Heidi Gessner

Heidi Gessner, MDiv, is a United Church of Christ Minister, former palliative care chaplain at UNC Hospitals, and author of Pockets of Grace: Lessons from Darkness, Lessons from Light, which explores what loss teaches us about living more authentically. She co-led Writing for Resilience, a reflective writing circle that offered patients, caregivers, staff, and the wider community a safe space to process emotions and find meaning through writing. Over the years, Heidi has witnessed lives change and healing begin through the simple act of putting words on the page.