Titled “On Loan from the Lord,” the memoir details one family’s journey through love and loss, and the impact of faith upon their lives.

Erika Seibert, the young widow of a Santa Clarita pastor and local poet, published a memoir of her husband’s life and ministry.

The biography details the life of Santa Clarita native Joshua Donald Seibert, a father, minister and poet, who died at the age of 37 after a long battle with genetic disease and cancer.

A graduate of Canyon High School, Josh started writing as a teenager in the Christian punk rock band, “Youth in Submission”.  In his early 20’s he started writing poems and short stories under the name of “J.D. Seibert,” becoming a regular fixture at the Santa Clarita Cowboy Festival and recording three CDs of his poetry.

He graduated from California State University- Northridge with a history degree in 2004, received his teaching credential in 2007, and began teaching junior and senior high history in the public school system.

Erika and Josh met at their church around this time, and although the two were not initially involved, a relationship began to blossom.

“I never would have thought we would have ended up together,” Erika said. “But we grew close. I had my oldest son already and Josh embraced him as his own, and my son was stoked to have a dad.”

Photo courtesy of Erika Seibert

Josh wooed Erika with his writing and loving personality, constantly striving to give back and provide guidance to his community.

It was during that time that Josh felt a calling to pursue full-time ministry. With the encouragement of his pastors, Josh enrolled at The Master’s Seminary, serving as a youth pastor in Canyon Country and Acton.

After several years of ministry in Arizona and Oregon, the Seibert family was faced with the news of Josh’s failing health from a life-threatening and rare genetic disease called Fanconi Anemia, which would lead to bone marrow failure and cancer.

“He had always dreamed about publishing a book, while he was in the hospital we wanted to make the time he had left count,”  Erika said. “He viewed himself as the hospital chaplain, always praying for the other patients and even the nurses.”

Erika’s blog, This Thorny Rose, follows her family’s emotional journey through dark times, chronicling the desperate effort to save her husband that inspired her book.

“It took two years to accomplish the memoir while processing my own grief along with that of my two children— ages 11 and 3, who grieve so differently,” she wrote in one blog entry. “I still struggle with grief in various forms, yet in Christ, I have found a deliverer from my every trying hour.  I hope the book will encourage others to draw closer to God when dealing with loss, unexpected diagnoses, heartache, or trials.”

Erika says she could not have done it without her faith and the help from many friends that are professionals in the writing industry. She hopes the book will encourage others to be closer to God when dealing with loss.

“Writing has helped me process everything,” Erika said. “As well as a way for me to see what has happened as for the benefit of others and drawing myself to God, Christ and encouraging other people.”

Several church leaders familiar with Josh offered their impressions of him through a series of notes included in the memoir, including several from the Santa Clarita Valley.

Although reliving the experiences of love and loss was difficult for Erika, the healing process that it offered was bittersweet. Several readers of “On Loan from the Lord” have approached her since its release, thanking Erika for her candidness about her emotional and touching stories

Photo courtesy of Erika Seibert

“It’s been an encouragement,” Erika said. “It was good to remember that through the times of sorrow, God’s faithfulness is always seen.”

Erika hopes that her husband continues to impact others, encouraging readers to come and meet the family they have learned so much about through their journey through grief

“I have nothing to hide, I’m a human and I’m not perfect,” she said. “But I wanted people to be impacted by our experience.”

The book is now available on Amazon and Kindle. A book signing for “On Loan from the Lord” is scheduled from 2-5 p.m. on Nov. 9 at The Open Book, located at 19188 Soledad Canyon Road in Canyon Country.

To find out more information about the Seibert family and the book, click here.

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