly after my husband passed, and the person that I was working with had this big computer screen. They shifted it and said “Marital status” and clicked “Widow.” I don’t know if it had been 48 hours. It felt like somebody had ripped my heart out. It was like, “That’s what I am now.” I wanted to tell him, “Don’t check that,” but he had to. Your brain is just settling. I would agree with the concept of the brave widow. I would also go so far as to say that I believe widows should be celebrated. We completed our marriage vows. The amount of knowledge and wisdom. No matter if the marriage was good or bad, you learn something from sticking to that and could benefit other people who are newly married or maybe have been married for a while. It is difficult. It is sad, but there is something very powerful about who we have become in this process. You talked about the Brave Widow. I think you and Emily’s podcast is going to air very close to each other. Tell us about your connection with Emily in the Brave Widow community. Emily was on a summit with someone else whom I had become friends with because she was in Canada, and her husband had died. She started creating summits to help people get over their grief. Emily happened to be her guest. I joined in some of her Brave Widow things. One of the very early ones is when she had told me that being a widow is brave. Ever since then, I was like, “I love this woman.” She was the one who gave me my chance to be on my first podcast. She got me started on that. It’s interesting because our story connected between our meetings, and we got to share a lot online and share our stories. Somehow, we connected. She gave me opportunities to step forward. I was grateful for those opportunities to share my voice and to share

The Miracle Of Marrying My Heart: A Journey From Heartbreak To Hope With Susan Peters Read More »

A Journey Of Healing Through Motherless Mother’s Days With Jasmine Burch

Podcast / May 15, 2025

Widowhood Real Talk with Tina | Jasmine Burch | Motherless

As we approach Mother’s Day, today’s episode is a heartfelt tribute to the unseen journeys of grief, healing, and connection. Our special guest, Jasmine Burch, offers a powerful perspective that’s often left unspoken—the experience of losing a parent as a child. At just 21 years old, Jasmine has turned her personal pain into wisdom, using journaling, community, and open conversation to navigate grief and find her voice. In this deeply moving conversation, she shares how she went from bottling up her feelings to building a supportive space—first online, and now through the Widowhood community. Whether you’ve experienced loss or love someone who has, this episode will open your heart and give you the words you’ve been longing to hear. Let’s step into the Widowhood with Jasmine. I am sharing my experience of loving the same man for 32 years, a mother to two adult children, a retired military officer, a breast cancer survivor, and my connections with others. Anyone experiencing suicidal thoughts should reach out to a suicide hotline or local emergency number in their country: Psychology Today Suicide Hotlines and Prevention Resources Around the World. — Watch the episode here Listen to the podcast here A Journey Of Healing Through Motherless Mother’s Days With Jasmine Burch Our guest Jazzy is a special guest for this episode close to Mother’s Day. You are going to learn a lot from this young lady. She is going to share the perspective from a child losing a parent, and provide helpful tips that you long to hear. Let’s get into this conversation now. Jazzy, welcome to the Widowhood. When you hear, “Welcome to the Widowhood,” if I could see the ticker tape going across your forehead, what were your first thoughts? My first thoughts originally, because I have before and then now, being more immersed into it, when I first heard about it, I thought widowhood was just for people who have lost spouses. For a while there I was like, “I don’t know if I fit into this.” After being a part of it more and being part of conversations, I think it’s important for everyone in their grief. I haven’t been married, I haven’t lost a spouse, but everyone has grieved someone and to be able to talk about it with other people is a really cool experience because sometimes you don’t have anyone to relate to that. It’s a very big difference from when I first heard about it until now. Okay. Thank you. That means it goes in line with what our intention was. I’m from Chicago, so hood to me means more family and that connection. When my husband passed and I became a widow, my children lost a parent, their brothers lost a sibling, the nieces and nephew lost an uncle. Even though the widow or widower may be the focus of the conversation, everybody else is involved in that. When we do come together and share our different versions of loss from that same person, I don’t know. Tell me what it creates for you when you hear different people talk about that. The Importance Of Community In Grief I think finding a community when you are grieving is super important because with grief itself it’s super easy to get caught in the super dark place and it’s really hard to get yourself out of it. If you have people who relate, even if it’s not the exact same way as you, if you have people you can talk to and who can understand things in a different perspective than you, it can really be super eye-opening. It also helps you within yourself because you’re like, “I don’t feel so alone in this. I don’t feel I have to bottle it up so that I don’t bug other people with it,” or at least that’s how it is for me. No, you make a common statement. How did you go from not being bottled up and feeling you were bothering people to start talking about the person you love and who is the person you love and what is their name? The person I love is my mom. Her name is Dawn. I never talked about my grief. It wasn’t ever something that I thought I could talk about because the adults in my life were never able to be at a place where they could talk about it. We could say her name in passing, we could talk about certain things here or there, but the general topic of her and grief in general just was off the table completely. It wasn’t until I came on tiktok and I found other people that I connected to that I felt super comfortable around. In being in those lives, I got connected to you and I didn’t realize how many people were currently grieving people they’ve lost. While it’s not in the same sense of like they lost a parent, most of the time, a lot of it was I finally have people that if I feel the need to say something because it’s been bugging me because it’s been on my chest at the top of my head. I don’t have to feel the need to shove it back down because now I have people I can talk to. I have people that you know won’t shut me down every single time I say I feel sad or I don’t know how to describe how I’m feeling. It’s a nice feeling to know I don’t have to go to my journals every two seconds to talk about it. I can talk to other people. You said a lot there. How old were you when your mother Dawn left this world? I was 8 going on 9 because she passed the month before my 9th birthday. I have so much I want to ask you but let me slow down a little bit. Going back to being able to connect and

