Joy Gaertner

For more than 45 years, Joy has served both nationally and internationally in non-profit and recovery organizations.  Her passion is to help others find hope and healing from life’s unexpected twists and turns.    She resides in Knoxville, Tennesse. and serves that community and the surrounding areas.  Sharing from her experience, strength and hope, she can help you discover a way out of brokenness to a life of walking with joy! Joy's JourneyWhile I have always worked in ministry positions, it wasn’t until a few years ago that I really understood the full importance of what I do.  I experienced a devastating divorce that robbed me of my home, my job, and nearly my life, as the way I handled the grief turned into a cancer diagnosis.  Going through the divorce was a heartbreaking experience, and I found myself feeling overwhelmed, depressed, angry and lost.  I was afraid I was a failure and that I would be stuck in the pain forever.  I was overwhelmed with the responsibilities of finding another job, another house while I dug deep to find who I was and reexamine my core beliefs.  I was ill-prepared to handle grief on this level and thought if I just worked harder at being strong and keeping busy the pain would go away.  I discovered I had been given the wrong tools.   By utilizing the same Grief Recovery Method that I now teach to others, I was able to breakthrough the pain and find hope again.  This action plan helped me let go of the resentments and regrets so that I could find my smile again! I have emerged a more confident woman who looks forward to each day.  I know what it is to walk in the dark – and now I walk with joy!