Why We Wrote Walking Lois Home
We did not set out to care for Lois in our home. And we certainly did not set out to write a book about it.
As a physician and pastor, we had spent years caring for people facing serious illness—through patient care, pastoral ministry, and research. But when Lois, a woman we barely knew, came to live with our family during COVID-19, everything we had studied, taught, and practiced became suddenly personal.
During her final months, Lois experienced a remarkable spiritual transformation. She found peace, belonging, and faith in God, and she asked us to tell her story.
We wrote Walking Lois Home because we believe the church must recover its call to love the sick and dying. Too often, illness and death are hidden, avoided, or faced alone.
Lois taught us that something different is possible: a community shaped by compassion, presence, courage, and hope.
Our prayer is that this book will help readers face mortality honestly, accompany those who suffer faithfully, and awaken the church to the healing mission entrusted to us by Jesus.
Meet Michael & Tracy
As physician and pastor, researcher and theologian, husband and wife, they have spent more than two decades exploring how faith, community, and compassionate care shape the experience of serious illness. They are co-directors of the Harvard Initiative on Health, Spirituality, and Religion
Michael is a pastor, theologian, and teacher who has spent much of his life accompanying people through suffering, illness, and spiritual searching. He serves as co-pastor of Restoration Fellowship in Boston and helped establish the Longwood Christian Community, where students, healthcare professionals, and families seek to integrate faith, vocation, and service. He is also an affiliate scholar with the Harvard Human Flourishing Program. His work focuses on helping people discover meaning, hope, and belonging amid life's greatest challenges.
Michael Balboni, PhD, ThM
Tracy Balboni, MD, MPH
Tracy is a physician, researcher, and professor at Harvard Medical School. She serves as the Mass General Brigham Endowed Chair in Radiation Oncology and is an internationally recognized leader in palliative and serious illness care. For more than two decades, her research has explored how spirituality, faith, and meaning shape the experience of illness, caregiving, and health. Through her work as a clinician, researcher, and caregiver, she is committed to helping patients and families navigate serious illness with compassion, dignity, and hope.
Beyond Walking Lois Home
Tracy and Michael live in Boston and have three adult children.
Their work has taken shape through a variety of friendships, communities, ministries, and research collaborations.
RESEARCH & EDUCATION
COMMUNITY
MINISTRY
