Curated News
By: NewsRamp Editorial Staff
November 26, 2025
Ex-exec turns grief into advocacy for families facing loss
TLDR
- Bryan Scott McMillan leverages his executive leadership experience to advocate for grieving families, showing how community support creates resilient individuals who overcome adversity.
- McMillan outlines practical steps for supporting grieving families including regular check-ins, non-judgmental listening, maintaining routines, and sharing local grief resources.
- McMillan's advocacy through Families with Holes and volunteer work helps grieving children and families heal, creating stronger, more compassionate communities through simple acts of support.
- McMillan discovered that walking without headphones helps clear the mind and encourages conversation, a simple practice he shares to help others through grief.
Impact - Why it Matters
This story matters because grief affects millions of families silently, with children particularly vulnerable to long-term emotional and academic consequences. As McMillan's statistics reveal, childhood bereavement is far more common than most people realize, and the lack of accessible support systems creates cascading problems throughout communities. His practical approach demonstrates that ordinary people can make significant differences through simple, consistent actions rather than requiring specialized training or resources. In an era where mental health challenges are increasingly recognized but support services remain strained, McMillan's message provides actionable guidance for communities to strengthen their collective resilience. The growing waiting lists at grief centers underscore the urgent need for more community-based support networks, making this advocacy work both timely and essential for public wellbeing.
Summary
Retired senior executive and philanthropist Bryan Scott McMillan has been featured in a compelling new interview that explores his transformation from corporate leader to grief advocate following the loss of his wife. The interview reveals how McMillan's personal tragedy reshaped his perspective on leadership and community support, with the former medical device executive now dedicating his platform to raising awareness for grieving children and families. McMillan specifically highlights how The WARM Place helped his own children find stability after their mother's death, emphasizing that small acts of support can create profound impacts during times of emotional hardship.
McMillan's advocacy work extends beyond personal experience, as he cites alarming statistics showing that 1 in 12 American children will lose a parent or sibling before age 18, with grieving children being twice as likely to experience depression and three times more likely to struggle academically. The retired executive founded Families with Holes in 2018 to provide guidance to families experiencing loss, building on his volunteer work at The WARM Place since 2006 and his support for Camp Sanguinity. Rather than focusing on large-scale initiatives, McMillan champions practical, accessible support methods including regular check-ins, non-judgmental listening, maintaining routines, sharing local resources, and the simple act of walking together without distractions.
The timing of McMillan's message is particularly relevant as grief support centers report increasing demand with waiting lists stretching for weeks or months. His call to action emphasizes that community members don't need specialized training to make a difference—they simply need compassion and willingness to show up for those experiencing loss. McMillan's journey from corporate leadership to grassroots advocacy demonstrates how personal tragedy can transform into meaningful community service, offering a powerful model for how individuals can leverage their experiences and platforms to address pressing social needs.
Source Statement
This curated news summary relied on content disributed by 24-7 Press Release. Read the original source here, Ex-exec turns grief into advocacy for families facing loss
