Author ~ Speaker ~ Grief Advocate
Every story I write, every message I share, and every audience I speak to is driven by one purpose—to remind people they are never alone. Whether you are grieving, supporting someone who is hurting, or searching for renewed hope, I pray my words encourage you to keep walking forward.
Dr. Jerry L. Woodbridge is an award-winning author, inspirational speaker, and grief advocate who helps children, families, churches, educators, and communities discover hope after loss. With more than four decades of experience as an educator and a lifetime devoted to faith, teaching, and compassionate service, she has become a trusted voice for those navigating grief with courage, grace, and hope.
Award-Winning Author
Dr. Woodbridge believes stories have the power to heal hearts. Her books create safe places for readers to explore grief, ask difficult questions, and discover that hope can exist alongside sorrow.
She is the author of the award-winning children's novel Joy Overcame Sorrow, a heartfelt story that helps young readers understand loss through the eyes of a ten-year-old girl. She also wrote Joy's Journal, an interactive companion designed to help children process their own grief through reflection and writing. Her growing collection of faith-centered books includes Trading My Sorrows for the Joy of the Lord, Anchored in Grief, Lifted by Grace, and The Intersection, an award-winning middle-grade novel exploring sibling loss, survivor's guilt, forgiveness, and healing.
Every book she writes is grounded in one conviction:
Hope is possible, even after profound loss.
Inspirational Speaker
Whether speaking at churches, conferences, schools, podcasts, or community events, Dr. Woodbridge combines biblical truth, practical wisdom, research, and personal experience to encourage audiences facing life's most difficult seasons.
Her presentations inspire listeners to:
Joy Overcame Sorrow: Become safe places for grieving children.
The Intersection: Meeting Children at the Crossroads of Grief and Hope
A Widow's Heart: Trading My Sorrows for the Joy of the Lord
Known for her warm storytelling, authentic vulnerability, and practical teaching style, Dr. Woodbridge equips audiences with encouragement and actionable tools they can apply immediately. She has appeared on numerous podcasts, interviews, and media programs sharing her message of faith, healing, and resilience.
Grief Advocate
Long before becoming an author, Dr. Woodbridge spent years helping children and families through life's difficult moments as an educator. Her own experiences with profound personal loss—including the death of her husband and other loved ones—deepened her understanding that grief is not a problem to solve but a journey that requires compassion, faith, and community.
Today, she is passionate about helping adults become safe places for grieving children while encouraging individuals of every age to move from despair toward hope. Rather than minimizing grief, she teaches people how to walk through it with honesty, courage, and God's sustaining grace.
Her mission is simple:
To help people discover that joy and sorrow can walk together until healing comes.
