I'm Susan, and after walking through more than two decades of family estrangement, I have discovered that peace isn't found when life finally changes. It's found even in the waiting.

For over 20 years I carried this quietly. Alone. I didn't know anyone else walking the same road, so I never talked about it.

Then one day a friend called to ask for advice. Out came her estrangement story. I told her I was dealing with the same thing, and she was shocked. She thought she was the only one.

The very next day, another friend mentioned the pain she was walking through with her own adult daughter. Two friends. Two days. Same silent struggle.

I knew I had to do something. I invited them to my house for coffee, just to chat and make sure they knew they weren't alone in this. Then I wondered how many others out there in our little town were carrying this quietly too. So I put up a Facebook post, thinking maybe a couple more people might want to join us.

Nearly a million people saw it.

Comments poured in from parents across the country and around the world, all saying some version of the same thing:” I thought I was the only one.”

We hosted an in-person workshop for estranged parents. That led to online workshops and small groups, completion of a book I had been working on (Rejected Yet Redeemed), a small group study for estranged parents, a monthly membership, a podcast launch, and the Parents in the Waiting Room Facebook group, which grew to over 5,000 parents in just three months.

That is the thing about rejection. Yes, it hurts. It can shake you to your very core. But it can also become the very place where God builds back something stronger and more beautiful than you ever imagined.

These days you'll usually find me in flip flops, exploring back roads in my Jeep, geocaching, or enjoying yet another rewatch of Gilmore Girls.

My passion is helping parents get unstuck and live unbroken.

I'm so glad you are here.