The Widowed Parent Podcast

I had such a great discussion with Katarina Salisbury for this episode. This is the second episode in a two-part series with the Salisbury family—Katarina is with us this week, and last week we spoke with her mom, Leila. I hope you had a chance to catch that discussion—listeners are telling me it was a powerful one. Katarina is just 15 years old, and she lost her dad when she was 5. She's very art...

I had such a great discussion with Leila Salisbury for this episode. This is the first episode of a two-part series with the Salisbury family – Leila is with us this week, and next week we'll speak with her 15-year-old daughter, Katarina, for part two of the series. It's going to be so great to hear from both of them, and hear their different perspectives and reflections on the loss of the same pe...

I had such a great discussion with Lane Pease Hendricks and Nancy Kriseman from Kate's Club for this episode. Lane and Nancy have a brand new book for widowed parents and others who are raising grieving kids. They are with Kate's Club, a leading grief program for kids and families, so they really know their stuff. I am so excited to bring you this discussion to kick off this year's Children's Grie...

I had such a great discussion with Joy Imboden Overstreet for this episode. Joy is a widowed parent, and is in fact the person who is farthest out from their loss that we've had on the show. She was widowed 47 years ago, when her kids were just 3 & 6 years old. I think it's really helpful to hear her perspectives and reflections after many years. Some topics Joy and I discuss include: The shock of...

I had such a great discussion with Mari Marquez for this episode. It was so much fun talking to Mari twice over the course of a few days – once for her show, and once for mine. It really was lovely to connect with her and hear all about her experiences, and also her blog, podcast, and children's book, all of which bring badly-needed resources to widowed parents. And, importantly, she was very hone...

I had such a great discussion with Joanne Harpel for this episode. We talk about a really difficult topic today: coping after losing a loved one to suicide. It seems that many people are uncomfortable talking about death in general … and even  more  uncomfortable when talking about suicide. This is a topic we haven't specifically covered yet on the show, although it's come up sometimes in the cont...

I had such a great discussion with Bryan Jung for this episode. Bryan's dad died when Bryan was just shy of 11 years old. Bryan is in his 20's now and has started a creative platform, This is Why , which offers people who lost a parent at a young age a place to tell their stories. Some topics Bryan and I discuss include: How his dad was shot by a lawyer going up against him in a court case when Br...

LIVE with Joyal Mulheron of Evermore (8/30/2021).   Joyal explains that Bereavement Leave is not protected by US Law, meaning a person can be fired if they take even one day of leave when someone close to them dies.   The next 10 days are a critical opportunity to get new legislation written to address this. And WE ALL can help.   Here is how to call 16 Senators who are critical to getting this do...

I had such a great discussion with Ann Locke Davidson and Pamela Sheffield for this episode. Ann and Pam are educational consultants with a practice called Educational Connections in Portland, Oregon. Don't worry if you're not in Oregon -- they have extensive experience working with families all over the United States, and some outside the US as well. I wanted to talk with Ann and Pam today about...

I'm so glad to be back behind the microphone for this, Episode 100! The podcast has been on hiatus for a couple of months as I've been juggling a number of other things — and what a great time to be back. I feel like it's time to reflect a bit. To share with you why I started this podcast. And, most importantly, to bring you messages from some of the widowed parents I've interviewed on the show ov...

I had such a great discussion with Melissa Pierce for this episode. Melissa is a widowed parent, an author, and a self-care advocate. She has two sons, and her older son really struggled as a teen so be sure to listen for that part of our discussion if you're facing a similar situation. Some topics Melissa and I discuss include: Melissa and her husband, Dave, adopting their two sons from the Orego...

I had such a great discussion with Jessica Lahey for this episode. Jess is a bestselling parenting author, and her first book is called The Gift of Failure. Today we talk about her second book, out this week, called The Addiction Inoculation: Raising Healthy Kids in a Culture of Dependence. This is such an important topic, especially with the rising rates of teen mental health issues that we were...

I had such a great discussion with Dara Kurtz for this episode. Dara is the author of "I Am My Mother's Daughter: Wisdom on Life, Loss, and Love." We talked about intentionally creating your legacy and family traditions. And, we dive deep on the topic of letter writing: why it's important, along with lots and lots of tips from Dara. Some topics Dara and I discuss include: Why she named her blog "C...

