DIRECTOR OF COMMUNITY SUPPORT & FACILITATOR

Betsy came to Return to Zero: HOPE following the loss of her daughter Eliza, who was diagnosed during pregnancy with Hypoplastic Left Heart Syndrome and Trisomy 18 — together incompatible with life. Facing an impossible decision alongside her family, Betsy walked the profound and sacred terrain of carrying a baby while preparing for her death. Eliza was stillborn at 41 weeks. That experience — and the depth of presence, clarity, and calling it revealed — set everything that followed in motion.

Since joining RTZ HOPE at its founding in 2018, Betsy Winter has played a significant role in shaping the organization’s grief support programming, curriculum, and retreat experiences. As Director of Community Support, she serves as a creator, steward, and guide, designing compassionate, depth-oriented support for bereaved families.

Betsy is a nationally recognized specialist in pregnancy, infant and child loss, a somatic practitioner, and a mind-body coach whose work integrates grief, trauma recovery, attachment, nervous system healing, and transformation. She brings lived experience, more than a decade supporting bereaved families, extensive training, and more than 25 years of nonprofit leadership experience.

Betsy maintains a virtual private practice serving bereaved parents and individuals navigating the deeper work of trauma and relational healing nationally and lives in Olympia, Washington with her husband and two living children. To learn more visit betsywinter.com.

FACILITATOR

Alejandra is a writer, journalist, and storyteller based in Northern Colorado. While she currently works as a technical writer, Alejandra has always found immense comfort and power in using her writing as both creative self-expression and as a way to connect with others. After her son, Ronan, was born during the early days of the COVID-19 pandemic at 23 weeks gestation and died six weeks later, Alejandra leaned into writing as a way to share Ronan's story and process the magnitude of his loss. Her experience with three subsequent miscarriages further informed her understanding of grief, recurrent loss, infertility, undiagnosed chronic illness, and trauma. 

Attending RTZ Hope support groups and connecting with other bereaved parents has made an immense impact on Alejandra. As an RTZ facilitator, she hopes to bring fellow grieving parents unconditional support, an empathetic witness, and above all, community. Suffering such a traumatic personal loss during one of the most isolating times in history taught Alejandra how incredibly important it is for grievers to know they are not alone.

Alejandra lives in a small Denver-Boulder suburb you've probably never heard of with her husband, sister-in-law, two living children, and a mischievous cat named Wash. You can read or listen to her work here. 

FACILITATOR

Anita has benefited greatly from the support provided by RTZ HOPE and wants to honor her journey by giving back to others in similar situations. After experiencing the loss of her twin daughters in 2020 and a miscarriage in 2021, she has found ways to bring purpose to her pain by being present with others who have endured the death of their babies. Anita continues to learn how to parent her living children after multiple losses, while incorporating ways to honor her children that have gone before her.

Anita has 15 years of experience working with various non-profits and providing services for underprivileged populations and those on the margins. She holds a BA and MA in Religious Studies. She currently resides near Washington DC, where she enjoys homeschooling her children, hiking, and exploring the outdoors. She and her husband Brent have four living children, and are the bereaving parents of identical twin daughters, Mary Rose and Elizabeth Leia, and Lucia-Francisco.

FACILITATOR

Emily is a licensed clinical social worker in Louisville, KY, who specializes in trauma therapy and mindfulness meditation. She brings both professional and lived-experience knowledge to the RTZ community.

In 2021, she and her husband were thrilled to bring their first child Xavier Thomas into the world. But after receiving a fatal diagnosis at 20 weeks gestation, they made the heartbreaking choice to terminate the pregnancy. At the time, abortion was still legal in Kentucky, but there were many state-mandated obstacles which added trauma to the already devastating loss of their son. 

Emily found RTZ Hope through social media, and joined a support group specific to terminations for medical reasons. Finding this community of people who ‘get it’ has been the most healing part of her grief journey, and she is excited to give back by being a part of the RTZ team.

FACILITATOR

Meredith is a former creative director, agency owner and copywriter who stepped away from the advertising industry following the stillbirth of her son, Hank, in 2020. In the years since, she has found deep support and healing through RTZ, participating in numerous support groups andretreats that became an essential part of her grief journey. Through these experiences, she came to understand the power of being witnessed, deeply listened to, and held in compassionate community. Feeling profoundly grateful for the care she received, she is committed to giving back by offering a steady, empathetic presence and holding space for others as they navigate pregnancy and infant loss. She lives in Los Angeles with her husband and their living child.

FACILITATOR

Rachel is a mom to her beloved star babies -- identical twins, Poppy and Willow, and a baby boy. She experienced both pregnancy losses in 2022, and finding RTZ shortly after losing her twins has been the most meaningful part of her grief journey. She has participated in support groups, workshops, and the May 2024 retreat.

Rachel and her husband live in Parker, CO. While they do not have living children, they are devoted parents to their sweet pup, Bodhi, and they cherish being an aunt and uncle to many nieces and nephews. Outside of work, Rachel enjoys spending time with family and friends, exploring Colorado, traveling, reading, baking, crocheting, and cheering on her favorite football teams.

Throughout her career, Rachel has worked with youth in a variety of roles and has received training in both coaching and mediation. Facilitating and volunteering with RTZ allows her to give back to a community that has meant so much to her while also honoring her star babies.

FACILITATOR

Ryan Rose Weaver is a writer, educator and consultant based in the NYC metro area. After beginning her career as a journalist, stringing for major newspapers and editing travel books, went on to get her M.Ed and to design community-building and educational materials for the likes of foreign and U.S. state governments; startups like Yelp, Readworks and Tinkergarten; and a wide variety of public, private and charter schools. She has taught classes in writing, cooking and gardening to hundreds of children and adults across NYC. She continues to be passionate about creating inclusive spaces for growth that help people foster a deeper connection to themselves, their voices, their communities, and their history. After losing her daughter, Saule, at 21 weeks gestation, while parenting her living child, Neil, she found a community of kindred spirits with RTZ Hope that has helped her move from surviving to thriving. When she’s not teaching online, you’ll find her penning entries for her semi-regular newsletter on reclaiming creativity after loss here, posting photos of her garden on Instagram here, or stocking up on kimchi at H Mart.