Liz Walker: No One Left Alone

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• ASL interpretation may be provided (based on the availability of interpreters) but must be requested at least 2 weeks in advance of the event.
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An extraordinary account of a Black church that decided to give neighbors a space to share their grief, No One Left Alone provides a blueprint premised on a simple truth: the wounded heal best together.

As the first Black woman to anchor the Boston-area evening news, Liz Walker found herself in an industry that defined the neighborhood of Roxbury largely by violence. But when she became a pastor there, Walker grew close to households marked not only by trauma but by courage--including the family of Cory Johnson, a young father who was murdered. In the wake of their worst nightmare, the family reached out for help.

As Walker's congregation invited neighbors to gather, they created soft spaces for others' grief to land. There, in the stories told, the meals shared, the tears shed, and the silences kept, people found a space to receive their sorrow. Out of this ministry grew a grassroots trauma-healing program, one now being replicated across the country.

Through this groundbreaking book, begin to imagine what story-sharing groups might look like in your context. Face the disparity of grief that comes from racism and systemic inequality, and learn to confront legacies of harm. Discover the healing power of listening, as well as the art and skills of accompanying someone in pain. Further, grasp how caregivers, pastors, counselors, and other healers--many with their own wounds--can benefit from soft spaces too.

Marked by history and surrounded by violence and loneliness, we all long for healing. In the tradition of esteemed writers like Bryan Stevenson and Cole Arthur Riley, Walker writes about how community helps us transfigure trauma. There is nothing dramatic about listening to someone's story or sharing our own. But there is mystery here, and sacredness. No one has to be left alone.

Before she created the Can We Talk Program for Community Healing, Liz Walker was the pastor of Roxbury Presbyterian Church in Roxbury, Massachusetts, a humanitarian focusing on women’s education in South Sudan, and a television journalist, the first Black weeknight news anchor in Boston. As Founding Director of the Can We Talk…Network, Rev. Walker has expanded her Roxbury-based model of transformative, healing trauma support to 15 replication sites in New England and around the country. Most recently, she traveled to the Middle East to train Christian leaders in creating a Can We Talk healing model in Palestine.

An avid cyclist and rowing enthusiast, Liz, the mother of three and grandmother of two, spends her private time between Boston and Sarasota, Florida.

Brookline Booksmith, thriving in the heart of Coolidge Corner in Brookline, Massachusetts, since 1961, is one of New England’s premier independent bookstores. We offer a vast selection of books, ranging from current bestsellers to the most eclectic titles. We are also known for our beautiful and inspired gifts. Customers buy and sell gently used books in our treasured Used Book Cellar and enjoy our bountiful bargain book selection. We host award-winning events series (including our groundbreaking Transnational Literature Series), offering more than 300 author talks, community conversations, and book clubs annually. Find more at brooklinebooksmith.com!

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