You Are Not Alone
Surviving Spouse
Resources
Practical tools, honest guidance, and a community of women who understand, because we have been there too.
Get the Free Starter KitA Personal Note
To the Woman Reading This
I am so deeply sorry for your loss. Whatever brought you here, whether it was yesterday or months ago, I want you to know that I see you. And I am so sorry.
I have been exactly where you are. When I suddenly and unexpectedly lost my husband James, he was only 45 years old. I was a stay-at-home mom with a 13-year-old son, and nothing could have prepared me for that moment, or for what came next. Not just the grief, which was enormous, but the paperwork, the phone calls, the accounts, the attorneys, the questions I did not know how to ask.
I was incredibly fortunate to have so much love and support around me. Family, friends, James’s colleagues and connections, people who showed up and took me by the hand and guided me. And still, I was lost. Even with people walking beside me, I did not know what to do first, who to call, what to bring to the attorney, what to watch out for. There was no defined order. No single place where everything I needed lived. I was grateful for every person who helped, and I still felt completely unprepared for the weight of what I was navigating.
That is exactly why I created The Surviving Spouse Starter Kit, and why I started The Laila France Show. Today, as a widow advocate, I want to build the resource I desperately needed and the conversation I never got to have, so that no woman ever has to search for what comes next in the hardest moments of her life.
"If I was lost with all that support, I could only imagine how overwhelming it must feel for the woman who is navigating this more alone. That thought never left me."
That experience is why I created The Surviving Spouse Starter Kit. It is a practical, step-by-step companion for the immediate decisions and logistics that cannot wait, so you can protect yourself, your children, and your future. You do not have to figure it all out at once.
You do not have to do everything at once. You do not have to have all the answers. You just have to do one thing. Start at the beginning. And know that you are not alone.
My heart goes to you. Truly.
With love,
Laila
Where to Begin
Start Here
You do not have to do everything at once. These are the three most important things to focus on first, drawn from Laila's own experience navigating the days after sudden loss.
Protect Your Access
Before anything else, make sure you have access to a bank account in your own name with funds to cover immediate expenses. Notify your bank of the loss and request a temporary hold on joint accounts if needed. Do not make any major financial decisions yet.
Gather the Documents
Locate your spouse's will, life insurance policies, Social Security information, and other important legal and financial documents. You will need certified copies of the death certificate for nearly every institution you contact. Request at least 10 to 15 certified copies from the funeral home.
Make the First Calls
Contact your spouse's employer HR department to ask about life insurance, final paycheck, and survivor benefits. Call Social Security to report the death and ask about survivor benefits. Reach out to your estate attorney, or find one if you do not have one. You do not have to resolve everything. Just make the first call.
"You do not have to have all the answers. You just have to do one thing."
Download the Full Starter KitWhat We Offer
You Are Not Navigating This Alone
Practical Checklists
Step-by-step action lists for the first days and weeks, so you always know what to do next.
Financial Guidance
Plain-English explanations of accounts, insurance, probate, and the questions to ask your advisors.
Legal Readiness
What to bring to the attorney, red flags to watch for, and how to protect yourself and your children.
Community & Support
A space where women who understand walk beside you, because no one should figure this out alone.
Free Resource
The Surviving Spouse
Starter Kit
If you are holding this guide, you may be in the hardest season of your life. What follows is not a grief workbook. It is a practical, step-by-step companion designed to help you navigate the immediate decisions and logistics that cannot wait.
You do not have to do everything at once. Start at the beginning. Do one thing.
What's Inside
Immediate action checklist for the first days and weeks
Government, benefits, and financial institution steps
Insurance and legal estate guidance
Questions to ask your financial advisor and estate attorney
Red flags to protect yourself from
A personal contacts and information master sheet
An essential terms glossary in plain English
Free Download
Get the Starter Kit
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"You are braver than you know. More capable than you feel right now. And you are not alone. This kit was made for you, by a woman who had to figure it out without a map."
- Laila France
Practical Answers
Questions You May Be Carrying Right Now.
What should I do immediately after my spouse dies?
First, protect your financial access by ensuring you have funds in an account in your own name. Next, gather your spouse's will, life insurance policies, Social Security information, and other key documents. Then contact the employer's HR department, the Social Security Administration, and an estate attorney.
How many certified death certificates do I need?
Request at least 10 to 15 certified copies from the funeral home. You will need a certified copy for nearly every institution you contact.
What questions should I ask a financial advisor after my spouse dies?
Ask which accounts list you as a beneficiary, which assets may go through probate, what your realistic financial picture is for the next 6 months, 1 year, and 5 years, which decisions are urgent, which decisions can wait, and whether the advisor has experience working with widows.