About Us

Our Mission

As a 501(c)(3) nonprofit, we support grieving mothers in our community as they navigate the unimaginable pain of losing a child to homicide. Our mission is to foster HEALING through connection, offering support groups, community meetups, and safe spaces where mothers can lean on one another. We believe in the power of shared experiences and the strength found in community, ensuring that no mother walks this journey alone. We provide these resources through generous donations, making healing accessible to all. 




Our Vision

We create a safe and welcoming space for mothers who have lost a child to homicide. Believing in the power of community and connection, we foster healing through shared experiences, support groups, and meaningful gatherings. Here, moms can come as they are, finding strength in one another and hope in the bonds they build.

Our Board

Healing Roots - Katie Wiggins - Founder and Executive Director
Katie Wiggins

Founder & Executive Director

  • Bio

    Katie Wiggins moved to Jacksonville from Orlando at the age of 12. Katie began her career in the criminal justice field before becoming a victim advocate and group facilitator in Northeast prisons helping Florida's restorative justice and recidivism rate. She graduated from the University of North Florida with a Masters in Clinical Mental Health Counseling. and has years of experience working in the field of mental health, counseling children, adults, families, and couples. Katie has incredible compassion for the hurting in our community. She is the owning counselor of Uprooted: Where Healing is Planted, a private practice in the Jacksonville area with a specialization in attachment and grief with a concentration in complicated grief due to homicide loss. Katie founded Healing Roots: Where Hope Is Found Inc. to help the community heal from the complicated grief caused by violent loss. As Executive Director of the board, she strives to provide support and safety to individuals and families served by Healing Roots within the community and co-members of the board.

Healing Roots - Sara Simpson - President
Sara Simpson

President

  • Bio

    Sara Simpson is a local native who enjoys nature, wining and dining and going to see live music or stand-up comedy. She graduated from The University of North Florida (SWOOP!) with a Masters in Clinical Mental Health Counseling. She is licensed in Florida and certified in functional family therapy. She is a firm believer in community and has eight years of experience working in the field of mental health with a concentration in Juvenile Justice. Sara is currently the Mental Health Director at Five Star Veterans Center, overseeing the Passport to Independence program and providing leadership to the case management team.  Additionally, she provides strength-based and restorative therapeutic interventions for displaced Veterans in Jacksonville. Previously, she was the program coordinator for the Criminal Justice Reinvestment Grant where she provided oversight of policies, procedures and best practices, collected data to ensure quality of service implementation and collaborated with community stakeholders. It is Sara’s hope to help build a strong community through advocacy, education, service, and respect. As the President of the board, she strives to provide support, knowledge, and dedication to the other board officers, the individuals our organization serves and the community in which we live.


Healing Roots - Sara Simpson - President
Claire Cunningham

Board Member

  • Bio

    Claire Cunningham is a native of Broussard, Louisiana. She graduated from the University of Southwestern Louisiana with a BA in Mass Communications, English, and secondary education. Claire taught middle and high school English in Louisiana, Texas, and Mississippi. Claire has been married to her entrepreneurial professor husband for 17 years; they have two inquisitive, phenomenal teenagers. Claire is an avid dog lover, Charlotte Football Club season ticket holder, pickleballer, voracious audiobook listener, beach and mountain explorer, live music enthusiast, writer, and self-proclaimed shower singer extraordinaire. She is a powerlifting, bouldering, and aerial arts

    momma. Claire’s world was forever changed in 2006 when her brother, Toby Beaugh, was murdered. The case remains unsolved. Claire’s passion and drive is to help victims find their voices to be heard. She believes in helping others by being authentic and present in helping victims find hope.

    Claire lives by faith and believes in Jesus’s promises. She rests assured that Jesus will never fail her or abandon her (Hebrews 13:5-6). Her faith is the confidence that what we hope for will actually happen; it gives us assurance about things we cannot see (Hebrews 11:1). Her strength comes from God’s grace (Hebrews 13:9).

Questions? Interested in learning more?

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