Kay Warren
Kay Warren is the co-founder of Saddleback Church in Lake Forest, California (with her husband Rick), an international speaker, Bible teacher, and one of the most prominent evangelical advocates for people living with mental illness. After her son Matthew took his life in 2013, she founded the Hope for Mental Health Initiative at Saddleback in 2014 and the BREATHE ministry in 2019 to support parents of children with serious mental illness. Warren writes and speaks on mental health, suffering, joy, and the privilege of pastoral life. Her work has helped shift evangelical conversation about mental illness away from stigma and toward a posture that combines biblical hope, clinical care, and church community.
Frequently Asked Questions about Kay Warren
Who is Kay Warren?
Kay Warren co-founded Saddleback Church in Lake Forest, California, with her husband Rick Warren in 1980 and served there until his retirement from senior leadership in 2022. She is an author, international speaker, and advocate on mental health and HIV/AIDS.
What happened to Kay Warren's son?
Her youngest son, Matthew, died by suicide in April 2013 at age 27 after a lifelong struggle with mental illness. That loss led Kay to found Saddleback's Hope for Mental Health Initiative in 2014 and the BREATHE ministry for parents of children with serious mental illness in 2019.
What does Kay Warren do now?
In 2024 she became president of Hope for Brighter Tomorrows, a nonprofit equipping families and churches to address mental health challenges. She continues to speak and write on mental illness, grief, suicide prevention, and finding joy amid suffering.
What is Kay Warren known for writing?
Her books include Choose Joy: Because Happiness Isn't Enough, Dangerous Surrender, and Say Yes to God. Her writing draws on her experiences with global HIV/AIDS advocacy, her son's mental illness and death, and decades of pastoral ministry at Saddleback.