Home | Watch Love Grow | Valentine's Day Widow Outreach

Watch Love Grow

The Valentine’s Day Widow Outreach Project was established in 2021 in Charlotte, North Carolina, in the driveway of Founder Ashley Manning's home. The first year we delivered flowers and gifts to 121 unsuspecting Widows in our community on Valentine's Day. Our goal was to remind them that they are loved and not forgotten. Over the past five years we have served thousands of Widows in the Charlotte area and beyond. While this ministry continues to grow, we have identified another group within our community that we can serve by showing them love in their grief. Watch Love Grow was born in 2025 as the overhead non-profit to support our broader vision. Within this nonprofit we have different events throughout the year to serve people by showing them love. The Valentine’s Day Widow Outreach will commence in February 2026 and A Mother’s Love launched for the first time in May 2025.

As our project grows, so does our need. As we approach both Valentine's Day and Mother's Day we will open the links to nominate a widow or a bereaved mother as well as volunteer opportunities. As we prepare for 2026 we ask that you would consider making a financial donation to help support our efforts.

Our mission is to love and serve our community and show these women that they are not forgotten on a day that can otherwise be very painful.

Magnolias are in bloom and make the perfect centerpiece for the holiday weekend! Just snip and arrange at varying heights. The flowers will open quickly - so best to cut and assemble as close to your event as possible. Once they are done blooming - the petals will fall but the beautiful glossy hunter green leaves with backs almost like suede will last for weeks!

#magnolia #magnolias #freshcut #forage #centerpiece #diyflowers

Denim and a Degree! Such a fun theme!

Kentucky grad - Wakeforest bound! Congratulations sweet @amanimohammed__

You and your momma know how to throw a party!

🍹 @your_charlotte_bartender
🌺 @prettythings.charlotte
📷 @amanimohammed__
✨ @theahausmedia
🎶 @_djcharlottefinest
🎈 @antonmilanodesigns

#denimandadegree #graduation #graduationdecor #toffeerose #scabiosapod #whimsyflowers #graduationflower #kentucky

The second and third shifts included unboxing vases, building boxes, decorating envelopes, building recipe buckets then creating arrangements and finally cleaning up after a long day!

All of the arrangements were tucked into the foyer of @newcity.us where we would initiate deliveries the next morning.

Thank you to this army of volunteers that worked so hard to get everything done - just before the sky broke loose and a huge thunderstorm hit!

Thank you to @cheyenneschultz for these incredible photos.

I received the sweetest video and I am sharing with permission. I love that she wants to bless the other bereaved moms - even in her own grief.

I have loved to hear the stories about deliveries. Some said it felt like they came from Heaven . Some shared the sweet way the recipients talked about their lost child. Some stayed for minutes some for an hour - but each delivery was so special. One volunteer told me that she prayed over the flowers before leaving them at a doorstep. This is how we love our neighbors.

Please feel share your stories ♥️

#watchlovegrow #loveyourneighbor #amotherslove #loss #grief #mothersday

The goal for our first shift on Thursday was to unpack all 9400 stems that we ordered from @mayeshwholesale and get them in water to rehydrate. We strip the leaves and thorns so that they are ready to be arranged Thursday evening!

The overall shift was pretty special. The stories of the women who were there to volunteer were really beautiful. One table of women were there to honor one of their best friends, son Bryant. They hugged and cried and talked about him and how much they loved him and his mother. I also got to meet the beautiful mom of Liam. She was there will her 9 week old baby girl and a sweet friend. He passed two years ago and I did the flowers for his funeral. I remember working in my studio with my worship music on just praying over his family. His mom introduced herself to me when she arrived, and we both cried. It was a full circle moment for me - assurance that this project was meant to be. We talked and smiled and laughed and cried - telling one another about the lives of the children that we were honoring through the event.

We had amazing iced lattes from @sorellacoffee - provided by @emilyeodom - truly delicious! @cltpropsupply and @theposhballoon teamed up again to create the Watch Love Grow marquee and balloon backdrop.

I hope you can feel the love in this community of women by watching this video. It is so real.

Special thanks to @katiebedenbaughphotography for the beautiful photos and @kinstonphotography and @shelleywilfong for the video in this reel!

