Love surviving loss: A grieving Hilton Head couple finds strength in each other
When David Trapani and Lori Womble met over 30 years ago, they never imagined they’d end up together.
David was working for his family’s printing business in Atlanta, Georgia. Lori worked in marketing for one of the company’s biggest clients, Children’s Healthcare of Atlanta. They formed a strong business relationship that continued when Lori left her job to start her own graphic design business, with David often referring his clients to her.
That all changed in 2017, when David’s then wife Katie was diagnosed with breast cancer. Around the same time, Lori and her husband Tom Womble were going through a divorce.
While on the phone to talk about a work project, the pair confided in each other what was going on in their lives. Throughout the summer, every time they called each other to talk about work, Lori would ask David how Katie was doing, and David would ask Lori how the divorce process was going.
In August, Lori and Tom’s divorce was finalized. A month later, Katie passed away leaving David as a widower.
A deeper connection
After Katie died, David was afraid he would fall into a deep, lifelong depression. He asked his sons to make a promise to him, “I said, promise me you are not going to let me be that guy sitting in his chair in a dark room with a dozen empty Budweiser cans laying around,” he recalled.
Little by little, David began to get himself together, congratulating himself for small steps like going out for groceries or spending time with friends.
Lori, who had come to Katie’s funeral, remained a friend David could lean on. Over the next several months, Lori and David began to meet occasionally, to catch up over dinner. Each time, they connected over their shared pain.
David would talk about the wife that he missed and loved. Lori would talk about the pain of splitting up with a spouse and losing a family.
After seeing each other socially for several months informally, the pair realized how close they’d become, and decided to start dating.
“I don’t think that we would have ever found each other beyond just friendship ... if we weren’t grieving together,” Lori said.
Cancer hits again
Another wave of grief hit Lori shortly after that. Her ex-husband Tom was diagnosed with cancer, and passed away the next year.
As Lori grieved the death of a man she had been her former husband of married to for 25 years, her daughters Ava and Ally grieved the death of their father. Knowing what it was like to lose a parent, David’s sons Reid and Taylor were able to guide Lori’s daughters through their pain, bringing the two families closer together.
Lori and David were married in 2021, and now live their home overlooking a golf course in Hilton Head Plantation. They have two golden retrievers, Happy and Pippa.
Katie’s mother, who passed away shortly after the wedding, embraced Lori and her daughters as her own family. Lori sees Katie’s brother Steve as her own brother-in-law.
The pair’s children, Lori said, have “melded together.” “You would never know that they weren’t real siblings,” she added.
Holding onto faith, hope
The couple loves to share their story in hope that it will help others process their own grief. They believe that they best way to help somebody is to listen to them.
“I think we’re meant to tell our stories with each other,” Lori said. “We’re meant to help each other through things.”
For David and Lori, their faith help guide them through their tough times. They marvel at how despite their hardships, everything seemed to just fall into place for them.
“I don’t know why God took Katie when he did,” David said. “But I know what he brought me.”
