The Story Behind Refuge
Refuge Widowers was founded by Daniel Brooker who became a widower at the age of 30, when his wife Lyndsie went home to Heaven after a 10 year battle with cancer. Daniel was left with two small children who were counting on him figure out how to grieve well.
It took two years before Daniel connected with a widower in the same season of life who understood the unique struggles of a young widower, including raising children as a solo parent. Over time, more connections were made with young widowers across the country, and almost all of them had similar experiences of being surrounded by loving friends and family, but not by widowers who truly got their struggles.
Daniel remarried to Brittany, a widow with three small boys and they joined together as a family in 2017. In 2021 they welcomed their new baby, making them a family of eight.
As Daniel led his family through the unique challenges that come with the loss of a spouse, grief, remarriage, and blending families, the desire to help other widowers navigate their own grief journey grew stronger. After searching for a faith-based widower ministry to partner with, it became clear that there wasn’t one. It also became clear that widowers all across the country were walking through the hardest and most treacherous season of their life, solo.
After much prayer and counsel, an incredible team of widowers, mentors, pastors, and close friends joined together to launch the first Refuge Widowers Retreat in the fall of 2020.
Currently, there is a growing community of widowers across the country, who are faithfully walking their journey together. They are committed to showing their children how to respond well to pain and encouraging other widowers who are doing the same. The stories of loss that represent this unique brotherhood are heartbreaking, but their stories are not over and the way these men are responding is nothing short of inspiring and will impact generations to come.