Kate Doerge is the USA TODAY bestselling author of Reimagining Grief: A New Path to Finding Healing, Strength, and Joy After Loss, a motivational speaker, certified grief coach, and co-founder of Penny’s Flight Foundation, created in honor of her daughter, Penny.

After experiencing the deaths of both of her parents and her 16-year-old daughter, Kate transformed profound personal loss into a mission to help others navigate life’s inevitable challenges with resilience, connection, and purpose. She reimagined the traditional Five Stages of Grief into Five Actions—a practical, hopeful framework that empowers people to actively participate in their own healing.

Through her writing, speaking, workshops, and nonprofit work, Kate encourages people to keep moving forward, continue reaching for joy and light, and remember the philosophy that guides her own life: “It’s not your lifespan that matters. It’s your wingspan.”