Friends of California Grief Center,

We owe much to the women who have shaped the heart of our nation’s care and resilience—women whose courage, compassion, and commitment have redefined what it means to protect, to nourish, and to heal. Through their leadership in storytelling, culture, and innovation, they have not only served their communities but transformed lives.

To Roxane Gay, whose unapologetic voice as a writer, cultural commentator, and thought leader has illuminated the complexities of identity, trauma, and power. Through essays, memoir, and sharp editorial insight, she has given language to the unheard and dignity to the unseen. Her fierce intellect and vulnerability have created a space where pain can coexist with power, and where truth-telling becomes a form of care.

And to Jennifer Ferro, President of KCRW and Chair of the NPR Board, whose visionary leadership has reshaped public media into a thriving cultural ecosystem. Under her direction, KCRW has become not just a station, but a community—a meeting place of music, journalism, art, and conversation. From building a state-of-the-art media hub to producing over 100 hours of original programming each week, her work exemplifies what happens when media is rooted in service, inclusion, and imagination. Her mentorship, public service, and fierce commitment to civic life have made her a generational voice in the world of storytelling.

Finally, to Jen Sargent, the trailblazing CEO of Wondery, whose bold vision is leading the podcast industry into the future. By championing immersive, narrative-rich audio experiences, she has transformed how we listen, learn, and connect. In a rapidly evolving landscape, her leadership is both strategic and soulful—amplifying stories that matter and making space for new voices to rise.

May their work remind us that justice can sound like a microphone turned up, a voice given center stage, or a story told with care. It is through their courage to create, to amplify, and to reimagine that so many have found healing, clarity, and the strength to carry on.

Sitting with Sorrow, Rising in Hope: A Morning with Trudy Goodman (Recording) & What’s to Come

On Saturday morning, we welcomed back the luminous Trudy Goodman—beloved mindfulness teacher, psychotherapist, and founding spirit of InsightLA—for her annual dharma talk. With her characteristic grace and clarity, Trudy spoke to the tangle of crises that tug at us—across continents and neighborhoods, dinner tables and bedrooms, and most intimately, within the quiet chambers of our own hearts.

This gathering marked five years of the Mindfulness & Deep Suffering HOPE Group—Healing Ourselves Through the Present Experience. What began as a humble response to sorrow has become a steady hearth for those aching with grief, loneliness, suicidal despair, and the brittle quiet of hopelessness. We do not run from suffering here; we sit with it, breathe with it, and—like alchemists of the soul—we turn it into something softer, more livable.

Trudy’s talk is available for those who missed it—or those who simply want to hear the medicine again. Let it be a balm, a reminder, a thread that connects you to a wider fabric of grace.

🎧 Listen to the recording here: Click Here
🔒 Passcode: QNF4u9.?
📅 Register below to join future offerings with Trudy and Jack Kornfield—two great lanterns on this path:

👉 April 20 with Trudy & Jack: Register Here

👉 May 11 with Trudy: Register Here

Come as you are. Come especially if you are tired, afraid, or cracked open. These gatherings are not about fixing anything, but about remembering that we were never broken to begin with.

Mindful Grief Spotlight: A Catharsis Theater Gathering (Los Angeles — Sunday, April 6)

The Anxiety and Panic of Grief: Catharsis Theater in the Age of Polycrisis with Brian Stefan, LCSW

The headlines shift. The ice melts. The wars rage. The fires return.
And somehow—we keep going.
Working. Caring. Trying to stay human.

But grief today isn’t just personal.
It’s polycrisis grief: layered, slow-burning, unnamed.
The loss of what was. The erosion of what could be.
A quiet panic beneath the skin.

If you’re carrying grief—any kind of grief—this gathering is for you.
💔 A death that split your life in two
💼 A job that shattered your worth
🌎 A world unraveling and a democracy trembling
😶‍🌫️ A loneliness that won’t speak its name

You are not alone.
Join us for an immersive afternoon of ritual, witnessing, and expression. A space to breathe. To move. To be held in community.

📅 Event Details

Title: The Anxiety and Panic of Grief: Catharsis Theater in the Age of Polycrisis
Date: Sunday, April 6, 2025
Time: 1:00 PM – 4:30 PM
Location: Blue Door Theater, Downtown Culver City (parking and additional info shared upon registration)
Facilitator: Brian Stefan, LCSW | California Grief Center
Cost: Sliding scale using the Green Bottle model by Alexis J. Cunningfolk

👉 Register Here

🌀 What to Expect

🔥 A Space to Grieve Without Fixing – No silver linings. No rush to “move on.”
🎭 Healing Through Expression – Grounded in psychodrama techniques and communal ritual.
🤝 A Circle of Witnesses – Some will share. Some will hold. All are welcome.
🫂 No Theater Experience Needed – Just your breath, your story, your presence.

However you arrive—angry, exhausted, heartbroken, numb—you belong here.

👉 Register Here

Upcoming Opportunities for Connection

Queer Grief, Fierce Love: A Catharsis Theater Experience

A gathering for LGBTQIA+ adults to move, breathe, and be witnessed in full complexity. Led by facilitator Madison Bradfield-Davis and grief therapist Brian Stefan, LCSW, this experience centers queer grief in all its forms—death, identity, politics, climate, rupture, and re-creation.

Event Details

📅 Date:  Sunday, April 13, 2025
⏰ Time: 1:00 PM – 4:30 PM (3.5 hours)
📍 Location: Downtown Culver City (address provided after registration)
🎭 Facilitators: Madison Bradfield-Davis (CASA of Los Angeles; CSULA FREEDOM Lab) and Brian Stefan, LCSW (California Grief Center)
💵 Cost: Alexis J. Cunningfolk's Green Bottle Sliding Scale Method

What to Expect:

🌈 A Brave, Queer-Centered Space – Where grief isn’t silenced or sanitized.
🎭 Healing Through Expression – Using psychodrama techniques and shared ritual to speak what feels unspeakable.
🤝 A Community of Witnesses – Some will share. Some will hold space. All are welcome.
🫂 No Prior Experience Needed – Just bring your body, your truth, your breath.

👉Register Here

Monthly HOPE Group: Mindfulness and Deep Suffering

💛 Healing Ourselves through the Present Moment (HOPE)

📅 Next Virtual Session: Saturday, April 26 | 10:00 AM (PT) | 1.5 hours (Zoom)

🔗Register Here

At the California Grief Center, we offer grief therapy and group experiences designed to support you through loss. Visit www.caligrief.com to learn more about our services and upcoming events.

With care and compassion,

Brian Stefan, LCSW

Founder, California Grief Center