I had such a great discussion with Karen Paul for this episode. Karen is a widowed mom who lives in the Washington, DC, area. Her husband, like mine, died of glioblastoma – and as we compared notes, we realized our husbands were sick at the exact same time. As I said to her, I think we could have talked all afternoon, about the similarities and differences in our experiences. Listen for Karen tell...

I had such a great discussion with Mira Simone for this episode. Mira is a widowed parent and a grief writer living in Toronto, Canada. She began writing the very evening her husband was diagnosed with cancer, and hasn't stopped. Mira is now raising her young daughter as a solo parent, and she also has experience with both grief therapy and trauma therapy to share with us. Some topics Mira and I d...

I had such a great discussion with Melissa Gould for this episode. Melissa is the author of the brand-new memoir, Widowish , in which she shares with us her journey to becoming a young widow, and her life in the years since. It was so fun to talk with Melissa about her book, and discover the similarities – and differences – in our experiences. Some topics Melissa and I discuss include: Melissa's n...

I had such a great discussion with Pamela Addison for this episode. Pamela is a widowed mom of two young children whose healthcare-worker husband lost his life to COVID-19 in the early weeks of the pandemic. She has since started an active Facebook group for other younger women and men who have lost their spouses to COVID-19. Some topics Pamela and I discuss include: Her husband's experience contr...

I had such a great discussion with KJ Dell'Antonia for this episode. KJ is the former editor of the New York Times' Motherlode blog, and the author of "How to Be a Happier Parent." I mean, who wouldn't want to try to be happier in their role as a parent? And to my widowed parent listeners, especially: I figure we can use all the hints and tips we can get, now that we are doing this parenting job b...

Widowed Parent Podcast LIVE with Widowhood & We-Freshments! Such a fun discussion. Be sure to check out their show! https://www.facebook.com/WidowhoodWeFreshments/ -=-=-=-=- Find all episodes of the Widowed Parent Podcast & widowed parenting resources: https://widowedparentpodcast.com Tips for widowed parents: https://jennylisk.com/top10 Tips for allies of grieving people: https://www.jennylisk.co...

I had such a great discussion with Maria Collins of the New York Life Foundation and Chelsea Prax from the American Federation of Teachers for this episode. New York Life and the AFT recently teamed up to do a new survey about grief and grief support in schools in order to especially understand what the challenges are right now during this pandemic. Some topics Maria and Chelsea and I discuss incl...

I had such a great discussion with Marny Williams-Balodis for this episode. Marny is a widowed parent, and is the cofounder and executive director of Hummingbird Centre for Hope in the Toronto, Canada, area. Some topics Marny and I discuss include: Getting through the first year as a widowed parent of a 3-year-old and 3-month-old; Needing to explain to her 3-year-old over and over that his dad die...

LIVE with Ryan Loiselle of FRIENDS WAY (Warwick, RI) for Children's Grief Awareness Month. -=-=-=-=- Find all episodes of the Widowed Parent Podcast & widowed parenting resources: https://widowedparentpodcast.com Tips for widowed parents: https://jennylisk.com/top10 Tips for allies of grieving people: https://www.jennylisk.com/allies

LIVE with Julianne Green of The Den for Grieving Kids (Fairfield County, CT) for Children's Grief Awareness Month. -=-=-=-=- Find all episodes of the Widowed Parent Podcast & widowed parenting resources: https://widowedparentpodcast.com Tips for widowed parents: https://jennylisk.com/top10 Tips for allies of grieving people: https://www.jennylisk.com/allies

LIVE with Paul Rubin of Camp Good Mourning! (Long Island, New York) for Children's Grief Awareness Month. -=-=-=-=- Find all episodes of the Widowed Parent Podcast & widowed parenting resources: https://widowedparentpodcast.com Tips for widowed parents: https://jennylisk.com/top10 Tips for allies of grieving people: https://www.jennylisk.com/allies  

LIVE with Viki Brown of Dustin's Place (Plymouth, Indiana) for Children's Grief Awareness Month. More info: https://dustinsplace.org/ -=-=-=-=- Find all episodes of the Widowed Parent Podcast & widowed parenting resources: https://widowedparentpodcast.com Tips for widowed parents: https://jennylisk.com/top10 Tips for allies of grieving people: https://www.jennylisk.com/allies