Soaring Spirits Resilience Center Opens

 

Michele Neff Hernandez, executive director for Soaring Spirits International.

If you’ve followed this blog for a while you may remember that I’ve spoken at a couple of Camp Widow® programs. They are amazing gatherings of widowed people who want to focus on moving forward in their lives while honoring their spouses who have passed.

 

Carrie West, Ph.D. is a young widow who regularly speaks at these programs on the topic of resilience. She’s on the board of Soaring Spirits International (SSI) which produces Camp Widow® and she’s an assistant professor at Schreiner University.

Dr. West approached the university about conducing a research project which involved collecting data from the widowed people who attend the programs.

Soaring Spirits International (SSI) and opened the Soaring Spirits Resilience Center at Schreiner University in Kerrville, Texas on Friday, October 20th. The center will provide practical tools based on her resilience research to the population of widowed people who are working through grief.

The Resilience Center, the first center of its kind in the U.S., will focus primarily on grief and resilience.

“Our hope is that through the Center a variety of grieving populations will be served; and that the Center’s resources and tools for building resilience through any of life’s challenges will benefit Schreiner students, as well as the broader community,” said Michele Neff Hernandez, executive director for Soaring Spirits International.

If you or someone you know is recently widowed there are free resources available at www.SoaringSpirits.org.

What about you?

• Have you found yourself more resilient than you expected while grieving?
• Do you have tips to share with others?
• Do you need some resources to help you get through the day?

 

 

As always, you can connect with me on Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, Instagram or at www.MyraMcElhaney.com. My memoir, Building A Life You Love After Losing the Love of Your Life is available on Amazon.com or you can contact me at Myra@MyraMcElhaney.com for a signed, personalized copy.

 

 

 

3 Valuable Ways Recreation Builds Resilience

Are you incorporating recreation into your life regularly?

Recreation is defined as ‘activity done for enjoyment.’ It comes from the Latin ‘recreare’ which means to create again, renew, restore or revive.

Recreation is a great way to re-create your energy, improve your attitude and build resilience. Here’s why:

Focus on Possibilities, not Prognosis

Maintaining a hopeful outlook is one of the traits The American Psychology Association identifies as being important to resilience. (apa.org)

Sounds easy and simplistic, doesn’t it?

Once in a blue moon love story

“Don’t cry because it’s over, smile because it happened.” ― Dr. Seuss

Twenty-five years ago today I married Phil McElhaney and it changed the trajectory of my life.

Today I celebrate our once-in-a-blue-moon love story!

On New Year’s Eve, 1990 there was a blue moon. I helped Phil host his annual NYE party. We’d only been dating a few months but when we went out on his back porch to look at the blue moon he told me he loved me. For the first time I said, “I love you, too.”

We married June 6, 1992 and vowed to love and cherish each other “‘till death do us part.” (We left out ‘obey!’) We had an amazing life with love, laughter, travel and adventure. This amazing man showed me what it meant to be fully loved. He taught me how to truly enjoy life. Tragically, only seventeen years

Reconciling Fear and Courage Builds Resilience

Today I was talking with a friend about something we both want to do. I openly admitted to her that I’m afraid. Terrified is more like it.

I felt vulnerable admitting that. She’s already making strides and moving forward. I don’t like being seen as weak, wimpy or as someone who gives up easily. I wasn’t sure how my confession would go over.

Resilience and Relationships

“When asked to list an emergency contact number, how many of you have to stop and think about whose name and number to write down?”

Hands shot up all around the room when I asked this question at a recent conference break-out session. We were at Camp Widow™ and my program on “From Sorrow to Social” was filled with recently widowed men and women.

Hope, Resilience and Research

Two widows walk into a hotel…

Sounds like the start of a joke, right? No joke here.

When Michele Neff Hernandez was widowed as a young woman she started Camp Widow™ and Soaring Spirits International so other widows, of any age, would have a place to focus on rebuilding their lives. Carrie West, another young widow was doing her Ph.D. research on resilience so the two teamed up.

Sheryl Sandberg’s new book, “Option B”

I’ve started reading Sheryl Sandberg’s new book, “Option B: Facing Adversity, Building Resilience and Finding Joy.” You likely remember that Sandberg, COO at Facebook and author of Lean In lost her husband Dave suddenly a couple years ago.

Her title comes from a conversation with a friend where when she said, “But I want Dave!” Her friend replied, “Option A is not available. So let’s just kick the shit out of Option B.”

Did you watch Grey’s Anatomy last night?

I was watching and tweeting along with Shonda Rhimes and @GreysABC

Meredith Grey (played by Ellen Pompeo)was explaining to Nathan Riggs (played by Martin Henderson) why she couldn’t date him.

“I’m married!” she said.

Twitter lit up with emotional comments from followers. 

Thank you, Michele Neff Hernandez!

Michele Neff Hernandez giving Keynote for Camp Widow, Tampa

For National Women’s Month I want to tell you about an inspirational widow who had turned her sorrow into something amazing!

 

Michele Neff Hernandez was a young woman with three children when her husband, Phil was tragically killed while out riding his bicycle in 2005. When she couldn’t find a community of people like her who could offer understanding and support she created one. A big one!