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Katie's Family
I met my late husband, LTC William Lewayne Lyckman, in Round Rock, Texas, in 2012. At the time, I was an elementary school teacher, and he was stationed at Fort Hood. We instantly fell in love and were married in 2014. Together, we built a beautiful life, adding two baby boys to our family and eventually moved to Fort Shafter in Honolulu, Hawaii.
Lewayne was the Operations Officer for the Assistant Chief of Staff Engineer (ACSENG) Directorate at United States Army Pacific (USARPAC) headquarters when he passed away suddenly from a brain aneurysm in June 2020. He was posthumously promoted to Lieutenant Colonel after serving 17 honorable years in the Army. A proud Texas A&M alumni, he was also their football team’s biggest fan.
The shock of losing my husband was compounded by the discovery that I was pregnant with our third child. Tragically, I lost the baby a few months later.
As I was trying to rebuild life as a single mother, I also faced the heartbreaking loss of my brother, who passed away later that same year after a decade-long struggle with substance abuse.
Three profound losses in such a short span of time forced me to seek help immediately. I began therapy to manage the PTSD, anxiety, and depression that had become overwhelming. I knew I had to take care of my mental health not just for myself, but for my children.
In my search for healing, I discovered a women's empowerment retreat for Gold Star spouses in Colorado — a turning point in my journey. It was there that I met Sina, another military widow, and we instantly connected. We were two grieving women clinging to each other in a world that no longer felt familiar. No one truly understood what we were going through — except for each other.
That connection became the beginning of something bigger: a mission to help others like us. Together, Sina and I founded this nonprofit to provide space, support, and healing for fellow Gold Star families navigating unimaginable grief. This work is deeply personal and profoundly meaningful — born out of loss, built on love, and sustained by hope.
Lewayne was the Operations Officer for the Assistant Chief of Staff Engineer (ACSENG) Directorate at United States Army Pacific (USARPAC) headquarters when he passed away suddenly from a brain aneurysm in June 2020. He was posthumously promoted to Lieutenant Colonel after serving 17 honorable years in the Army. A proud Texas A&M alumni, he was also their football team’s biggest fan.
The shock of losing my husband was compounded by the discovery that I was pregnant with our third child. Tragically, I lost the baby a few months later.
As I was trying to rebuild life as a single mother, I also faced the heartbreaking loss of my brother, who passed away later that same year after a decade-long struggle with substance abuse.
Three profound losses in such a short span of time forced me to seek help immediately. I began therapy to manage the PTSD, anxiety, and depression that had become overwhelming. I knew I had to take care of my mental health not just for myself, but for my children.
In my search for healing, I discovered a women's empowerment retreat for Gold Star spouses in Colorado — a turning point in my journey. It was there that I met Sina, another military widow, and we instantly connected. We were two grieving women clinging to each other in a world that no longer felt familiar. No one truly understood what we were going through — except for each other.
That connection became the beginning of something bigger: a mission to help others like us. Together, Sina and I founded this nonprofit to provide space, support, and healing for fellow Gold Star families navigating unimaginable grief. This work is deeply personal and profoundly meaningful — born out of loss, built on love, and sustained by hope.