A Journey Of Healing Through Motherless Mother’s Days With Jasmine Burch Read More »

The Brave Widow’s Guide To Healing And Hope With Emily Tanner

Podcast / March 13, 2025

This episode is dedicated to empowering brave widows to find hope and healing after loss. Join Emily Tanner, founder of the Brave Widow community, as she shares her powerful journey through grief. She offers practical strategies and insights on rebuilding your life and finding joy again. Discover the importance of community, self-care, and emotional healing as you navigate the challenges of widowhood. Emily’s inspiring story will empower you to embrace your future with courage and create a life you truly love. I am sharing my experience of loving the same man for 32 years, a mother to two adult children, a retired military officer, a breast cancer survivor, and my connections with others. Anyone experiencing suicidal thoughts should reach out to a suicide hotline or local emergency number in their country: Psychology Today Suicide Hotlines and Prevention Resources Around the World — Watch the episode here Listen to the podcast here The Brave Widow’s Guide To Healing And Hope With Emily Tanner Emily, welcome to the Widowhood. Thank you, Tina. I’m grateful that you invited me to come. Are you serious? After this lovely winter solstice you allowed me to participate in? Before I read your bio, can you talk about the winter solstice, what that means, and how you came about with that project? I don’t even remember where I got the idea from, and nobody will claim credit. We’re just going to say it was a divine moment. The meaning behind the winter solstice event is an event where we host a panel of widows, and Tina graciously served on our panel. We asked them some tough questions and tried to get their insights. We have giveaways. We play music and have activities. It’s one of the most popular events that I participate in throughout the year. The concept behind the winter solstice is that it is the longest night of the year. We come together as widows knowing that even though our days may feel dark and the nights feel long, every day going forward is going to be a little bit brighter and a little bit brighter. That is beautiful. Now that you have a bit of a sense of her heart, I want to read her bio. One month shy of their twentieth wedding anniversary, Emily was widowed unexpectedly at the age of 37. She and Nathan have four children, who were the ages of 10 through 19 at the time. She founded Brave Widow, a membership community, to help other widows navigate grief, heal their hearts, and create a life they love again. She is certified by the accredited Faith Coaching Academy and the Grief Recovery Method Institute. How Personal Grief Led To Creating Brave Widow Prior to Brave Widow, Emily served as a Senior Vice President for renew cycle in the healthcare industry, leading teams of 4,000 associates in 100-plus hospitals across the US. She earned her MBA at John Brown University with an emphasis on leadership and ethics. Her passion for servant leadership, collaboration, helping people, and bridging gaps is the driving force behind why Brave Widow exists. Her website is BraveWidow.com, and you can email Emily at Emily@BraveWidow.com. When I read your bio, it gives me the sense that in some bigger-than-life way, you were prepared to lead Brave Widow. It’s an interesting observation. I think that I have always been the person that is ready to help, step up, and lead sometimes to my own detriment because I can overcommit or allow myself to feel taken advantage of after a certain point. I felt compelled. Shortly after Nathan died, I had several employees or co-workers who were either widowed themselves or knew someone who was widowed asking me, “What can I do? How do I help them? What are the next steps?” Naturally, in those first few months, I started putting together a checklist, ideas, and suggestions. It just came very naturally to me. Months into Nathan no longer breathing in this world, you are now setting up the genesis for Brave Widow. When you look back at that, how do you see that being helpful or impactful to your grief journey? For me, I approach it from a very tactical standpoint. I didn’t found Brave Widow until probably a year later, but the founding pieces were there. A very tangible checklist of, “Here are specific things that widows want and need, but they’re too ashamed to ask for. They don’t even know what they need, or they struggle asking for help. Here’s a way that you can talk to a widow. Here are things that you can say that are helpful or things you should avoid saying.” For me, in those first few months in that first year, it was what I wish I had known or what I wish people around me had known, and what resources I wish I could have found but just couldn’t seem to find anywhere. The Impact Of Loss: What To Avoid And What To Do Right That is a good point, because there are so many people, I believe, that mean well, and they’re trying to say what they think is helpful or do different things, but they are landing badly. There are some people that know how to just do it right. Unfortunately, I believe the people that learn how to do it right do so because of a significant loss that they’ve learned from experience. I’ll ask the question that people always want to know, what are some things people should not do? Instead of starting with what they shouldn’t do, when people ask, “What should I say? What can I say?” sometimes I’ll respond tongue-in-cheek and say, “The best thing you can say is listen. It’s just to be there.” What we tend to want to do, it’s very much in our nature, is we want to help people. We see someone that’s hurting, they’re struggling, or down in the mud, we want