#watchlovegrow #love #loveyourneighbor #grief #charlotte #mothersday #bereavedmother

Thank you @ginawsoc9 and @wsoctv for sharing this ministry! It means so much.

A Mother’s Love 2025.

Deliveries tomorrow.

One more day.

Thank you @lindseyreganthorne for your creativity and heart.

#watchlovegrow #loveyourneighbor #amotherslove #love #grief #community #loveyourneighbor

Tomorrow we kick off!

A sweet story from today about two cardinals.

#cardinals #loss #mothersday #grief #love #community

Just some of the blooms in our first A Mother’s Love arrangement ♥️

Tutorial and more coming tomorrow.

3 days.

42 years ago today, my mother in law lost her son, Richard Collin Manning. After a normal and healthy pregnancy, Collin was born with significant genetic abnormalities. My father-in-law was in his fourth year of medical school at Jefferson. They were fortunate to have one of the nations best geneticists work with them on Collins case. While he never fit a specific genetic diagnosis, their best prognosis is that something happened early in the pregnancy when all of the systems were developing that subsequently affected almost every system in his body.

While they were hopeful that he would survive at just two months he spiked a very high fever of 107 degrees and that lead to other complications that his little body could not fight.

My husband was just days away from turning two when Collin passed.

I often think about my mother-in-law and her strength to carry on all of these years. She had three more children after Collin. Sometimes you will see her with a tear running down her face. When you notice she almost always says she was thinking about Collin, maybe it was special day like his birthday or a milestone that he didn’t get to pass or a memory. He is very much still a part of her heart. Her tenderness towards other women who have lost a child is also a reflection of her own loss.

His little pictures sit around their home in Pennsylvania and we talk about him and ask questions. We get texts reminding us that it is his birthday. Luke and his cousin Brooklyne were born on March 5th and March 3rd and their birthdays added together are Collins Birthday, March 8th. Brandon’s grandmother also went to Heaven on Collins birthday. Seemingly little signs of him. He was really here.

I know their reunion in Heaven will be beautiful.

The poem by @divinedesigncollectiveinc in the last two photos makes me think of my mother in law and her beautiful boy.

This project is in honor of Collin.

4 days.

Many of you probably remember baby Ben. A year and a half ago at 6 months of age, he was diagnosed with leukodystrophy while his family was deployed in Hawaii. Ben needed to get home and medical transport wasn’t an option. I came to this page and begged for anyone to help us get him home - and - an amazing and generous Good Samaritan Family, from Charlotte, personally paid to fly their family home to the United States so that Ben could get proper care. They were able to have the support from their family and the best medical care by getting home.

Baby Ben passed away in November. As soon as I saw the name on my phone, my heart sank. Much like the story of @the.gift.of.grace everyone anticipated his death - they knew it would happen but when it really happened, it brought us to our knees. A month later, a family friend of Ben drove to Charlotte and dropped off all of the feeding tube formula that they had left over after he passed, we then delivered that formula to sweet Grace.

Do you see the way the He is connecting us? Strangers coming together to love and care for one another in their pain. When Ben was diagnosed I talked to his momma a lot, she was so angry and sad. I felt those same things but he was not my child. The thought of it being my child made me want to vomit. I didn’t know what to say - nothing would make it better. I just told her that my prayer was that in all of the pain and heartache that she would see that God was still there - that He would feel near. That is still my prayer. He was there on the flight home from the Good Samaritan, He was there in the little moments, He was there in the memories that they got to make.

I have been praying for the mommas that will receive flowers on Friday. I pray that they would feel His love and also our love - that they would know that we “see” their pain and that we remember their child. I ask that you pray for these mommas this week.

This project is in honor of Ben.

6 days.

@marinalynn43 @kaitlinbensch

@kaitlinbensch is my friend and also my daughters teacher. She is a beautiful part of our community and she living every mother’s worst fear. Please read about Grace - she provides such intimate perspective and vulnerability. Please continue to pray for and support this family.

・・・

A friend of mine @ashmanning48 of @prettythings.charlotte recently started a local project called A Mother’s Love. It’s to remember bereaved mothers on Mother’s Day by sending them flowers. When you’ve lost a child, that’s a holiday that may cause your heart to ache. It’s one that you may not always feel like celebrating.

