While getting post-surgery rehab for my knee the other day, I picked up a copy of the Dec. 13 issue of People magazine. Amid the celebrity gossip, I spotted a story about an organization borne of grief called the American Widow Project. Started by Taryn Davis, who lost her husband to roadside bombs in Iraq, the organization offers support, resources, friendship, advice, and hope to military widows around the country. The project organizes regular events like surfing or skydiving outings that bring together widows to share memories and "to enjoy life the way they did when their spouse was still alive," the website (www.americanwidowproject.org) notes.
As I see it, Taryn Davis' act is a kind of goodbye to her fallen husband, Michael. Here's a description of her journey to found the organization:
"Taryn Davis, 23, was living the "normal" life; She had married her soul mate, was about to graduate college, and had her future with him to look forward to. That was until May 21, 2007. Her husband had been killed by multiple roadside bombs just an hour and a half after they last spoke. Feeling lost and alone in the new world she'd been thrown into, she began traveling around the country to hear other women's stories of love, tragedy... and overall survival. In hearing their accounts, she hoped to learn more about the title that been had given to her... that of a military widow.
"What began as her own personal journey has expanded into a non-profit organization, a documentary film, and a growing website. She has grasped on and embraced her new life with all the enthusiasm and passion she had when Michael was still alive. Inspired solely off the willpower and strength of the women 'in her shoes,' she has found that true love is eternal, that the lessons and things her husband said and did still run through her veins, and mostly....she is not alone."
You can read the People article here.
