Divorce took her by surprise, late in life. She had already raised the children and supported her husband as he worked to advance in his career. Her retirement and health insurance were supposed to be secure.
Until divorce shattered her life.
She lived in a small town where her scarlet “D” stood out like the red beam on the only stop light. But she couldn’t move away, because her grandchildren needed her and she loved serving in her church.
But the church no longer seemed interested in her spiritual gifts. Gossip traveled fast, and she was no longer called to bake casseroles for revivals, sew quilts for the homeless or sing an alto solo in the Easter pageant.
She sat alone in a back pew, left silently during the last prayer and drove home to her empty house. If only she could have shared the pain with a group of women who understood.
But no one else in her circles was divorced. No one else seemed to care.
This story is a combination of the journeys of several women who came to GateWay for hope and encouragement. We introduced them to our SOS group and our lifecoach. 
The advantage of our SOS group is that women who are “Starting Over Single” have a place to come where they can ask questions, share their secrets and find hope for a new life. They know that all the women in the group also wear the scarlet “D” and safety is found in group settings.
The SOS group discusses the reality of divorce; finances, health insurance, dating issues and much more. They also encourage each other to move ahead in life, find a new identity and deal with their grief in a healthy way.
If SOS members have lost connections in church or in the ex-family, they find understanding hearts at GateWay. They share resources and ideas, laugh together and pass the Kleenex box. They find acceptance and hope as they work on this hard reality of starting over. They know they are not alone.
The woman in our story would have benefited from our Starting Over Single group. What about you? Do you know a woman who needs SOS?
2013 GateWay of Hope Ministries