YOUNG widow Susannah Stobart wants to help other people to fight their way through grief.

Mrs Stobart, 33, lost her husband Andy, a member of Wallingford Rowing Club, to cancer last April when he was 32. Now she is trying to organise a Wallingford branch of the Way - Widowed And Young - Foundation.

It is aimed at the bereaved under 50 years of age, said Mrs Stobart, of St John's Road, Wallingford.

"Initially, we will meet in people's houses round the area. It is aimed at giving moral support and general back-up to people who have lost their partners young.

"It is open to both widows and widowers and is designed to help them find a way forward into the future."

She added: "There are organisations aimed at helping all sorts of groups, including single parents, older people, the divorced, older people who have lost their partners.

"But there is nothing aimed at the under-50s, and whether they have children or not they definitely need help to cope with their changed lifestyles."

"The Way Foundations aims to do just that - to get people back to meeting others on a social, support and friendly basis.

"Being left alone at any time is hard, but the pressures on the younger men and women and their families can be devastating.

Mrs Stobart said she hoped a local or county-wide organisation could be formed to provide help, information and support for members and their children.

The organisation was formed just a year ago to raise people's awareness of the needs of the young widowed and their families.

People interested in the Way Foundation and in setting up an Oxfordshire branch can do so through PO Box 74 in Penarth, CF64 3YX or phoning 01222 711209.

Mrs Stobart hopes to hold the first meeting on April 15 in Didcot.

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