The white noise of grief can feel deafening. The inexplicable weight of missing a loved one’s presence is something words can’t even begin to describe, and the reality of living after loss can be dizzying. Journalist Sheinelle Jones has been particularly vulnerable about this reality since losing her husband of 17 years, Uche Ojeh, to glioblastoma, an aggressive form of brain cancer.
However, as a mother to three teenagers Kayin, 16, and 13-year-old twins Clara and Uche Jr, Jones couldn’t let grief take over her life.
“When my kids and I look back, what mother do I want them to see? Who is the woman I want to be? It’s like, ‘Okay, she’d do it. So let’s go,’” she told People magazine. However, while she returned to work in September 2025 after an almost year-long leave of absence, the broadcaster explained that things aren’t necessarily back to normal.
“People see me on TV and they think ‘Oh, she’s better.’ It’s like, ‘Oh, no no. I’m not better.’ Every day, it’s like swimming through mud,” she explained. “I’ve had to really do the work. Empathy is my superpower now, and I recognize that I hold two things: I hold my grief, and I also hold this joy. I said it months ago, and I’ll say it now: I am fighting for my joy.”
While taking a step away from her career to care for her husband and household, Jones says she found strength in prayer. So much so, that she did not imagine her husband dying.
“Not once did I think I was going to lose him,” she admitted. “When you’re a woman of faith, you realize that you’re praying for an outcome and then if the outcome doesn’t come, then what? And that’s when I’ve really had to dig deep and realize that maybe I just don’t fully understand. I know God loves me and I know God loves [Uche] and I know God loves my children and our families, so like, why is this happening? I still don’t know if I have the answer, but I have peace that passes all understanding. That’s a Bible verse. It doesn’t mean that it’s easier. It doesn’t mean that my grief is not excruciating.”
“It’s the life after where you really feel the loss,” she added, reflecting on having to navigate the small but heartbreaking reality of not being able to do little things like text her college sweetheart when she’s boarded a plane. However, after a difficult year of grieving, Jones ended the year with a sprinkle of good news: landing her dream job as the co-host of “Today with Jenna & Sheinelle,” replacing Hoda Kotb.
“And for me, going back to work, with all of those people surrounding me, I feel safe and loved, and I don’t have to pretend. My joy is real. If I told you the depth of my groans and tears just months ago to one of the best days of my life here today, you couldn’t even write it…And I know that he knows,” she said of her late husband, who she senses everywhere. “He was rooting for me all along. I owe it to him to keep going.”