The Brave Widow’s Guide To Healing And Hope With Emily Tanner Read More »

Widow Dating Experience With Francisco Rodriguez & Jessica Zoeller

Podcast / January 30, 2025

Widowhood Real Talk with Tina | Francisco Rodriguez & Jessica Zoeller | Dating Experience

Dating as a widow and widower is not just about finding companionship. This particular dating experience is also about rebuilding trust, rediscovering joy, and embracing new beginnings. In this thought-provoking conversation, I welcome Francisco Rodriguez and Jessica Zoeller to explore the unique challenges and profound opportunities widows and widowers face when stepping back into the dating world. Together, they discuss practical advice, emotional resilience, and inspiring stories of hope. Tune in as these two amazing souls offer a roadmap for healing and connection whether you are navigating this journey yourself or supporting a loved one. I am sharing my experience of loving the same man for 32 years, a mother to two adult children, a retired military officer, a breast cancer survivor, and my connections with others. Anyone experiencing suicidal thoughts should reach out to a suicide hotline or local emergency number in their country: Suicide Hotlines and Prevention Resources Around the World — Watch the episode here Listen to the podcast here Widow Dating Experience With Francisco Rodriguez & Jessica Zoeller We are at our final conversation with Francisco and Jessica, and I am so grateful for the love of commitment. Welcome to the show. Maybe your final conversation with this, but maybe not final overall. Thanks for having us. Thank you for having us. Thank you. Fran, what was your experience entering the dating world? I have no experience of entering the dating world, especially in these COVID times. Everything was more complicated to do in person. Everything was complicated because I didn’t know anyone in the area. I remember I talked to one of my friends, and he told me about the app Hinge. That was the one that he also used. He told me that one was probably the one that I should use if I wanted to find someone who was serious and open to commitment and being serious in a relationship. I’m glad that you mentioned that because a lot of people or everyone has their opinion of what they think is on a particular app, and this is not TikTok, this is real talk. Hinge, a lot of people think is a booty call or a hookup app. I hear a lot of people saying that, but I’m saying what I hear. You are probably the third couple that I know that met or I’m guessing you met on Hinge, but I know three couples that have met on Hinge and married. I’m glad that you said that because you don’t know what is on that app until you try it out and see. I’m glad that you mentioned that. Some people were thinking Hinge is this and that. Not so. It depends on who you are as a person and what you are going to attract to you and what that’s going to look like and when you find out what’s attracting to you works, then you pursue that. If not, then you pivot. I’m glad that you mentioned that. Jessica, what was your entry point into the dating world? What did that look like? I started on Match.com and matched with some interesting people. You’ve heard the stories. It was not going the way that I was hoping it would. At some point, I said, “That’s it. I’m going to switch dating apps.” I have heard of Hinge on television and stuff, they advertise it very much as looking for somebody who’s serious and wants a serious relationship with them. I went on Hinge as well and then in between that, I also dated a fellow widow who I met through a support group on Facebook, and it was a relationship that wasn’t right. You can like and love a person but know that they are not the right person for you. I moved forward after that into Hinge and talked to some people. I can’t remember when we matched at some point. I was never dating anyone from there. I think I sent you a message because it was something that you were looking for. Someone serious. Since I cannot find it. We were talking about this. Then when I told you, this is probably not the site. How Widowhood Shaped Their Dating Journey His first message to me was so negative and I was like, “A girl can hope that she finds the right person,” and then we ended up chatting for twenty minutes on this particular website. On Match you can say whether you were divorced or widowed. They didn’t have that on Hinge. We did not know that we were widows until we started talking, and about twenty minutes in, I asked the question like, “Why are you single?” The good old “Why are you single” question and he said he was a widow, and I freaked out, and I was like, “Me too.” I was shocked when I saw you are very young. That was my reaction. Just a little bit. We have a six-year age gap. I was widowed at 34. I didn’t know that was your reaction when I was young. There are people who are much younger than us. I want to go back to this first super encouraging comment you made. When you sent the message, Fran, what were you thinking in your head about about how it would be received versus how it came across? When you were typing up, were you like, “I’m going to give her some cool tips on dating,” or it’s what came to mind? How did you think it was going to land? I like her profile and she was living not far from where I was living before. Then I just sent her those messages and we started chatting back and forth. It was very fast replying, which was nice. I regret that we deleted it. When you delete it, you can’t go back and see all the messages. The first one was something that I had written that

Widow Dating Experience With Francisco Rodriguez & Jessica Zoeller Read More »