Our Programs

Soaring Spirits has one goal; to connect widowed people with each other.

  • Newly WidowedInformation, resources and understanding for those who are recently widowed.
  • Camp WidowAn uplifting, life-affirming event planned for widowed people by widowed people.
  • Regional Social GroupsRegular social gatherings of widowed people all over North America and selected locations globally.
  • Widow’s Voice BlogWe house the largest library in the world of blogs written by widowed people about love, grief, and life after the death of a partner.
  • Widowed VillageOur 24/7 online community is a place to write, read and share thoughts with other widowed people.
  • Widowed Pen PalsAn opportunity to connect with another widowed person by email.
  • You Are Not Alone OutreachOffers quick and easy ways to connect a widowed person in your life with our community.

Camp Widow

Camp Widow

Camp Widow® is a unique and incredible experience. This innovative program provides practical tools and research-informed resources for widowed persons rebuilding their lives in the aftermath of the death of a spouse or partner. We offer both weekend-long and one-day events across the United States and in a variety of International locations. Blending three event styles - a conference format, an inspiring retreat, and a reunion with great friends - Camp Widow is open to anyone who has experienced the death of the person with whom they planned to spend the rest of their lives (legally married or not), and provides an in-person widowed community of peers who are making their way through widowhood one day at a time. Learn more here.

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Widow’s Voice

Imagine finding a blog that gives voice to the pain you are living in, words you've thought, but never shared. We've amassed a library that includes thousands of posts written by widowed people that normalize the sometimes crazy process of grief and loss. Our blogs are searchable and will lead you to specific topics, questions or to your favorite author.

Happy Birthday to Beebs

Happy Birthday to Beebs

Today is Lee’s birthday. She would have been 69 years old. I would not have forgotten. As soon as I glanced at the calendar the date’s significance would have jumped off the page. But the truth...

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Our Beating Hearts

Our Beating Hearts

It happened last night in a waking dream. The other day I was on a call about grief. In poetic prose, the speaker mentioned “hearing the beating of her heart.”  She repeated that phrase...

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NNTR and other attempts to influence language

NNTR and other attempts to influence language

Image by i-am_nah on Unsplash Back in the 1980s, and possibly into the 1990s, I was quite an avid reader of two “wimmin’s magazines” – Company and Cosmopolitan. I just looked up to see if they...

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Art Reflects Life

Art Reflects Life

It’s not surprising that things hit differently once we are widowed, but sometimes it’s still unexpected. In 2019, I excitedly ordered tickets to Hamilton when it was coming through on tour. Tony...

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Dreams Altered, New Dreams Met

Dreams Altered, New Dreams Met

Well, you all know by now that ever since I can remember, I’ve wanted to be onstage, or maybe even part of a television series of some kind, making people laugh and think and doing my thing in...

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What Grows On

What Grows On

My last two posts have focused on the inner workings and transformation of house, home and human in the wake of profound loss. It was so gratifying to see my post, “Staying in Place”, written earlier...

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When it isn’t your crisis

When it isn’t your crisis

*TW: there is mention of suicidal ideation/psychiatric hospitalization in this post You know those times in life when it feels like everyone around you is going through a crisis or a loss, and you have...

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Reprise (updated)

Reprise (updated)

I am on the road all week. In my absence I have decided to reprint my initial contribution to this blog with a few edits. It concerns a tough time in my life. Most important, my sweet wife was recently...

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Camp Widow Serendipity . . .

Camp Widow Serendipity . . .

… a story. It was September of 2022 in Denver at the local community college. A widow, finding no support options in Mississippi, arrives via a road trip where Soaring Spirits is offering a one-day...

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“Pas Voulu Mais Choisi”

“Pas Voulu Mais Choisi”

Image by Josue Michel on Unsplash 18 March 2023 I have just come back from my Saturday morning swim with the Masters. When I say, “with the Masters”, I speak rather relatively. Yes, I am part of...

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4 Million

People Reached

70

Regional Groups

69%

Parenting Minor Children

10K

Newly Widowed Packets Delivered Annually Free of Charge

20K

Outreach Cards Delivered Annually Free of Charge

Newly Widowed Packets

Newly Widowed Packets

Feeling lost in the immediate aftermath of becoming widowed is common and daunting. We can help! These packets provide a practical checklist for the newly widowed, relevant program information, and a collection of supportive messages from one widowed person to another. Packets are mailed and are designed for those widowed less than six months.

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You Are Not Alone Cards

You Are Not Alone Cards

Do you know someone who is widowed? Soaring Spirits’ You Are Not Alone cards are small folded business cards that contain all the information a widowed person would need to get connected with our widowed community. You Are Not Alone cards are free, easy to order, and small enough to carry in your purse or wallet. These little cards make a big difference.

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Widowed Village

Widowed Village

Day or night, no matter where you are on the globe, we offer an online community featuring blog posts, group discussions, focused forums for deeper connection, and ways to find widowed women and men close to your age, date of loss, and geographic location. Our carefully screened virtual community provides hope and healing from the comfort of your home.

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Soaring Spirits Resilience Center

Soaring Spirits Resilience Center

When we discovered the lack of research being conducted about the widowed experience, we developed the first center in the U.S. focused on grief and resilience in widowhood. Housed at Schreiner University in Texas, the Soaring Spirits Resilience Center researches widowed experiences and develops tools to support healing in grieving populations.

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Sponsors

Soaring Spirits is grateful for the incredible support of our corporate and community sponsors. Our work is fueled by their generosity.

99.1 The Ranch – KWSV
All Pro Bicycles
AT&T
Bellis Reinforcing Steel
Bohnett Foundation
Coastal Business Supplies
Corporate Graphics Communications
H.N. and Frances C. Berger Foundation
Hutton Parker Foundation
Jake and Jack
Living Out
Qualcomm Foundation
Perspective Wealth Management of Raymond James Canada Ltd.
Rhino’s Sports and Spirits
Rotary Club of Simi Valley
Rotary International
Swinks Towing
The James and Deborah Klein Family Foundation
The Junkyard Cafe
United Way
Wells Fargo
World Financial Group