KAREN MCGRATH

Karen and Steve have been married for 24 years and reside in Gloucester, Virginia. They moved to Gloucester in June of 2023 to be near their oldest daughter, Lindsay (Steve's step-daughter), son-in-law and 4 grand-children, lovingly referred to as the "Fantastic 4". Karen and Steve have two other adult children. Their daughter, Abigail is a firefighter in a nearby county and lives about an hour away. Their youngest child and only son, Jesse, died by suicide in July of 2021 at the age of exactly 18 years and 6 months. 

Karen has a Master's Degree in Career Switcher Education and is currently working as a Special Education Teacher for 8th grade math in her community. After intermittent times of being a stay at home mom and pursuing a career in the shipbuilding industry, she began to consider her empty nest years and felt compelled to serve others by leaning in to help struggling students "learn to learn well". 

Steve is a retired fire-captain. He is a lifelong welder fabricator and is currently working in his "dream job" for a local custom fabrication shop. 

Their hearts were crushed when Jesse died, but they are pressing on with hope and trust in their strength from our Lord. OHAH has played a significant role in this journey of continual suffering they are now on. Being part of a community that understands the depths of bereavement has helped them learn to have a gentler cadence of sorrow, peace, and even joy. Karen and Steve also advocate for suicidal ideation awareness by sharing their story with physicians, pastors, educators and anyone who is interested in learning more about the potentially terminal condition that our culture struggles to acknowlege. 

But I will hope continually and will praise you yet more and more. Psalm 71:14