Is that me? Do I qualify yet? It’s not a title I would like to claim, nor wish for anyone else. It’s one I’d like to avoid completely. But I know I’ll have to call myself a bereaved mother one day. In some ways, I’ve been preparing for that title for a while. Because even though my child is still physically here; I grieve the loss of her daily. The anticipatory grief is sometimes the hardest. Knowing what is coming — slowly, yet sometimes it feels like all too quickly. I don’t usually take or post such vulnerable pictures. It’s hard to share or explain the depths of my grief. But today it felt like I should; because this is a reality for some mothers.

There are many who have walked this path before me. They understand that “grief is LOVE with no place to go”. They know the heartache that comes with being a bereaved mother; and it doesn’t just occur on one day of the year. But they keep showing up, sometimes forcing a smile; and try their best to honor their child. They make sure their baby is never forgotten. These women become a resource for others who will experience this loss. I know several of them — those who claim this title and so badly wish they didn’t have to. Each has helped me in more ways than they know.

I’m so grateful this project was created as an opportunity to remember these very deserving mothers. Next week, many will gather to make 300 bouquets to be delivered on Friday. There’s still a significant financial need to make this happen. To read more about A Mother’s Love or make a donation, please go to www.watchlovegrowoutreach.org

Easter Blessings from my family to yours!

We had a beautiful sunrise service this morning - the sky was so many pretty shades of pink and purple and then as the sun came up over the water it brought with it beautiful golden light.

He is Risen, my friends, He is Risen Indeed.

My dad - many of you know him as “Beep” was born in Western Pennsylvania into a family of dairy farmers. My grandparents, Della Elizabeth and James Nicol had 6 boys and 2 girls. Ronald, Raymond, Betty, Richard, Robert (Beep), Kathy, Roger and Randy. This photograph is of sweet Elizabeth “Betty.” They noticed things seemed off with her and took her to the local hospital to be examined. They found that she had a brain tumor and moved her to Children’s Hospital in Pittsburgh. Betty never came home. This was the last photo of her.

My dad has said that my grandmother was never the same after she lost Betty. My Great Uncle would drive her to the cemetery after church on Sundays. My dad remembers that she would just sit in the car and sob - often not even able to get out. I think about how made the other kids feel to see their mother so broken. I helped to care for my Grandmother as she aged and developed dementia. At the end she would tell me again and again to go check on Betty in her crib. As if she reverted to that time in her life. Prior to the dementia she would tell me that losing Betty made her so excited for Heaven - to get to see her again and balancing a yearning for Heaven will still living and being grateful was hard.

Even though my grandmother had 7 more children - that loss took a part of her heart that was never able to be replaced.

I was named after my grandmother and Betty - Ashley Elizabeth. My grandmother gave me Betty’s baby bracelet and ring - something I will cherish forever.

This project, A Mother’s Love is in honor of my grandmother and Betty. If you know someone who has lost a child please consider nominating them - we will deliver flowers and gifts on Mother’s Day in honor of that child - showing them love and that their loss is not forgotten.

www.watchlovegrowoutreach.com

#watchlovegrow #childloss #mothersday #grief #loveyourneighbor

Do not be afraid my friends. The King is coming.

“So He let those soldiers take Him in
As His friend betrayed Him with a kiss
There before the mocking crowd
Like a lamb to the slaughter didn't make a sound
Then He carried that cross to Calvary
And He shed His blood to set us free
As the nails went in and the sky went dark
The redemption of the world was on His heart.”

*this is one of my favorite songs - such a beautiful and redeeming storytelling song. Sunday is Coming - Phil Wickham

If you lose your parents - you are called an Orphan. If you lose your husband - you are called a Widow. There is no name for someone who has lost a child - there is no name to identify their loss. Together, we will work to identify mother’s who have lost a child - via nominations from the community. We will gather as a community to create flower arrangements and deliver these gifts across our city. We will raise the funds to make this possible. Our mission is remind them that they are not forgotten and that their pain is not forgotten.

I apologize that it has taken me longer to get this project ready to launch than I anticipated.

You can find out all of the details at our new site www.watchlovegrowoutreach.org

Volunteer opportunities will be released within the week!

I have a BIG UPDATE!

Recently, I shared with you that my heart is being called to serve more people in our city - the people who feel forgotten in their grief. This week we will launch “A Mother’s Love.” This project will mirror many facets of the Valentine’s Day Widow Outreach Project - (And don’t worry, that project is not going anywhere!) We will be accepting nominations for women in the community who have lost a child. We will have volunteer opportunities to assemble flower arrangements and we will deliver those arrangements to these women ahead of Mother’s Day weekend.

All donations that have been given to the Valentine’s Day Widow Outreach Project will stay in that account. We will start a new fundraising campaign for “A Mother’s Love.”

I am excited to share that @harristeeter will be partnering with us and has kickstarted our fundraising with a generous donation!

To do this we had to make some slight changes to the existing non-profit. The new name will be WATCH LOVE GROW and within that nonprofit we will serve both Widows at Valentines Day with “The Valentine’s Day Widow Outreach Project” and those who have lost a child on Mothers Day with
“A Mother’s Love.”

“The Corporation is organized exclusively for charitable purposes, including, but not limited to, helping to support the emotional well-being of those who have lost a loved one by
gifting and delivering them a floral arrangement, swag bag and caring note, and including, for such
purposes, the making of distributions to organizations that qualify as exempt organizations under
Section 501 (c)(3) and 170(c)(2) of the Code.”

I hope that you will join me in this inaugural year! Stay tuned for details in the coming week!

#watchlovegrow

Dear Lord, I don’t know if I will ever have adequate words to let you or these women know just how thankful I am for them. I thank you for planting this little project in their hearts too - to see the way new friendships and old friendships and strangers and family have been perfectly placed in this project - it leaves me in awe. Thank you God for them - and thank you for their servant hearts.

WATCH LOVE GROW. ♥️🫶🏻♥️

@ginnygf_ @gcstarnes @cclockett @keehudson @kellinarveson @kellynalitz @mollybrown_realtor @cheryldann1 @kwwarnement @mcarroll1331 @laurentpartridge @4lillymenandme @schufitz @maggwebb @j_oldham @katherineashbaugh @lindamanning739 @locink @jillianamyers @chelsg.13 @thepalatepleaser @paulaberard @abliek @caseycfuller @leilajones013 @nmreale @

The culmination of our love story. The true story about loving our neighbors and by doing so we truly “Watch Love Grow.”

It is hard to believe that one week ago we were anxiously awaiting Valentines Day! We start the day off with a prayer and the emotion is overwhelming. Tears rolled down my face and the faces of so many. All of the hands that touch each of these gifts and all of the hearts that are part of this project - it is incredible. Knowing that after a year of preparation - 1500 Widows and widowers are about to be surprised.

As soon as the gifts start to roll out the door, the real anticipation begins - knowing that SO soon they will be reminded that they are loved and they are not forgotten.

Thousands Arranged.
Thousands Delivered.
As Heaven Danced.

-Elizabeth Poplin

Thank you @kinstonphotography for the photos!

#watchlovegrow #valentinesdaywidowoutreach #widow #loveyourneighbor #valentines #love #grief #clt #cltvolunteers #giveback

Thank you to Kellie Gormly and First for Women Magazine for sharing our story this year!!

This year the volunteers of our 4th session ended flower processing with preparing the flower recipe in individual buckets so that when our arrangers came a few hours later on Thursday evening they would seamlessly be able to start arranging! Each bucket pictured contains the ingredients for one arrangement. Pictured are the buckets prepared for 550 arrangements, not even half of our total! The remaining flowers you see in the video would be prepared for our Friday arrangers!

Isn’t it a beautiful sight?

I am very grateful for our team that was so thoughtful and intentional with preparation this year!

#watchlovegrow #valentinesdaywidowoutreach #widow #loveyourneighbor #valentines #love #grief #volunteer

Day 1 and day part one of Day 2 - February 12 and 13th were prep days! 5 shifts of almost 200 volunteers each worked together to set us up for Valentine’s Day flower making! We loaded the contents of our @morningstar_storage storage units into a truck with the help of volunteers from @wellsfargo and Vic and @kwwarnement and then unloaded at William Davie Park! 1500 @stanley_brand Stanley’s, 1500 @accentdecorinc vases, 1500 boxes donated by Hill Peebles, 1500 bottles of Rose’ from @winestore and over 45,000 stems of flowers from @mayeshcharlotte wnd @mayeshwholesale were unboxed and prepared to go into our gift bags! Sweets and treats from @shopthecandybabe @traderjoes @begoodcookiesllc @queencitycrunch @piedmontpennies, jewelry form @amenjewelrydesign and @erinmcdermott1 - art from @carolinehoodsimas - gift cards from @genevieve.and.co - books from @catherinegfarley and @iwouldloveyouevenif and more were sorted and packed into gift bags donated by @elizabsclt ! The flowers were all opened and stripped of their leaves and placed into buckets to rehydrate!

@splitsecondsound provided DJ’s to make it feel like a party! @starbucks helped us to stay caffeinated while @donatosfortmill donated pizza for our hard working volunteers! @silverfoxlimos was a Godsend providing transportation from the parking lot to our event space - which was amazing given the rain and cold!

We all slept well knowing Valentine’s Day was just a day away! One more sleep!

Photos by @cheyenneschultz @josephinewhauser and flowers by @florabellanc balloons by @theposhballoon and marquee lights by @cltpropsupply

#watchlovegrow #valentinesdaywidowoutreach #widow #loveyourneighbor #valentines #love #grief #serve #volunteer

We had lots of interest in the Pink Hoodie this year! We are going to place an order on Wednesday evening. If you would like one, please see the form in my bio or in stories. They are $29 and all proceeds go back to the Valentine’s Day Widow Outreach Project!

They should arrive by the end of next week.

We added a second Charlotte location in Denver this year - lead by @megrobertson16 and her team. They did an incredible job - with the biggest smiles and hearts.

Special thanks to @mboudin for shining a light on this project for another year! And to see our sweet @callihansen_v - one of the most beautiful women I know and one of the first widows to receive a gift the very first year! Callie married last year and is still continuing to serve and love on the widows in our community.

Well done Meg and team!!

#watchlovegrow #valentinesdaywidowoutreach #widow #loveyourneighbor #valentines #love #grief #serve

Thank you to the Associated Press for coming to share our story!

Watch love grow.

##valentinesdaywidowoutreach #watchlovegrow #widow #loveyourneighbor #loveyourneighbor #valentines

Part two!

@marigold_floraldesign

(Instagram only allows 15 min videos - who knew?)

Join my dear friend Mary and I as we create the arrangement for this years Valentine’s Day Widow Outreach Project! Mary, owner of @marigold_floraldesign designed this year’s arrangement and it is so beautiful!

This yeas arrangement features the following flowers quantities all tucked into the Whitewashed Norah Vase from @accentdecorinc

3 stems Dusty Miller
3 Israeli Ruscus
3 Blue Eryngium
3 White Medium Hydrangea
3 Light Blue Delphinium
3 White Snapdragons
6 Phoenix Roses
3 Linette Peach Chrysanthemum
3 Peach Hypericum

#watchlovegrow #valentines #diyvalentines #diyflowers #valentinesdaywidowoutreach #flowerdiy #floristry

We will be closing nominations tomorrow in preparation for our big delivery day! The link to nominate is in my bio!

A few frequently ask questions.

Yes we do need you to re-nominate your widow each year. So if you haven’t nominated them again this year, please do so now.

Yes, we also include men - you can nominate a widower.

Imagine getting a phone call from someone you had never met in person. The phone call started out, “I would love to help you raise money for the Valentine’s Day Widow Outreach Project. This is what I’m thinking… “ I almost didn’t believe her and wondered what was the catch. I was wrong. There was no catch.

@carla_variglotti_ hosted a beautiful night of celebrating friendship and kindness. She and her friends also raised almost $10,000 for the Valentine’s Day Widow Outreach. It is kindness like this what restores your faith in humanity. So much genuine kindness and love - Her event also gave us an idea for next year that we may be able to have a big beautiful Galentine’s event for all of you!! Widows, widowers, volunteers, family and friends all coming together for a night of celebration!! Carla’s wheels are already spinning!

Thank you so much to everyone who came, hugged, laughed, donated and shared their story! It was a night I won’t forget!

And thank you Carla! You are a beautiful soul! ♥️💕♥️

#watchlovegrow #valentinesdaywidowoutreach #widow #galentinesday #loveyourneighbor #valentines #love #grief

This morning was one that I hope we can recreate year after year! Our amazing volunteers along with @amenjewelrydesign built 1500 bracelets that will be in each of the gift bags for the Valentine’s Day Widow Outfit Project. It was so so good - laughs and tears and shared stories of heartache. It was an honor to host so many widows and hear how this project has impacted them - it is so humbling. It encourages me and our team to continue to work to grow and serve more widows and widowers.

Thank you to those who came and for @newcity.us for hosting us!

“For truly I tell you, if you have faith the size of a mustard seed, you will say to this mountain, ‘Move from here to there,’ and it will move; and nothing will be impossible for you.” Matthew 17:20-21

#watchlovegrow #valentinesdaywidowoutreach #widow #widow #valentines #grief #serve #love #faithlikeamustardseed

If you have ever experienced unexpected love during a hard season - you know that is can be both life changing or even life saving.

I am humbled that the Lord laid this project on my heart. I am humbled that so many of you love this project as much as I do. I am grateful that I reacted to that soft nudge and I am grateful that so many of you did too!

I want to thank the beautiful ladies @queencitymag that shared our story! @carrollwalton19 and I spent a cold morning in December sharing stories - as she actually knew Mary Lance - the former owner of my home - who laid a foundation of loving your neighbor over 40 years ago! @amandaandersonphotography and @edeshazobrown your big beautiful smiles and hugs when you came in my home put me as ease and made it all seem so effortless. And Liz - thank you for taking your time and using your resources to share this story!

It is my hope and prayer that we continue to care for our neighbors and that this project inspires even more love to weave through our sweet city!

#watchlovegrow #valentinesdaywidowoutreach #grief #widow #valentines #serve #volunteer

Hi friends! Meet Meg! Meg will be leading the Valentine’s Day Widow Outreach in Denver, NC!

Meg has a servants heart and has spent countless hours serving our community. Most recently Meg has spent time in Western North Carolina aiding in the efforts to serve those impacted by hurricane Helene.

Meg learned about the Valentine’s Day Widow Outreach Project from friends back in 2022. She served as a volunteer in 2023 and 2024. This fall after she felt a little nudge in her heart she reached out to see if we could meet. She was feeling lead to initiate the outreach in North Charlotte so that we could expand our reach. After a few meetings, we decided it would be a great fit.

Meg has helped to steer and mentor me as this project has grown in the last year. I am grateful for her guidance and look forward to working together and using her gifts to help our project grow in North Carolina and beyond!

#watchlovegrow #valentines #valentinesdaywidowoutreach #serve #loveyourneighbor #clt

We have some pretty awesome updates pictured above!! To think that just two years ago our goal was 800 and we are almost ready to double that goal! Please remember that we added a second location in North Charlotte, so that we could support a further delivery radius! Also, if you nominated somebody last year, we encourage you to nominate them again this year. It is our wish that they will look forward to Valentine’s Day and receiving love from their community every year.

With that being said, our fundraising goal is significantly higher. Each widow basket costs us about $55 wholesale. The retail price on these baskets this year will exceeded $350. We have some really amazing gifts that will be included! To just cover our cost for the baskets and Flowers we must raise $82,500. There are other expenses such as technology, legal fees, insurance, rentals, etc that made our Charlotte goal $100,000. All monies raised over that amount will help us to grow and expand in 2025! As of today, we have not paid a single person to help with the outreach. Every single hour of work has been donated. I think that is important to share so that you know where your donation is going!

Thank you @1800flowers for sharing our ministry and the way we use flowers to show love to widows on Valentine’s Day. It is amazing to #watchlovegrow.

#widow #watchlovegrow #loveyourneighbor #valentinesdaywidowoutreach #love #valentines #volunteercharlotte

Grateful today for those before us who paved the way in this beautiful country.

Current donation need. If you would like to help or know any businesses that might like to support this donation need, please reach out!

