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Carla always knew she would be a widow but didn’t have any idea how it would actually feel. When Carla met her late husband Jared, he was waiting for a lung transplant due to Cystic Fibrosis, a chronic disease affecting the lungs and pancreas. So she knew that most likely someday she would say goodbye to her husband. But she never dreamt it would be exactly one week before their 14th wedding anniversary. In August 2014, Jared was diagnosed with a rare bacterial infection in his transplanted lung and was expected to survive at least 6 months if not a year. Instead, he died just 6 weeks later. And in the blink of an eye, Carla became a solo mom to their 10-year-old son. And even though her life was forever marked before and after, she was determined to live life to the fullest because her husband would expect no less.

She founded Breathing for Jared, a Foundation to provide college scholarships to those suffering from lung disease in honor of her late husband. Became a supporter of the CF Foundation and Donate Life. And discovered that writing out her emotions and fears on her blog Transplant Wife and Widow helped her to process her grief

Carla recently remarried and is now blending a family with her new husband, bonus daughter, and son.

Recent Posts by this Author

Author Carla Duff

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Widow Strong in a Pandemic

by Carla Duff in Coping Mechanisms, Grief, Hope and Healing, Hope for Widows Foundation
March 17, 2020June 19, 2020
  Right now, America is facing a pandemic. And that calls for social distancing. A polite way to say quarantine or social isolation. For so many widows, this means being all alone. Their spouse is dead.  The person they would ...
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Grieving My Way

by Carla Duff in Grief, Hope and Healing, Hope for Widows Foundation
March 11, 2020June 19, 2020
One thing I have learned about grief, is that you are damned if you do and damned if you don't. There is no right way to do grief. Only the way that is right for you. No matter what you ...
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My Grief Journey In Photos

by Carla Duff in Grief, Hope and Healing, Hope for Widows Foundation
March 6, 2020June 19, 2020
  Recently I had the opportunity to take part in a grief photo shoot.  Sounds crazy, right? But actually it is one of the most therapeutic things I have done in my grief journey.    When this opportunity was presented ...
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Marriage After Loss

by Carla Duff in Grief, Hope and Healing, Hope for Widows Foundation, Relationships and Dating
February 23, 2020June 19, 2020
I am a remarried widow.  I am blessed to have two amazing love stories.  But being remarried is not easy. It takes a lot of work.  A ton of grace. And an endless supply of compromise.    I am not ...
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Valentine’s Day: A Widowed Love Story

by Carla Duff in Hope and Healing, Hope for Widows Foundation
February 11, 2020
As Valentine's Day approaches, I am reminded that my love story is different than most. My last husband isn’t here to buy me flowers, give me a special card, or bring me chocolates. As I think about the day of ...
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Duality of Loss: Father Figure

by Carla Duff in Grief, Hope and Healing, Hope for Widows Foundation
February 1, 2020June 19, 2020
When my late husband died, my son lost his father.  The man a boy should always be able to depend on. And I feared that my son would be lost without his dad. But he persevered and is a wonderful ...
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Death: Grief Trigger

by Carla Duff in Grief, Hope for Widows Foundation
January 22, 2020June 19, 2020
My new husband‘s stepfather died this week. And while I am trying to be a good support for his mom, my own emotions are all over the place.  His death has triggered my own grief. My heart breaks that my ...
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Night Before My Wedding

by Carla Duff in Grief, Hope and Healing, Hope for Widows Foundation, Relationships and Dating
January 11, 2020June 19, 2020
When Jared died I swore I would never date again.  Never love again. And certainly never marry again.  And then on November 19, 2016 I met Jon and before I knew it, I was falling in love.  Within a few ...
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New Year’s Eve Is Bittersweet

by Carla Duff in Grief, Hope and Healing, Hope for Widows Foundation
December 31, 2019June 19, 2020
New Year’s Eve is one of the harder grief days for me. It is a reminder that another year has come and gone that didn’t know Jared. Another year that we didn’t make any new memories or take any new ...
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Say Their Name: Especially During The Holidays

by Carla Duff in Grief, Hope and Healing, Hope for Widows Foundation
December 23, 2019June 19, 2020
The holidays are such a hard time for anyone who has lost a loved one. It doesn't matter if the loss is recent or many years ago, the loss is always felt at the holidays. This loss, the loss that ...
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