S10 Ep3: Shining Light Parents Speak

Project leader/editor/writer: Anne-marie Taplin is an Australian author, editor, copywriter and artist. Her publishing history includes dozens of memoirs (including three about her 19-year-old son Harry’s 2020 passing in a motorcycle accident), short stories and feature articles across Australian literary and trade outlets. Her gift book Being Mummy was published in 2007 by South Australia’s Wakefield Press and launched simultaneously with online platform, Parenting Express. Curated for more than a decade, Anne-marie published international creative writing about raising children. Anne-marie is an Affiliate Leader of the Australian Helping Parents Heal branch, and the devoted mama of two sons.

Dolores Cruz is an American author and writer. She has published
two books about grief and healing after the passing of her youngest child, her then 24-year-old son, Eric – Look Around, and A Bird Called Wisdom. She has written two articles about grief and healing which were published by the HuffPost and she has an online blog. She is driven to promote discussion around grief, which she sees as part of life. She is a Certified Grief Educator and Grief Yoga Instructor. She is an Affiliate Leader and Caring Listener for Helping Parents Heal. Dolores is also a tap dance instructor at the local community college. She lives in the Los Angeles area with her husband, Joey, as well as her four children (with Eric in Spirit) and her granddaughter.

Nancy Hejna is a visual artist and late blooming, American author, recently retired from a career in pediatric occupational therapy. She is mother to four incredible children; Katie, Maggie, Will and Joe. Both her sons passed in separate incidents at age 26. Nancy has published two books in their memory: In Search of an Alternate Ending in 2019; and her memoir, Rainbow Hair, through Lisa Hagan Literary in 2023. Nancy is a Caring Listener for the Helping Parents Heal organization and was part of a team that published the book: Shining Light Parents Speak, a compilation of wisdom from the organization’s leaders. Nancy enjoys spending time near beautiful Lake Michigan with family, beloved cats, and backyard chickens.