JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — After losing their spouses in 2018, Michael Cook and Helene Brown connected through an online grieving group.
“I think at the beginning its always just that you develop this friendship with somebody like wow you understand this stuff," Brown said.
The couple quickly realized how difficult it was for other young widowers and widows to connect with one another.
“when we were in the group there were a lot of people asking why there wasn’t anything for that specific community," Cook said.
“They would go on dating sites, as soon as other people learned they’re widowed its kind of like a red flag and people would shy away from them," Brown said.
Ultimately the couple decided to create the 2nd Chances app, a space specifically geared toward young windows and widowers. Similar to most dating apps, members create a profile, send friend requests and connect through messaging.
“In our app, we make sure that everybody is who they say they are we have a system in place to know that these specific people are wids"," Cook said.
“Even if it’s just about connecting with somebody and it doesn’t develop into a long-term relationship, just to have a friend or someone you might have other things in common with but then the fact they are widow or widower it allows someone to build that connection and have someone to go to," Brown said.
For more information about the 2nd Chances app click here.