From Where I Sit: Becky Galli on Grief, Disability, Faith, and Choosing Hope
Show Notes:
In this deeply moving episode of The Human Experience, host Jennifer Peterkin sits down with Rebecca (Becky) Faye Smith Galli in her Maryland home for a powerful conversation about loss, resilience, faith, and the courage to keep moving forward.
Becky shares her life journey marked by profound hardship, including the death of her teenage brother, raising children with special needs, divorce, and sudden paralysis from transverse myelitis—a rare spinal cord inflammation that left her wheelchair-bound just days after her marriage ended. Through it all, Becky reflects on grief, uncertainty, and the strength she found through faith, family, community, and storytelling.
She also discusses founding Pathfinders for Autism, navigating evolving autism awareness, and how writing became both a lifeline and a calling—allowing her to connect with others and offer hope through shared experience. Becky’s story is a testament to compassion, perseverance, and the belief that life can still be good—no matter what.
⚠️ Content Warning: This episode contains discussions of death, chronic illness, disability, and grief. Listener discretion is advised.
Key Takeaways:
● Personal experiences of profound loss and lifelong grief.
● The impact of a sibling’s death on family dynamics and identity.
● How different family members grieve in different ways.
● The challenges and rewards of raising children with special needs.
● Coping strategies for repeated adversity and unanswered questions.
● The importance of community, support systems, and shared understanding.
● The evolution of autism awareness and access to resources.
● Balancing personal health challenges with parenting and purpose.
● The role of faith, optimism, and mindset in resilience.
● Storytelling as a powerful tool for healing, connection, and hope.
Timestamps:
00:00:00 — Podcast Introduction: Jennifer introduces the show and its mission.
00:00:44 — Meet Becky: Background and life in Maryland.
00:02:08 — The Loss of Forrest: Losing her brother at age 17.
00:03:32 — Learning to Grieve: Family coping and lessons on grief.
00:06:20 — Grief & Social Expectations: Pressure to “move on.”
00:11:10 — Living with Uncertainty: Accepting unanswered questions.
00:13:13 — College & Healing: Journaling and support systems.
00:16:15 — Marriage & Motherhood: New joys and health challenges.
00:17:31 — Raising Children with Special Needs: Epilepsy and autism.
00:19:01 — Coping with Repeated Hardship: Finding purpose through writing.
00:21:45 — Healing & Mindset: The non-linear journey of resilience.
00:23:08 — First Encounters with Disability: Navigating medical systems.
00:25:00 — Discovering Autism: A lack of resources sparks action.
00:27:23 — Founding Pathfinders for Autism: Building community support.
00:29:03 — Isolation & Community: The need for connection.
00:30:36 — Autism Awareness: How times have changed.
00:31:45 — Managing Fear: Living one day at a time.
00:34:20 — Faith & Family: Foundations of strength.
00:35:34 — Marriage, Divorce & Co-Parenting.
00:37:59 — Sudden Paralysis: Transverse myelitis diagnosis.
00:39:58 — Life in a Wheelchair: Adapting to a new reality.
00:44:44 — Parenting Through Disability.
00:45:43 — Writing as Healing: From columns to books.
00:48:29 — Children’s Resilience & Adaptation.
00:49:29 — Looking Back: Adult children and continued connection.
Rebecca (Becky) Faye Smith Galli’s Bio:
Rebecca (Becky) Faye Smith Galli is an author and columnist who writes about love, loss, resilience, and healing. After surviving a series of life-altering losses—including the death of her 17-year-old brother, her son’s degenerative illness and death, her daughter’s autism diagnosis, divorce, and paralysis from transverse myelitis—Becky discovered an unexpected but prolific writing career.
In 2000, The Baltimore Sun published her first column about playing soccer with her son—from the wheelchair that inspired her long-running column, From Where I Sit. Her website now houses over 400 published columns.
Becky is the author of Rethinking Possible: A Memoir of Resilience (2017) and Morning Fuel: Daily Inspirations to Stretch Your Mind Before Starting Your Day (2024). She continues to publish Thoughtful Thursdays—Lessons from a Resilient Heart, sharing insights that help others stay grounded in hope.
A Morehead-Cain Scholar at UNC Chapel Hill, Becky previously worked at IBM, where she received the Golden Circle Award for marketing excellence. She lives in Lutherville, Maryland, outside of Baltimore. Her guiding belief: “Life can be good—no matter what.”
Connect with Becky Galli:
🌐 Website: www.BeckyGalli.com
🌐 Website: www.RebeccaFayeSmithGalli.com
📘 Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/chairwriter/
🐦 X (Twitter): https://www.x.com/chairwriter
🔗 LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/rebecca-faye-smith-galli-061501a/
📸 Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/chairwriter/
📌 Pinterest: https://www.pinterest.com/chairwriter/
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