Silent Nights: Grief, Stress, and Coping During the Holidays
Thursday, December 8, 2022 | 6:00-7:30pm CT
A virtual gathering via Zoom
Free of charge, donations welcomed
For many, the winter holiday season is a time to come together, and also a time when grief and loss are felt most deeply. Now in its 9th year, this annual program offers a safe space to hear and share stories of grief and know that you are not alone. We will hear from members of ISH’s bereavement group and others who each have a unique experience to share.
Speakers:
KAREN JACKSON CARTER
“First I want to thank God for allowing this opportunity to share one of my many stories of how God came through for me; again. I have learned and am still learning that everyone's path to peace may take many forms. Regardless of what form of pain may take; it is all the same with the root being pain. After experiencing so much loss, I decided to turn my back on God. Hoping by doing this, there would be no pain; but I was wrong.”
Karen Jackson Carter is a native Houstonian, who has 3 daughters. Karen became a believer while in the recovery room after the first loss of her son in 1979. Today, Karen is a motivational speaker, an author, entrepreneur and successful business woman who continues her ministry opportunities daily.
AMY BARDI
Amy was born in Santa Barbara, CA. She spent the greater part of her life growing up in Los Angeles where she attended Otis College of Art and Design. She is well traveled, is a visual artist, a writer, editor, a singer-songwriter, and has worked in Hollywood both in front of and behind the camera. Amy was married to her late husband, John, for 18 & ½ years. They inspired each other's creativity and produced many music and book writing projects together. The night John suddenly and unexpectedly died, Amy’s life was forever changed. Today, Amy is working to remember that she was all those creative talents before she met John, and that one day she will sing and write and draw and paint and be of service again. With the love of her family and friends, particularly the caring support she has found in ISH Bereavement Group, she continues to gain hope and strength as she moves forward in her life in a positive way.
COREY JEFFERSON
My name is Corey Jefferson Sr. I have been married to my beautiful wife, Tamika Jefferson for 24 years. We have 2 wonderful children, Téa and Corey II. Family is extremely important to me and I'm going to share with you how my experiences with loss that shaped me mentally and spirituallly into the man I am today.
Corey has experienced the loss of his father and two siblings, along with several other significant people in his life. He considers spirituality a source of meaning-making in the grief process.
VIRGIL FRY
Dr. Virgil Fry serves as the Director of ISH’s Interfaith Spiritual Care Coalition, an emergent alliance among faith communities and nonprofits to serve individuals whose spiritual resources are inadequate. Prior to joining ISH, he served as the Initial Executive Director for Lifeline Chaplaincy, a ministry to hospital patients and caregivers in multiple Texas major medical centers, for 36 years. He is author of two books, Disrupted: Finding God in Illness and Loss, and Rekindled: Warmed by Fires of Hope (Leafwood, 2007).
He also serves as adjunct professor for Abilene Christian University and Pepperdine University and is a frequent presenter for community and chaplaincy sessions on effective ministry with the seriously ill and grieving. Caryl, his wife of 33 years, passed away in 2007, and since then he also has experienced the deaths of both parents, a sister-in-law, and his father-in-law.
LEAH ADAMS PRUITT
Leah serves as Vice-President of Engagement for the Institute for Spirituality and Health at the Texas Medical Center. In this role, she fosters connections with Houston’s faith, medical, education, and community stakeholders to enhance well-being in the community through the development of an enlivened, supportive network of compassionate partners, a circle of friends, and supporters of the Institute.
Leah is a survivor of complex grief, learning about resilience from direct life experience for more than 30 years. The death of her younger brother as a teenager was devastating. Focusing on serving grieving children, Leah has volunteered weekly for over 12 years at a Houston nonprofit organization in its traumatic death support program for children. She facilitates ISH’s Thursday evening bereavement group as well as mind-body skills groups for resilience. She is an expert in trauma-informed care and helps organizations develop healing-centered environments.