Beauty Over Ashes Presents:
Birthing Purpose Book Launch & Celebration
Saturday, July 19, 2025
12:00 PM – 3:00 PM
Indy Hall, 709 N 2nd St, 3rd Floor, Philadelphia, PA
The debut memoir from EL Cotton. Come experience a
heartfelt fireside chat, book signing, community connection, and more.
About the book:
There are moments in life when grief, loss, and unimaginable opposition threaten to break us. When dreams are falling apart, when loss strikes without warning, and when life feels unbearably heavy, it’s easy to lose sight of who we are beyond the pain.
In Birthing Purpose, Ericalynn “EL” Cotton invites readers into her personal journey of healing after devastating loss. Through her own experiences of love, marriage, pregnancy, and widowhood, she reveals how every heartbreak led her to deeper faith, and to discovering a purpose greater than her pain.
As a nurse, hairdresser, church leader, and wife to her high school sweetheart, Chris Cotton, EL had built a beautiful life grounded in love and spirituality. But her world was forever changed when she tragically lost her husband while pregnant with their first child, just one month before a global pandemic.
Surrounded by the support of family and loved ones, EL chose to trust God more than ever, which led her to find strength she didn’t know she had. Her journey gave birth to her beloved daughter, affectionately nicknamed Blue, and Beauty Over Ashes, a nonprofit organization dedicated to supporting young widowed women. In this memoir, EL shares her story with vulnerability and unwavering hope, reminding us all that even in our darkest moments, God is still writing a greater story.
Our annual fundraising gala helps support our efforts to provide services to grieving families. We support them as they navigate pregnancy, labor and delivery, and the early stages of raising a family without their partner. Some services include grief counseling, doula services, financial assistance, childcare scholarships, and more.
If you cannot make it to the Gala and would like to donate, please click the link below. Thank you for your generosity.