• Life Reset: 'The Days Are Long But The Years Are Short'
    Jan 24 2026

    Erin Joice lost her son Eric on December 21, 2012. He was a Staff Sergeant in the United State Air Force. He had been in the USAF for four years having passed away unexpectedly while deployed in South Korea.

    Erin joins our podcast thirteen years after Eric's passing to talk about her incredible son. His kindness toward others and a man who gave freely of himself will be his lasting legacy.

    Erin talks about the ways in which she honors Eric and the things she does to keep his memory alive.

    Join us for a heartfelt discussion about a mother's love and the grief that she endures.

    OneBrightStar.org


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    20 mins
  • It Was The Most Beautiful Word She'd Ever Heard: "Mom"
    Sep 1 2025

    Amelia Williams is an amazing woman. She's a nurse, wife, friend, mother, and sadly, she is no stranger to grief and loss. She joins our podcast to talk about her incredible journey of losing a son, Gavin, during pregnancy, losing a step-son, Marcus, at age 24, and losing her special-needs son, Joshua, twice, first to SIDS at age four months and after he was revived, losing him again at age 28. Join us for an amazing story of love, compassion, resilience, and profound grief.

    OneBrightStar.org

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    23 mins
  • Sharing Lexi: Sibling Grief And Finding A Path Forward
    Aug 18 2025

    Lexi Hagen died suddenly as the result of an automobile accident in 2010. Her sister, Lacey, who was 16 at the time, joins our podcast to talk about her grief journey and how the loss of her sister has affected her life and how she goes on to remember and honor Lexi's life and legacy. She talks about the, "waves of grief" she experiences and how she continues to try and stay connected with her older sister. Join us for a difficult conversation around the subject of sibling grief.

    OneBrightStar.org

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    22 mins
  • Staying Connected - A Mother's Pathway To Healing
    Apr 26 2025
    Lexi Hagen was involved in a tragic automobile accident in 2010. She was only 18 years old and months away from her high school graduation. Lexi's obituary describes her as being "kind, caring, spirited, vibrant, and fun loving. She had big, beautiful brown eyes and a beautiful smile that was warm and contagious." Her mom, Karla, joins our podcast to talk about her daughter's life and legacy. Karla speaks about the many friends Lexi had and her eagerness to help others. Lexi had a younger sister, Lacey, who she was very close to. Karla can laugh now about the many memories that come to her mind about Lexi. She talks about staying connected through a psychic medium and that the experience is very healing for her and Lacey. Just knowing that Lexi is OK in the afterlife is very comforting to Karla. Join us for a heartwarming podcast about a mother's love and the heartache that never goes away. OneBrightStar.org
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    22 mins
  • One Bright Star's Mission - What We Do
    Apr 7 2025

    One Bright Star was founded in 1998 by four mothers who, in their grief, came together to embark on a mission to be a resource to families who have suffered the death of a child. The organization has a physical memorial site at Ray Erlandson Park in Mankato, Minnesota. On this Life After Loss podcast, Executive Director, Erica Fisher and board member, Alicia More, discuss the many ways the nonprofit helps its bereaved families. From hosting annual events such as the Children's Mini Camp and a Children's Memorial Service to offering financial grants to a grief retreat camp or helping with funeral expenses, OBS and its supporters continually strive to serve families who have suffered the unthinkable. Join us to learn more about One Bright Star. OneBrightStar.org


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    24 mins
  • A Genetic Journey - Paige's Trisomy 18 Loss
    Mar 31 2025

    March is Trisomy awareness month. Trisomy is a genetic condition where a person has an extra chromosome and it comes in different forms including: Trisomy 18 (Edwards syndrome), Trisomy 21 (Down syndrome) and Trisomy 13 (Patau syndrome). Each journey is unique and on this edition of our Life After Loss podcast, we are joined by Paige Hawkins who educates us on Trisomy 18. Paige and her husband, Greg, suffered multiple Trisomy 18 losses and she talks about how rare the condition is and the pregnancy that ultimately ended early with the passing of their son, Wyatt. She reflects on the emotions that immediately followed and ways in which they mourn and celebrate the lives of their babies.

    OneBrightStar.org

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    19 mins
  • Teen Grief And Loss. The Painful Reality
    Nov 25 2024
    Being a teenager is hard enough as it is. Losing a friend and classmate is even harder. Add in Covid 19 during these years and it became overwhelming. Our podcast guest had to deal with all of these and she joins us to talk about her journey. During the onset of Covid, our local community was shaken by the deaths of two popular and well-known students. As a teen at the time, our guest talks about her struggle with being alone and becoming introspective about her own mortality. She explains the difficulty and how death is processed very differently by each person. Many times a death in the teenage years is the first time that grief and loss becomes a reality. Join us for an open discussion about teen grief and loss. OneBrightStar.org
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    20 mins
  • One Bright Star Children's Memorial Service 9/29/2024
    Sep 30 2024

    One Bright Star held its annual fall children's memorial service on Sunday, September 29, 2024 at Erlandson Park in Mankato, Minnesota. The program featured a welcome message from Erica Fischer, executive director and Becca Roberson, president of One Bright Star; music by In A Bind piano and vocals; an invocation prayer read by Matt Sipe; guest speaker, Danielle Duffey; a poem: As We Remember Them, read by Chris Oldenburg; One Bright Star poem read by founding mother Linda Janavaras and the reading of the children's names by Kristine Schimek.

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    51 mins