In November of 1970, the world became a little brighter when in Russellville, Arkansas, Larry and Glenda (Daniel) Crutchfield welcomed their first born son, Vance Edward, into it. Shortly after, a sister, Karen, would complete their little family. Around eight years later the Crutchfields left Arkansas for Burlington, Kansas, where Vance ended up building his…

This was the first thing I shared publicly after Vance’s death. I wasn’t ready for a large audience but I shared it on my Instagram and in a closed page for VBS directors on Facebook. I had over 200 comments and thousands of reactions. I got private messages from total strangers, many of whom are themselves widows. It was…

July 3, 2019. That’s the day everything changed. Less than a month from our twentieth wedding anniversary, my husband died completely unexpectedly. One minute we were on the phone and the next his heart stopped beating. Words don’t really convey the amount of pain that I have been in since. It’s a gut wrenching, gnawing…