Biography

Dr. Sharon E. Siler is the Executive Director of The Healing Place Center for Counseling and Spiritual Formation in Mechanicsville, Virginia and has provided care for persons experiencing death and non-death losses for a number of years. Her work includes individual support, small groups, retreats, and workshops. 

Dr. Siler holds undergraduate and graduate degrees in Education from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Virginia Commonwealth University and the College of William and Mary. In addition to her work in public education Dr. Siler is an ordained minister, a trained spiritual director and formational caregiver. She served alongside her husband, Dr. Neal Siler at the First Shiloh Baptist Church in Mechanicsville Virginia for 34 years. Both now hold Emeritus status. 

In 2023, her commitment to providing care and support to the bereaved resulted in the completion of her Master of Science in Thanatology from Marian University in Fond du Lac, Wisconsin and earning the professional designation as a Certified Thanatologist by the Association of Death Education and Counseling (ADEC). One of her favorite quotes written by Darcy L. Harris and the late Howard R. Winokuer says: “Our lives are often shaped and shattered by the experience of various losses over time.” Dr. Siler can attest to the truth of this statement through her own lived experience with grief and loss.