Christine Uscher

Please describe your experience at HTD Day:

Welcoming, safe, nurturing and loving. How could it be otherwise? I spent the day with people who felt exactly as I did, devastated and broken, searching for meaning and direction. An entire day of sharing stories, tears, fears, hopes - it was a cathartic experience, and I left feeling hopeful. That hope has been carried on throughout the years, reinforced and strong.

What do you remember most about the day?:

My tremendous feeling of release, after the shared stories, after my tears, in a room with a group of people who were strangers to me, and now are friends, very special friends. I felt alive.

What about the day or people there was special?:

This is easy. Rob Fazio. The very first person that reached out to me after my husband died. A stranger to me at that time, he not only held the door for me, he reached out his hand to me and walked with me. Who is better than you, Rob Fazio?

How has HTD Day helped you? (e.g.- learned new skills, more positive outlook):

By becoming a part of the Hold The Door family, I've learned how to live a little bit better, to laugh a lot more, to love with a great heart, and to resurrect the person I once was, only a little bit better.

Why would you recommend other people attend HTD Day?:

When we suffer the loss of someone we love more than life itself, we lose ourselves and search for the meaning in the why. Why did this happen? There are no answers. But the meaning we can find is in our own selves, and how we carry on, choosing to live, finding the new meaning in our lives. Life becomes worthwhile again as I begin to fill the hole in my heart.