COMMUNITY SPOTLIGHT
By Katie C., Austin Community Advocate
I attended my first Modern Widows Club gathering in May 2022. It was 6 months after my soulmate Nick had passed, and this was the first time I’d found diversity in age, ethnicity, and type of loss in a support group. Prior to joining this meeting I had only found commonality with a loss group I had discovered online, developed specifically for my age and type of loss, but it was with people from all over the country, and not one other person was local to me.
At that time, the Austin Community was led by its two founders, Carmen E. and Angie C., who had launched the community in February 2020.
I met Carmen in person, and after our interaction I knew I wanted to support her and the Austin community. I was searching for what I was going to do next in life because nothing felt like it fit right anymore. When I was with the others in the community, and sharing what had helped me in my journey, some meaning and purpose began to reenter my life — slowly but surely.
At the end of 2022 both Carmen and Angie stepped down from their leadership with the local community due to life changes. There was a need for a Community Advocate, and I had already begun to have discussions with Modern Widows Club about how I could support the Austin group.
At the beginning of 2023, myself and co-advocate Lauri T. relaunched the Austin Community. We were open to exploring different ways of providing space for the woman to open up and share their loss stories, as well as find connections with others who understood what they were going through.
Since our relaunch, we have held social events which have included brunch, ladies’ night out, a group hike, guest speakers who are subject matter experts (SMEs), private yoga classes, and of course socials where we meet at a public location and speak our minds openly and freely.
One of the best compliments I have heard from our ladies in the community is how grateful they are for our group. They are grateful that we exist and that this is offered to the Wisters (widow + sisters) in our city. As a Community Advocate, I want to be able to offer many resources to our group. I understand that there is no one-size-fits-all in grief, so we offer many different events, tools, education, and an immense amount of compassion to our Wisters. We have all been there and we choose to lead with love.
To learn more about the Modern Widows Club Austin Community, or our other regional, international, and virtual communities, click below.
LEGENDARY WIDOW ROLE MODEL
Licoricia of Winchester
Licoricia of Winchester, our September 2023 Legendary Widow Role Model, was a Jewish moneylender and wealthy banker who counted royalty among those who borrowed from her. She rose from obscurity to become the most successful female financier in early 13th century England.
Moneylending was the quickest way to wealth for the Jewish population in 13th century England. But antisemitic kings tolerated them only for their tax payments. One biographer compares these taxes to extortion of Jewish people, and draws a parallel to later centuries when profits from enslaved people were used to construct England’s institutions.
The life of Licoricia includes a scandal when her future husband petitioned the church and the government for a divorce from his then-wife in order to marry Licoricia. And her story, though not typical, can be a window into the life of Jewish families in Medieval England, through extensive records that point to the eventual expulsion of Jews from the country.
Licoricia first appears in records in 1234 as a young widow with four children. Her financing activities are documented from the early 1230s. She was one of approximately 1% of the Jewish population working at the highest level of financial dealing.
In 1242 Licoricia married her second husband, David of Oxford. Upon David’s death in 1244, Licoricia was imprisoned in the Tower of London as surety for royal tax collection on David's estate. The tax on her family was so extensive that it was nearly enough to pay for construction of a chapel at Westminster Abbey.
Over the next 30 years, Licoricia became a highly influential businesswoman, traveling extensively as she managed her assets. Her clients were spread throughout southern and southwestern England and included other Jewish people, local landowners, and small farmers, as well as King Henry III and his wife Queen Eleanor of Provence, members of the aristocracy, and the Church.
Twice-widowed, with four children, Licoricia was successful in a medieval English world that penalized her gender and religion. She was well-known in her city and throughout the international Jewish community, and her business dealings are easily researched because of her unusual name.
In early 1277, Licoricia was found dead inside her home on Jewry Street, likely the victim of a botched robbery attempt. Three men were indicted for the murders, but none was convicted, and the murder was never solved.
In February 2022, more than 700 years after her unsolved murder, King Charles (then Prince Charles) unveiled a six-foot tall statue commemorating Licoricia and her son Asher near her former home in the city of Winchester in Hampshire, England.
Recent biographies and websites have celebrated Licoricia’s courage and resilience as well as her business acumen and financial success as “the richest woman in England.”
Read about our other Legendary Widow Role Models here.
MWC SPECIAL EVENT
There’s Still Time to Register for WEE!
Our 2023 Widow Empowerment Event (WEE) in St. Louis starts tomorrow. If you haven’t yet registered, you still have time!
CONNECT with other widows in a safe, compassionate space.
FIND exceptional friendships, understanding, support, and community with others who are walking this path with you.
HEAL through education, resources, and activities designed to help you find purpose and meaning.
