Hope After Child & Sibling Loss: An Empty Chair Endeavor Podcast

One ultrasound measurement. One word from a physician: “abnormalities.” And suddenly the future you assumed is gone. We sit down with Matthew Efird, an author, speaker, ordained pastor, and business leader to trace the moment his family’s world turned upside down and the choices that carried them through a terminal Trisomy 13 (Patau syndrome) diagnosis and the loss of their son, Noah.

Matthew shares what the early days actually feel like: the fog of grief, the excruciating wait for genetic testing, and the strain of repeating painful updates to people you love. We talk about why community support matters, how a “point person” can protect a family’s limited emotional energy, and what it looks like to build an “ark before the storm” through Scripture, marriage investment, and a lived faith that does not depend on good circumstances.

We also dig into marriage after child loss with real, usable tools, including the two-question check-in Matthew and Hannah used to stay connected when everything hurt: “Have I done something to upset you?” and “Would you like to talk about it?” Matthew explains why purpose can’t be rushed, how waiting on God’s timing shaped his book, and how their foundation now sends care packages to families navigating Trisomy 13 so they do not have to do this alone.

Learn more about Matthew’s work at matthewefird.com and the foundation at eventhoughwewill.com. If this conversation helps you, subscribe, share it with a friend who needs hope, and leave a rating or review so more grieving parents can find support.
https://matthewefird.com/
https://eventhoughwewill.com/
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*** If  you find this podcast helpful and encouraging, please leave us a review by clicking one the links below:
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You can contact us by email at: hope@emptychairendeavor.com
If you would like to share your story on an upcoming episode, please send us an email so that we can talk with you about it.
Thank you for listening!

Child loss changes everything, and Chad and Ronnie Fellers describe that shift with painful clarity after the death of their son, Paxton. Their story begins long before grief, with adoption, learning disabilities, and the day to day work of parenting a child from a hard place. They talk honestly about the “both and” reality many families live: a bright, hilarious kid who can also be exhausting, stubborn, and intense. That honesty matters for bereaved parents and for anyone who supports them, because it rejects polished narratives and names the truth that love and hardship can sit in the same room. We also get practical about support for bereaved parents: why presence matters more than polished words, why quick Bible verses can miss the moment, and what actually helps in the early weeks. They explain “future grief” and the waves of triggers that arrive at birthdays, holidays, and everyday milestones like driving and graduation. If you’re walking through grief, supporting someone who is, or searching for a faith that can hold both sorrow and hope, this conversation offers honesty you can lean on.
Send us Fan Mail

*** If  you find this podcast helpful and encouraging, please leave us a review by clicking one the links below:
https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/hope-after-child-sibling-loss-the-empty-chair-endeavor/ 
https://www.podchaser.com/HopeAfterChildSiblingLossTheEmptyChairEndeavor

You can contact us by email at: hope@emptychairendeavor.com
If you would like to share your story on an upcoming episode, please send us an email so that we can talk with you about it.
Thank you for listening!

A four-year-old who loves songs, big laughs, and making faces on stage should be worrying about preschool, not chemotherapy. Our guest, Kimberly Crumby, tells the story of her daughter Hannah Grace, whose childhood leukemia diagnosis in 2009 turned into a medical roller coaster of strokes, infections, ventilators, and heartbreaking decisions that no parent is ever prepared to face.

We go beyond the headline loss and talk about what bereaved parents actually carry after the death of a child: trauma that lives in the body, sleepless nights that replay hospital scenes, the slow pull of “high-functioning” depression, and the strain grief can put on a marriage when two people hurt in different ways. Kimberly shares why counseling and talking with your physician can matter, how medication can help you get a foothold without numbing your love, and why survival sometimes looks like getting through one ordinary day at a time.

We also name the kind of grief many outsiders miss: future grief. Birthdays, kindergarten, high school graduation, and all the imagined milestones can hit like fresh waves years later, especially when social media keeps the comparisons in your face. Kimberly and I talk about what helps from friends and church community too, including practical support, showing up without trying to fix anything, and saying your child’s name because forgetting is the fear.

If you’re navigating child loss, or supporting a grieving parent, we hope this conversation gives you language, tools, and real hope rooted in faith, including Kimberly’s anchor passage from Lamentations 3.  Share this with someone who needs it, and leave a review so more hurting families can find this support.
Send us Fan Mail

*** If  you find this podcast helpful and encouraging, please leave us a review by clicking one the links below:
https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/hope-after-child-sibling-loss-the-empty-chair-endeavor/ 
https://www.podchaser.com/HopeAfterChildSiblingLossTheEmptyChairEndeavor

You can contact us by email at: hope@emptychairendeavor.com
If you would like to share your story on an upcoming episode, please send us an email so that we can talk with you about it.
Thank you for listening!

What happens to a parent’s faith after losing a child? Sandy Cooper shares her deeply personal journey after the sudden death of her nine-month-old son, Noah. We talk honestly about child-loss grief, the shock and confusion that follow, anger and questions about God, and learning to live when life is forever changed.
Sandy also shares what helped her survive those first days and months, what grieving parents need from family and friends, how child loss affects marriage, and how Christian faith can survive even when God seems silent.
If you are grieving the death of a child—or walking alongside someone who is—this conversation offers honest companionship, understanding, and hope.

Send us Fan Mail

*** If  you find this podcast helpful and encouraging, please leave us a review by clicking one the links below:
https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/hope-after-child-sibling-loss-the-empty-chair-endeavor/ 
https://www.podchaser.com/HopeAfterChildSiblingLossTheEmptyChairEndeavor

You can contact us by email at: hope@emptychairendeavor.com
If you would like to share your story on an upcoming episode, please send us an email so that we can talk with you about it.
Thank you for listening!

A 21-year-old newlywed. Ovarian cancer. A mother watching the unthinkable unfold while trying to keep breathing. I’m joined by Jeanette Henning as she tells the story of her daughter, Melissa Camp, who died in February 2001 just three months after marrying Christian music artist Jeremy Camp. The details are tender and raw: the surprises in the hospital, the moments that felt like miracles, and the shock of realizing that even when you’re praying hard for healing, the outcome can still break your heart. 

We talk honestly about what grief does after child loss, not just emotionally, but physically and relationally. Jeanette shares how different family members grieve in different ways, why that can feel isolating, and what she learned when she stopped expecting her husband or her kids to fill the void. If you’re a bereaved parent searching for Christian grief support, we spend real time on lament, the freedom to bring anger and questions to God, and the slow work of learning how sorrow and joy can coexist over decades. 

Jeanette also explains how Melissa’s journals became a lifeline and later a message for the world through the book Melissa: If One Life, plus a devotional journal focused on intimacy with God. We connect that legacy to the film I Still Believe and the ripple effect that continues as people write in to say, “I’m the one life.” If you need hope after tragedy, or you’re trying to understand faith in suffering, this conversation offers a steady place to land. Please share this with someone who needs it, and leave a review with the line that hit you hardest. To learn more about Janette, Melissa’s story, and Umbrella Ministries, click the links below.
*** https://www.janettehenning.com/about
*** https://www.umbrellaministries.com/
Send us Fan Mail

*** If  you find this podcast helpful and encouraging, please leave us a review by clicking one the links below:
https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/hope-after-child-sibling-loss-the-empty-chair-endeavor/ 
https://www.podchaser.com/HopeAfterChildSiblingLossTheEmptyChairEndeavor

You can contact us by email at: hope@emptychairendeavor.com
If you would like to share your story on an upcoming episode, please send us an email so that we can talk with you about it.
Thank you for listening!