This time the blog is from someone new. Jean retired as Chair after the AGM and I have succeeded her. 
My name is Dorothy Turner and you will be hearing from me as Chair from time to time as you did from Jean.
The NAW continues to offer support to our members; we have all “been […]

This is my last message as NAW Chair. After seven years in post, I have stepped down. Our new Chair, Dorothy Turner, lives in Somerset. She is looking forward to introducing herself and sharing her thoughts with you as time goes by. Watch this space!
For me, this is a time for reflection but not for […]

A couple of comments over the last few days have set me thinking. One was from Catherine, a widow of only eighteen weeks, who says she has gone from sitting in her pyjamas all day to being out all the time, doing anything except going back to an empty house.
The second was from Joyce, a […]

I had a phone call from my cousin’s wife last night. She told me that George had died. Although we knew it was coming, and George faced it with courage, his death even after a long illness, was still deeply shocking.
We think we are prepared, but we’re not. I suspect that no one ever is. […]

It’s another bank holiday  weekend - so I guess that means a lot of you will be thinking about other bank holidays in earlier and happier times. Most widows and widowers find holidays difficult.
When first bereaved most of us find that being alone brings back painful memories. “This time last year…” etc.  These thoughts can […]

Oh dear!
I was just looking at some comments that people had written when, unfortunately, I accidentally deleted them. I am so sorry. This isn’t supposed to happen. I thought I had totally got to grips with this particular technology. Not so! So, if you have written in over the last few days and there’s no […]

This Easter, our NAW AGM safely behind us the previous weekend, I decided to write a post about our AGM.
So, I sat down and made a start … but then, rather than carrying on writing about our AGM, I decided instead just to read through people’s comments on the blog just to see if any […]

I had an e-mail from a widow yesterday reminding me that Valentine’s day would soon be upon us. And here it is – 14 February 2008. As if Christmas wasn’t enough, she said, now there was another should-be-happy-time to cope with. She didn’t want to put a dampener on other people’s romance but […]

As some of you will know, the NAW recently worked with the BBC in supporting a range of programmes about being widowed. I enjoyed taking part in quite a few interviews but I was especially pleased to write the support booklet “Losing your Partner” which the BBC gave out to callers and which is now […]

So Christmas and New Year are behind us….
For the NAW, the end of December and especially January is a very busy period. The phone seems never to stop ringing! The truth is that holiday times can be very lonely  - even sometimes when surrounded by friends and family. This is particularly true for those who […]