Month: June 2024

From Loss to Legacy: Introducing Your Host, Andy Dziedzic (Ep. 3)

~ The Widow Empowerment Project

In the wake of losing a loved one, finding a path through the grief while managing financial responsibilities (among other estate complexities) can be overwhelmingly challenging. The Widow Empowerment Project aims to solve that problem.

In this episode, you’ll learn everything you need to know about your host, Andy Dziedzic and the inspiration behind the Widow Empowerment Project Podcast. You’ll hear about Andy’s profound journey overcoming personal and professional challenges while he shares the pivotal moments that led to a career in financial planning, and why his mission is focused on helping the widowed community navigate the terrain of their new reality.

Listen in as Andy discusses: 

  • The impact of crisis management and importance of relationship managers during periods of grief
  • Personal and professional experiences that motivated him to pursue a career in financial planning, his educational background and the path that led him to where he is today
  • Growing a thriving small business using a philosophy centered on the “four P’s”: protect, provide, prevent, and prepare
  • His team and the roles each individual plays in making client’s experiences as seamless as possible
  • Strategies for discussing and managing finances within families, focusing on the importance of preparation and education across generations
  • And more…

There is a delicate balance to strike between emotional healing and financial planning for those who are newly navigating widowhood, and this episode highlights the crucial role of preparedness for such a pivotal lifestyle change.

 

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Grief and Trauma Therapy With Jennifer McCarron (Ep. 2)

~ The Widow Empowerment Project

Complex emotions often accompany grief, and therapy can provide a safe space to express feelings such as sadness, anger, guilt, and loneliness. A therapist acts as a strategic guide through the healing process, offering empathy, understanding, and validation. 

In this episode, Andy Dziedzic sits down with Jennifer McCarron, LMFT – a marriage and family therapist with over 30 years of experience to discuss effective coping strategies for grief and trauma after the loss of your life partner. 

Jennifer shares her expertise on therapeutic techniques like EMDR (Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing) and tapping, uncovering their profound potential to facilitate healing. This episode is packed with practical advice, compassionate insights, and essential resources for anyone navigating the complexities of grief.

Andy and Jennifer cover:

  • Unique benefits of therapy for managing grief and trauma
  • How EMDR therapy helps process traumatic memories
  • Effectiveness of tapping techniques in different settings
  • Physical manifestations of emotional trauma and the polyvagal nerve connection
  • Practical advice on EMDR therapy duration and timing
  • And more

 

Resources:

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Connect with Jennifer McCarron:

 

About Our Guest: 

Jennifer McCarron, a marriage and family therapist with over 30 years of experience, specializes in using EMDR and tapping techniques to help individuals navigate grief and trauma. She advocates for seeking therapeutic help before crises arise and focuses on transforming clients from merely surviving to thriving. Jennifer employs the Gottman therapy approach to improve couple intimacy and conflict resolution. She offers compassionate, client-focused therapy, emphasizing each client’s true potential. Jennifer holds a BS from Penn State and a Master’s from Hahnemann University, along with certification in EMDR from the EMDR International Association.

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Building a Community with Michele Neff Hernandez (Ep. 1)

~ The Widow Empowerment Project

Navigating life after the loss of a life partner is full of challenges – emotional, practical, financial.  Facing those challenges while grieving can be overwhelming and finding practical support feels impossible. 

Join Andy Dziedzic as he sits down with Michele Neff Hernandez, the CEO of Soaring Spirits International, whose unique journey through widowhood after the tragic loss of her husband led her to create a beacon of hope for widowed individuals seeking connection and understanding.  Since it’s creation, Soaring Spirits has impacted nearly 5 million lives through innovative and empathetic programs.  If you’re newly widowed or years into your journey, this episode offers practical advice, deep empathy, and an invitation to a community that understands you.

Andy and Michele discuss: 

  • The creation of Soaring Spirits International and how finding other members of the widowed community can provide support and help ease the transition. 
  • One of the most impactful resources available at Soaring Spirits: a newly widowed packet and how it helps to serve as an initial path forward for those grappling with loss.
  • Camp Widow – a unique blend of a conference, retreat, and reunion that offers solace and empowerment to its attendees.
  • The significance of the Widowed Community Ally Program aimed at increasing grief awareness and literacy among myriad professionals in the community.
  • Michele’s book, Different after You: Rediscovering Yourself and Healing after Grief and Trauma
  • And much more.

 

Get in Touch:

Connect with Michele Neff Hernandez:

 

About Our Guest: 

Michele Neff Hernandez is a nonprofit leader, compelling speaker and dedicated advocate for the widowed community worldwide.  

She is the founder and Executive Director of Soaring Spirits International, a non-profit organization providing research-based programs and a community of peers for anyone who has experienced the death of a life partner.  Since its inception in 2008, Soaring Spirits has served over five million widowed people and continues to provide innovative grief support programs such as the Newly Widowed Program and Camp Widow®.

Michele is the author of Different After You: Rediscovering Yourself and Healing after Grief or Trauma, published by New World Library. Her passion for supporting widowed people, and the power of integration, fuels her presentations and her community activism.

Michele resides in Simi Valley, California and shares her life with her three amazing children, their awesome partners, her grand-cats, and one very Australian husband.

Note: The work of Soaring Spirits is dedicated to the memory of Michele’s late husband Phillip Hernandez, who was killed in a cycling accident in August of 2005. His fun-loving, loyal and energetic spirit infuses her passion for creating community for widowed people.

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The Widow Empowerment Project Coming Soon

~ TheWidowEmpowerment

Welcome to The Widow Empowerment Project, with CEO and Senior Wealth Planner for Prepared Retirement Institute, Andy Dziedzic. This podcast is committed to helping widows and widowers alike navigate the new complexities of their evolving financial journey with understanding, ease, and compassion. After the loss of his mother, Andy witnessed his step-father struggle to navigate the financial landscape, and he came to the stark realization that the quality of financial service available to the widow community is significantly lacking adequate representation and value. Seeing this frustration first-hand has inspired Andy to embark on a journey to improve the standards of the financial services industry, making it his mission to create an avenue for widows to manage their finances with an advisor who understands their unique and deeply personal situation. 

Listen in as Andy shares professional and actionable advice for dealing with finance after the loss of a loved one, along with best practices to keep your mind and money on the right path. Bringing years of experience and knowledge to the table, Andy shows up to the job every day knowing that he is striving to make someone’s financial life better for them and their family.

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