Lavender “Lav” Kelley
Writer, educator, consultant, and chaplain exploring grief, trauma, meaning-making, and human flourishing.
Helping people and organizations engage grief, trauma, meaning, growth, and connection with wisdom, compassion, and integrity. I provide speaking, consulting, workshops, and professional development for healthcare organizations, faith communities, and mission-driven institutions.
About Lav
I'm a writer, educator, consultant, and board-certified chaplain whose work centers on grief, trauma, meaning-making, and human flourishing.
For nearly two decades, I served in pediatric healthcare, accompanying patients, families, and healthcare professionals through some of life's most challenging moments. Along the way, I became increasingly interested in a question that continues to guide my work today: How do people remain connected to what matters most when life becomes difficult, uncertain, or painful?
Whether I'm facilitating a workshop, supporting healthcare professionals, consulting with organizations, writing, or offering spiritual direction, my focus is less on providing answers and more on creating space for reflection, growth, and meaningful engagement. I believe people are more than the challenges they face. We are shaped by our relationships, values, stories, communities, and hopes, even in times of grief, trauma, illness, or transition.
My work draws from experience in healthcare, spirituality, education, bereavement, trauma-informed practice, and community leadership. I am particularly interested in helping individuals and organizations cultivate resilience, deepen self-awareness, navigate complexity, and remain connected to their sense of purpose.
At the heart of everything I do is a simple conviction: growth and healing are rarely found through avoidance, certainty, or isolation. More often, they emerge through compassionate engagement with ourselves, one another, and the realities we face together.
Today, I provide speaking, consulting, workshops, professional development, spiritual direction, and writing for healthcare organizations, faith communities, nonprofits, and mission-driven institutions seeking to foster well-being, reflection, connection, and human flourishing.
Speaking & Consulting
Support for individuals, teams, and organizations navigating complex human experiences.
Healthcare
Spiritual Care
Drawing on nearly two decades of experience in pediatric healthcare, I provide education, consultation, and facilitated discussions on topics including grief, resilience, professional formation, communication, ethics, interdisciplinary collaboration, and the human dimensions of healthcare.
I help healthcare teams, faith communities, and organizations deepen their understanding of spiritual care, meaning-making, and compassionate presence. Topics include spiritual assessment, religious diversity, existential concerns, grief, and supporting people through times of uncertainty and change.
Professional Wellbeing
Trauma-Informed Practice
Sustainable well-being requires more than self-care. I work with organizations to explore the personal, relational, and systemic factors that influence employee wellness, engagement, resilience, and professional satisfaction.
Trauma shapes how people experience relationships, institutions, healthcare, learning, and community. I offer education and consultation on trauma-informed approaches that promote safety, trust, empowerment, and compassionate engagement.
Staff Support
Professionals who regularly care for others often carry significant emotional and relational burdens. I facilitate reflective spaces, educational programs, and consultations that support staff in navigating grief, moral distress, burnout, uncertainty, and the challenges of caring professions.
Latest Insights
Reflections on grief, trauma, spirituality, and human flourishing.
Blog posts and essays are shared on Substack.
Contact Lav
For speaking, consulting, workshops, spiritual direction, or other collaborations, you’re welcome to reach out.
You can also connect with Lav here: