I'll See You Again

This should be a 5 star all around...just my opinion. This is a story, as most of us know, about a loving young couple who lost ALL three children, Emma, Alyson and Katie in an horrific car accident which was caused by the children's Aunt Diane Schuler. It's about Jackie and Warren Hance and the Taconic Parkway nightmare accident some years ago. I don't know, and many will agree, how I could talk normally to my oldest of 3 children, who was 7 at the time, telling me with joy how much fun they all had at camp with their family then a moment later while driving home in the car with their Aunt and her two children die in the worst accident I have ever read about. Jackie Hance writes the book with honesty, lovingly and with courage. If you have just lost someone you love, the beginning of the book is very dark and will empathize greatly with her story especially if you have endured losses in your life. You will know the pain and disbelief she and Warren Hance went thru. This is extraordinary when you hear the Hances' journey after losing Emma, Alyson and Katie. Jackie refers to them as our girls. I won't go into the Schuler family. You can read about that in the news. But this book brings you to the depths of Jackie and Warren's despair for most of the book. I could not stop my tears and prayers for them and felt the black hole they were living as I read. There is the usual blame that they were not good parents leaving them with their Aunt. Jackie did not want to live. As I read I saw a couple that had a great foundation of love and thru them passed this love to their girls and made a wonderful but short life for them by a once in a lifetime accident. Years passed and both Jackie and Warren were living with grief not being able to move forward. Warren and Jackie were different personalities with each grieving in their own way. You will read during the first part of the book the stages of grief but their losses were too great. I can't imagine waking up every morning and knowing my whole family was gone. They had a great support system in their friends and family and in essence I know Jackie had a nervous breakdown though it is not mentioned in the book. They fought through nightmares, feeling lost, not having a reason to live for years. They both in ways that made sense to them moved slowly toward healing and forgiveness. I just finished reading this book and got so far into the experience that when my husband and I stopped in a restaurant that included a lovely gift shop, I saw 3 of the same beautiful Easter dresses hanging on display and the sizes coincided with the ages of Emma, Alyson and Katie. It was a quick glance but I could not help choking up. Toward the end of their story, there was a glimmer of hope when they decided to have another child. They started an organization too in memory of their girls to help ALL young girls with learning self awareness and confidence. You will read about this important foundation in the book. This is a true story of HOPE AND HEALING. If you have just had a loss, I would wait to read it, but to all of us who have lost and survived...you must read this story. I cannot understand some of the reviews here, all I read was a horror turned inside out with strength and endearing love. You must read this book. I truly believe that there is God in all of us because God and His/Her angels gave Jackie and Warren Hance a fourth daughter, Kasey. God Bless Jackie and Warren Hance and all their family and friends.

All bereaved parents can relate to the darkest feelings expressed, hurdles and back-slides faced, anger endured, forgiveness questioned, guilt suffered, arguments battled, faith challenged, friendships valued, and questions unanswered. The story's painful honesty, so well written by Janice Kaplan, illuminates the everyday details that impact grief.I am in awe of Janice Kaplan's ability, (who to my knowledge is not a bereaved mother), to interview Jackie and capture such intimate feelings and poignant details and weaving them into a story of darkest despair with glimmers of hope and love, and culminating with rebirth and joy, exposing the heartbreak of losing a child, and in Jackie's case losing all three of her children.It was also impressive how Jackie dug deep to recall so many painful and vivid details giving her story a compelling beginning, middle and ending. I have read hundreds of grief books, but this book is simply outstanding, touching my heart with its powerful story of clawing out of the deepest pit of agony, and offering encouragement and motivation as she discovers a meaningful life again. Never have I read of a community or group of very close friends that came to the rescue like her hometown of Floral Park, paving the way for healing with hours of love and concern for her and her husband Warren. You will fall in love with Jackie and all her talents, cheer for Warren and all his strength who never gave up, and welcome little Kasey Rose, who is a miracle in more ways than one. This is a story of endurance, one step at a time, holding on to many hands, making us all want to move to Floral Park!!Having lost two children myself, 21 year old son and 19 year old daughter - 4 days apart from a car accident and having met with both Jackie and Warren, their story validates many of my feelings and also reveals areas where we differ in our grief, but we definitely bonded in our struggle to survive. We both made choices; we both chose to live!Do yourself a favor, and buy yourself a copy of I'll See You Again, and better yet, give a copy to a newly bereaved parent, no matter what age the child is or what cause of death. You're giving them a life-line. And we all know the meaning of life is the giving and receiving of Love.Elaine E. Stillwell, M.A., M.S.Author of: The Death of a Child: Reflections for Grieving Parents (available on amazon)Chapter Leader, The Compassionate Friends of Rockville Centre, NY

I lost my son three years ago and so that is possibly why I chose this book to read. I wanted to see how someone else got through their sorrow.Losing three little daughters at once is almost beyond comprehension. Jackie is very honest as she describes the horrific pain and very rough years she and her husband Warren experienced after their girls were lost. She also makes reference over and over to the great friends they had who helped all they possibly could. They helped Jackie and Warren survive.When they were almost able to emotionally handle it they contemplated bringing a new baby into their home. That was a process and big adjustment, too, because they didn't want to ever forget Emma, Alyson, or Katie.I loved this book because it was so honest and real, and because it reminds me I don't have a corner on sorrow. So many of us go through large losses. We are not as alone as we think.

I found this book very honest and helpful to others having to cope with the loss of a child or children. Much of the book is dark and sad but, when you are grieving for a beloved child, you're already in a very dark sad place and you desperately need to know others have survived that most devastating of bereavements. You also need to know you're not going mad when you have panic attacks, contemplate suicide, roam around the house in the early hours or feel terrible anger at friends because they've carried on with their lives. As a bereaved mother myself I, time and again as I read this book, found myself thinking 'that's how I felt or that's what I did'. I think the book is particularly good for couples who are arguing all the time, and finding it impossible to help each other. This is so common in my experience but so rarely spoken or written about. As I live in the UK I know nothing about the circumstances surrounding the accident but that really isn't what this book is about. It's about one bereaved mum's struggle to survive, and re-invest in life, and to try and help other mums and dads. Thank you Jackie.

I absolutely loved this book. Brought me to many tears. This was incredibly written and what a way to have the girls known for themselves (not just the three nieces). Incredible read about recovering and growing.

Durch einen Zeitungsartikel wurde ich auf diese Buch aufmerksam und habe es innerhalb von zwei Tagen durchgelesen. Was dieser Familie widerfahren ist und wie alle damit umgehen ist absolut überwältigend und zeigt, dass es doch irgendwie immer weiter geht. Vor allen Beteiligten habe ich Hochachtung, dass sie den Mut aufgebracht haben im Leben weiter zu gehen. Jackie Hance hat dieses Buch sehr ehrlich geschrieben ohne damit auf die Tränendrüse drücken zu wollen. Sehr zu empfehlen!

Well written, I really felt the pain of this couple and shed a few years of my own. R l P little ones.

this is a heart wrenching true story, I couldn't put this book down after page one. Just amazing what this family had to over come and how they managed to come out the other side