ron stempkowski

An Infusion of Empathy

Posted on November 17, 2025November 26, 2025 by Ron Stempkowski

Lately, I’ve been carrying around this steady, low-grade urge to give the world a giant dose of empathy. Not in a grand, superhero way. More like a quiet nudge. A refill. A top-off. Something warm p... Read More

The Quiet Ways Grief Changed Me—for the Better

Posted on November 16, 2025November 16, 2025 by Ron Stempkowski

Grief and loss don’t define me. They inform me. For a long time, I thought grief had rewritten my entire identity. After Ken died, everything felt marked by before and after. I didn’t recognize th... Read More

What Grief Taught Me About Storytelling

Posted on November 13, 2025November 13, 2025 by Ron Stempkowski

There’s a strange thing that happens after you lose someone you love — the story you thought you were living ends mid-sentence. One minute, you’re a “we.” The next, you’re a plot twist you... Read More

The Rituals That Remain

Posted on November 10, 2025November 11, 2025 by Ron Stempkowski

I’ve always loved a good ritual. There’s something comforting about repetition — the way lighting a candle, brewing the same cup of coffee, or playing a familiar song can create a little order i... Read More

The Luck We Carry

Posted on October 21, 2025January 18, 2026 by Ron Stempkowski

Every so often, you meet someone who changes the temperature of your day — not through grand gestures or deep conversations, but through a single, simple truth. That happened to me recently at the l... Read More

A Redemptive Friendship

Posted on October 4, 2025October 28, 2025 by Ron Stempkowski

I woke up to the news that my friend Craig has died. It was less than a month ago when his sister Teresa, also a dear friend, texted me to tell me that, after some investigation, they were blindsided ... Read More

The Premiere, the Fundraiser, and the Love That Filled the (Virtual) Room

Posted on September 23, 2025September 23, 2025 by Ron Stempkowski

When I first had the idea to bring Ken’s one-man show, My Foot Left, back to life as a digital premiere and fundraiser, I wasn’t entirely sure what I was getting myself into. Honestly, it fel... Read More

The Power of “Yes!”

Posted on July 30, 2025January 18, 2026 by Ron Stempkowski

I’ve been thinking a lot lately about the power of saying yes since putting this fundraiser together. It’s such a simple word—three letters, one syllable—but it can crack open whole new w... Read More

Best Foot Forward: Celebrating Ken’s 60th

Posted on July 26, 2025July 26, 2025 by Ron Stempkowski

I’ve written about my late husband, Ken, many times here. In fact, writing about him and our experience together with his cancer was a coping mechanism that served me well since his re-diagnosis in ... Read More

For the Love of Her

Posted on April 15, 2025January 18, 2026 by Ron Stempkowski

I flew to Los Angeles over the weekend to attend my sister-in-law Katie’s memorial. Even seeing it writing or saying it out loud still doesn’t quite compute for me. This was a trip I looke... Read More

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ron stempkowski

ron stempkowski

love, loss, healing, and humor…in no particular order

Category: Grief

An Infusion of Empathy

The Quiet Ways Grief Changed Me—for the Better

What Grief Taught Me About Storytelling

The Rituals That Remain

The Luck We Carry

A Redemptive Friendship

The Premiere, the Fundraiser, and the Love That Filled the (Virtual) Room

The Power of “Yes!”

Best Foot Forward: Celebrating Ken’s 60th

For the Love of Her