After her husband, Phillip, was killed in a bicycle accident in 2005, Michele Neff Hernandez sought out other widows for support and understanding on how to live with his death. Through a mutual friend, she was introduced to Michelle Dippel, who had lost her husband, Daniel, to esophageal cancer. The two became fast friends due to their “lifeline through the ups and downs associated with grief and widowhood.” On a car ride one day, Neff Hernandez shared with Dippel the idea she had for creating a retreat for widowed people. That serendipitous drive led to the formation of Soaring Spirits International and the creation of Camp Widow, a weekend-long conference for anyone who has experienced the death of a spouse or partner.
With the singular mission of “connecting widowed people with each other,” Soaring Spirits has reached over four million people since 2008 and now supports 70 regional groups. Today the 501(c)(3) provides virtual and in-person support, new widow outreach, and pen pal programs—including the original visionary Camp Widow program, which is now in multiple locations, including Canada and Australia. Neff Hernandez serves as CEO and Dippel sits on the board of directors.
Soaring Spirits programs are designed to bring support to widows in need. Whether the person reaching out is a friend, loved one, or caretakert, SSI makes it easy to get support services to the widowed person. Their Newly Widowed Packet, newly widowed checklist, and You Are Not Alone outreach cards are essential tools that end-of-life doulas can utilize for people they are serving. Soaring Spirits’ Widowed Village is a virtual community offering access to widowed peers, research resources, and opportunities for shared connections. This can be a great source of community for recently widowed clients. The Widowed Village program has been used by tens of thousands of people from 153 different countries.
In 2017, SSI developed a collaboration on the campus of Schreiner University in Texas through Dr. Carrie West, a professor at the university who was originally seeking a research pool for her studies. Together the university and Soaring Spirits International formed the Soaring Spirits Resilience Center, which published the first-ever Widowhood Resilience Scale in the Omega Journal of Death and Dying, allowing widowed people to assess their resilience in relation to their widowed peers and to identify areas where further support may be helpful. SSI also provides free community resources for professionals who support, interact with, and advocate for the widowed.See more programs and resources from Soaring Spirits International!