Christmas was never Kyle Busch’s favorite time of year. Samantha Busch even joked that her husband was a total Christmas Grinch. Yet this December, the holiday will carry a meaning neither of them could have planned. Facing her first Christmas without Kyle, Samantha is creating something for women who know what it means to approach the holidays with an empty place at the table.

“If you’re a widow or no widow, please continue listening. In honor of my husband Kyle, even though it’s kind of funny because he was a total Christmas Grinch, I’m starting the Widows Wish Project,” Samantha announced in a video shared on social media.

The initiative is aimed at helping widows manage two burdens that often become harder during the holidays: grief and the cost of making Christmas special for their families. Samantha wants to reach 26 women through the project, with support divided into two groups based on whether their children still live at home.

Eight women whose children no longer live in the household will receive a special gift. Another 18 women raising children at home will receive help with their children’s Christmas presents, along with something special for themselves. Women can nominate themselves or someone they know.

Samantha explained that the project is not meant to solve everything a grieving family faces. She knows a gift cannot replace a husband, a father or the life a family expected to share. But she wants these women to feel that someone has thought about them during a season that can make their loss especially difficult.

“Obviously like Christmas is so filled with joy, but for a lot of us like it’s going to be a really hard day,” she said. “So I would like you to either nominate yourself if you’re a widow or one that you know.”

The announcement came with an unmistakable weight to it. Kyle Busch died on May 21, 2026, at 41, after severe pneumonia progressed into sepsis. He left behind Samantha, Brexton, and Lennix. Two Cup Series championships and a Hall of Fame record sit alongside that loss. Whatever was announced now carries the shadow of a family still grieving, and that is what gives the timing its meaning.

Kyle’s absence has continued to shape Samantha’s public reflections in the months since his death. She has spoken about the support the family received from fans, friends, and strangers, and how those gestures helped them through the hardest days. Now, she is directing some of that support outward, toward families facing a loss of their own.

The project also connects with something Samantha has repeatedly emphasized: keeping Kyle’s memory present in the lives of their children. This time, the tribute will reach beyond the Busch household. The recipients may never have met Kyle, but the help they receive will carry his name.

Samantha has been careful not to present the initiative as a grand solution. She openly acknowledged its limits while explaining why she wanted to start it.

“I know that this, you know, Widows Wish Project is just going to be a drop in the bucket with the heartache that others are facing alone,” she said. “But I just thought, you know, something that was placed on my heart and I prayed about and I would love to do it.”

Nominations are open through November 9, with details available through the link in Samantha’s social media bio. She has also asked people to share the announcement so it reaches women who might need the support but would not otherwise hear about it.

For Samantha, the hope is that this does not end with one Christmas. She wants the Widows Wish Project to become a new holiday tradition, even if its beginnings come from a loss no gift can make easier.

“I’m excited to get this project started and hopefully this is our new Christmas tradition,” she said.

Kyle may have been the family’s Christmas Grinch, but Samantha is choosing to make the season about giving. And this year, that gesture will reach 26 women who could use a reminder that they have not been forgotten.