#WidowedAndForgotten: The Stories Behind Our New International Widows Day Campaign

Today we are proud to launch #WidowedAndForgotten, a new awareness campaign from The

Widowed Collective marking International Widows Day on 23rd June.

The campaign brings together nine widows and widowers from across the UK who have chosen

to share the moments that changed their lives forever. Their experiences are all different, but

each story reflects the reality that widowhood can be an incredibly lonely and isolating

experience, often long after the funeral has ended and life appears to move on for everyone else.

Among those taking part is Sarah Lundy from Blackpool, whose husband Darren left home in

2018 saying he was going out for milk and cigarettes and never returned. Three days later, Sarah learned he had died by suicide. Rosie Moss from Kent is sharing her experience of losing her husband Ben during a scuba diving trip when he disappeared beneath the sea and was never found despite an extensive search operation. Richard Cyster from Harrogate spent years

supporting bereaved families as a volunteer grief counsellor, only to discover that nothing could

prepare him for becoming a widower himself when his wife Margaret died earlier this year.

The campaign also includes the stories of Sam Leonard, whose husband Chris died from a rare

and aggressive cancer just weeks after developing what initially appeared to be ordinary

hiccups and heartburn; Jo Relf, whose husband John died just eight months after being

diagnosed with motor neurone disease; Nigel Murrills, whose wife Mary died only days after

being admitted to hospital; Neil Fegan, who spent more than two years caring for his wife Linda through dementia before facing life alone after her death; and Cath Holland, whose husband Andy died less than a year after receiving a terminal cancer diagnosis.

Also featuring is Natalie Bolton, co-founder of The Widowed Collective, who was widowed at the age of 44 when her husband Jonathan suffered a sudden cardiac arrest on Mother's Day in 2021. Like so many others, Natalie found herself trying to navigate unimaginable grief while supporting her family through their own loss.

Although every journey through widowhood is unique, there are experiences that many widowed people recognise. The loneliness that arrives when support begins to fade. The challenge of making decisions alone. The struggle of returning to an empty home. The pressure to appear okay when life has been turned upside down. The reality that grief does not disappear simply because time has passed.

More than 3.1 million people in England and Wales are widowed, yet widowhood remains one of

society's least understood life experiences. Too often people feel forgotten once the immediate

period of bereavement has passed. Friends and family may worry about saying the wrong thing, conversations become less frequent, invitations become fewer, and many widowed people find themselves facing a future they never expected without the support they need.

That is why we created #WidowedAndForgotten. We want to encourage more open

conversations about grief, loss and life after losing a partner. We want widowed people to know they are not alone. We want others to better understand the long-term impact of bereavement and the difference that small acts of kindness, understanding and connection can make.

Over the coming weeks we will be sharing the stories of everyone taking part in the campaign

across our social media channels. We would love you to follow along, share the content and

help us reach more people who may need support or who want to better understand the

realities of widowhood. You can find us on Instagram @TheWidowedCollective and Facebook

at The Widowed Collective.

We also know that these nine stories represent only a small part of the widowed community. If

you have lost a partner and would like to share your own experience, we would love to hear from you. Whether it is a memory, a reflection, a piece of advice for someone newly widowed or

simply something you wish more people understood about widowhood, we encourage you to

share it on social media using the hashtag #WidowedAndForgotten.

By sharing our stories, supporting one another and keeping conversations about grief alive, we

can help ensure that nobody feels forgotten in their widowhood.