Lenora Green
A mother whose legacy became a mission.
Lenora was far more than the beginning of Green Heart’s story. She was a mother, a partner, and a steady presence in the life her family built together. With Mariah’s father, Gary Douglas, she raised their children, worked hard, and created a foundation meant to carry the family forward. Her influence lives in the way Mariah leads: with care, honesty, resourcefulness, and a deep belief that families deserve to be supported through life’s hardest moments.
When Lenora died from metastatic rectal cancer on March 29, 2019, her family faced grief while also trying to manage the practical, emotional, and everyday realities that loss leaves behind. Mariah saw how quickly a family can be asked to make difficult decisions, find reliable resources, and hold one another together while still trying to understand what has happened.
“This work carries my mother’s name, my family’s love, and the promise that other families should not have to navigate loss without support.”
A family legacy
Love continued to shape the work.
After Lenora’s death, Mariah and her father worked to piece life back together while the family continued to grieve and support one another. Gary’s death on April 17, 2025, Mariah’s birthday, brought another profound loss. It also deepened her understanding that grief does not follow a schedule and that meaningful support must make room for the whole person, the whole family, and the life that continues after someone dies.
Green Heart honors both Lenora and Gary by carrying forward what they built: a commitment to family, preparation, service, and a future larger than any single moment of loss.
From experience to expertise
Personal understanding became purposeful, professional work.
Mariah turned lived experience into action. She created original grief journals and practical resources, pursued deeper study as a thanatology professional, and built Green Heart to respond to the gaps families, educators, workplaces, and communities encounter before and after a loss.
Today, Green Heart brings together compassion and credible practice. The organization supports children and families, equips educators and professionals, and helps institutions create trauma and grief informed policies that work in real life. Every program is rooted in the same conviction that began at home: people deserve clear guidance, compassionate care, and systems that do not abandon them when life changes.
This is Lenora’s legacy in motion. This is Green Heart.