GAIN knowledge to empower your important decisions.
CREATE a life that you love, filled with hope and possibility!
CONVERSATIONS WITH CAROLYN
By Carolyn Moor, Founder, Modern Widows Club
I recently had a conversation with Stacy Francis on the “Financially Ever After: Widowhood Podcast” where I share my personal experience with widowhood, how it led me to creating Modern Widows Club, and how these experiences have shaped my life. Here are some of the highlights from our conversation:
Stacy and I discuss the double loss experience by widows — the loss of a partner and the loss of their envisioned future together. I reflect on my own experience of losing my husband and the immense emotional and psychological impact this type of loss can have on your identity and sense of purpose.
I describe the origin of Modern Widows Club, which began as a simple idea to provide a space for widows of all ages and backgrounds to share their experience without judgement.
After listening to thousands of widows, I have discovered common patterns and issues that widows face, such as financial instability, disinheritance, government neglect, and social exclusion. I have realized the need to advocate for widows’ rights and raise awareness about their challenges.
Everyone can play a role in supporting widows, whether they have personal experience or not.
I hope that my story will remind listeners going through widowhood that the best thing you can do for yourself is to keep putting one foot in front of the other.
MWC BOOK CLUB
Join Us for Our October Book Club
Our virtual Book Club for widows meets on Zoom the third Monday of each month. Our next meeting is October 16 at 8pm ET. We’ll be discussing Always Carry Me With You: A Young Widow’s Journey of Love, Loss, and What Comes After by Faby Ryan.
Three years after the birth of her miracle 1 lb. 2 oz. micro-preemie, while on a family vacation at the Colorado River, Faby lost her husband in a tragic accident, leaving her a 32-year-old widow and solo parent to their 3-year-old special needs daughter. After going through the most incredible loss in her life, Faby embarks on a journey of self-discovery, healing, and finding her true calling.
Click below to sign up for our Book Club, then join us October 16 for a thoughtful conversation. There’s no cost to join or attend.
A WIDOW’S PATH
The Hills
By Janice Talbert
The Hills is the fifth poem in what has become an ongoing series. It came out of a sense of repeating, once again, a pattern of good days and grief days.
Path of the Abyss erupted from my core, portraying early grief and ending with hope (10/19/2021).
The Start poured out a year later, and mixes hope with courage (10/1/2022).
The View came spontaneously, and surprised me by revealing a vision of where I’ve been and how far I’ve come (3/22/2023).
The Bridge revealed itself after I had crossed the unexpected (6/18/2023).
I’ve walked this trail over 2-1/2 years now, so the repetition is easier to recognize and I have developed a confidence that I won’t stay stuck in a ravine; I know I will find my way out and back to level ground once more.
On good days, I feel a sense of peace and, dare I say, normalcy that I once thought was beyond my reach. I can look back and acknowledge how far I’ve come, or I can look forward without fear of what’s ahead.
On grief days, that old sense of losing my way or feeling stuck drags me down, but Modern Widows Club and you, my Wisters, have provided tools that I lean on to pull myself out of those ruts and climb once more. Thank you.
The Hills
Janice lost her husband and soulmate, Mark, in January 2021. Two months later, she found Modern Widows Club.
#LEGENDARYWIDOWS
Profound and Inspirational Legacies
MWC’s book Legendary Widows: Stories of Legacy honors 12 accomplished and renowned widows who have had a profound and inspirational influence on millions of people around the world.
One of these is Coretta Scott King, who lived a life of activism rooted in nonviolence.
Coretta was the widow of Martin Luther King, Jr. After his tragic assassination on April 4, 1968, Coretta recalled asking herself what is was that she was supposed to do now that Martin was gone. Her answer was: More!
She continued to lead the fight for equality under the law, picking up where King left off, not looking to his past accomplishments but making his vision her own, adding her powerful light to the movement.
Read Coretta’s full story, and learn about 11 other inspirational role models too! The book is available at Amazon, and 100% of proceeds help MWC continue our mission to serve widows worldwide.
MWC ART CLUB
Connecting with Your Widow Sisters Through Art
Join Dr. Linda Shanti McCabe and your fellow Wisters as you create SoulCollage cards and connect through art. You don’t need to be a professional artist or have any previous art experience to join our Art Club!
Our club meets on Zoom the first Saturday of each month at 1pm ET. Our next club meeting is October 7, and the theme is Día de los Muertos (Day of the Dead), a holiday widely observed in Mexico. During the holiday, mourning is exchanged for a joyful, colorful celebration as we pay our respects to, and show love for, family members and friends who have passed.
Our Art Club is free to join and attend. Your only cost will be your art supplies. Click below to sign up!