♥️♥️♥️

16 years ago today Vic Warnement was on a flight from NYC and headed home to Charlotte, when the plane made an emergency landing on the Hudson River. The successful landing and safety of all of the passengers on this plane was considered a miracle. In this clip you will hear one of Captain Sully’s memories when he met the families of those he saved. “Thank you for not making me a widow and for allowing our three year old son have his father.” Just like that - in the blink of an eye - the outcome could have been different. It makes you take a deep breath and count your blessings, doesn’t it? Kelly, the woman in the video is on our Widow committee. She has been there since day one and she has become a close friend.

Over the years, getting to talk to so many of the women that we serve has been an honor. The different ways they describe how their lives were changed. The resounding theme is that it is a feeling that you just can’t know until it happens to you. They also talk about how hard and lonely it is to lose your best friend or your person. Most of them talk about how other people in their lives have stepped up but they still often feel forgotten.

Valentine’s Day when we all come together for the service project, there is not one person thinking about themselves. All of the love is being poured into those arrangements and gifts. It makes you stop and pause to think about how they must be hurting. It makes you think of just how lucky you are to be there serving - whatever the reason may be. Some people are there because they are lonely themselves. Some people are there to honor or a friend or loved one or someone who was gone too soon. But most of the people are married and have allowed themselves to imagine just what it might feel like to be in a Widows shoes.

Our mission has been the same since the very first year - to allow these women to know that they are loved, and they are not forgotten.

Please consider making a donation so that this project can be possible and also please consider nominating a Widow in our community. The links for both can be found in my bio.

@kwwarnement

Yes, we also accept nominations for Widowers. Please see the link in my bio to nominate someone who has lost their wife. ♥️

Exciting News! Slide left to check out some updates for 2025!

Please see the link in my bio to nominate a widow to receive flowers and gifts on Valentine’s Day. Also, please consider making a donation to support your widow nomination. ♥️

FAQ’s
1. Does this person have to be widowed within the last year? No they can be widowed at any time in the past.
2. If I nominated my widow last year, can I nominate them again? Yes, absolutely! Please do!

We are SO EXCITED about the 2025 Valentine’s Day Widow Outreach! Did you know that not only do our recipients get a beautiful handmade flower arrangement but they also get a gift bag full of goodies. Historically we have been able to include something sweet, something salty, a piece of jewelry, gift cards and a bottle of wine. If you would be interested in making a contribution to this year’s gift bags, please feel free to send me a DM!! Thank you in advance!!

Valentine’s Day Widow Outreach 2024 was pretty incredible. In Charlotte we surprised
1100 Widows with flowers and gifts on Valentine’s Day and we also
“watched love grow” to Pittsburgh, PA, Washington DC, The Woodlands, TX, Hutchinson, MN, Buffalo, NY, and Nashville, TN.

We have bigger goals for 2025! Our fundraising for this year’s event is officially underway. We have a big goal to raise $150,000. This will allow us to serve 1500 widows in Charlotte, support the other existing locations as needed and add 10 new locations for 2025! As we grow in numbers we also need to have funds to support that growth - including technology, administrative support and more.

Please consider making a donation to allow this project to continue to grow!
We have seen this project impact our community in so many beautiful ways and I am so excited about the future!

#watchlovegrow #widow #loveyourneighbor #valentinesdaywidowoutreach #grief #love #volunteer

Friends!! Save the Date! We have spent the better part of 2024 planning and preparing and this years Valentine’s Day Widow Outreach is going to be incredible. I have tried to spend the holiday season really focusing on my family because I know starting tomorrow I will be full time in Outreach mode!

Please be on the lookout as we have a lot of work ahead of us! Fundraising, volunteer opportunities and most importantly, widow nominations will be rolling out in the next couple of weeks!

#watchlovegrow #loveyoueneighbor #valentinesdaywidowoutreach #widow #widowcare

Christmas Blessings from my family to yours!

Today we celebrate the very best gift in all of the world.

“Hail the prince of heaven comes
Angel choirs sound the call
For this babe wrapped in a cloth is
The incarnate word of God
All the kingdom and its power
Resting now in this child
Prince of heaven
Jesus, hope of the world”

And also my most favorite Christmas song!

2024 is quickly coming to an end. Please take a look at these slides to see what we were able to accomplish in 2024 and what our goals are moving forward.

If you would like to donate to the Valentine’s Day widow outreach 2025 please click the link in our bio!

**Washington DC was also a new city for 2024!!

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Watch Love Grow

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