The RHONJ cast member also explained how Jan Josephs' passing was "hard" on her marriage to Joe Benigno.
Margaret Josephs is opening up about the loss of her ex-husband, Jan Josephs, who passed away unexpectedly in August 2022. In the clip above, The Real Housewives of New Jersey cast member sat down with BravoTV.com for a candid discussion where she reflected on her grieving process and who she sought comfort in following Jan’s passing.
During the chat, Margaret revealed that her ex-husband’s death was sudden, and the tragedy forced her to view the world differently. “I think it just put my whole life in perspective,” she said, adding, “I spent a lot of time with my son.”
Margaret went on to explain how difficult it was during her grieving period, which caused her to leave town. “I went away for a month and didn’t speak to anybody," she explained.
Not only did Jan’s passing take a toll on Margaret’s mental state, but she also admitted that it put stress on her marriage to Joe Benigno, saying, “I think it was hard for him because he would watch me cry about my ex-husband and mourn a loss of someone who I was married to for 20 years.”
Margaret Josephs and Joe Benigno discuss Jan Josephs’ passing on RHONJ
Margaret's pain was so deep that even her spouse was unable to find a resolution at times. As he puts it: “I think when someone in your life can’t do anything, you know, your spouse can’t do anything to fix your hurt, it can cause an issue."
On Season 14, Episode 4, which aired on May 26, Joe expressed his sympathy to his wife after coming up on the first anniversary of her Jan’s death. “I feel the deepest horror for you because I never want you to feel horror. I never want you to be sad,” he said. “But that sadness I cannot remove. I can’t do anything about [it].”
Joe later reassured Margaret that he would remain by her side as she copes with her loss because he wasn’t “going anywhere.”
Margaret Josephs' tribute to her late ex-husband, Jan Josephs
Back in September 2022, Margaret took to Instagram to share a throwback photo of Jan in honor of what would’ve been his 75th birthday and to reflect on their longtime bond with each other.
“Today would have been Jan’s 75th birthday, he passed away unexpectedly last week and a piece of us died with him,” she wrote. “We are heartbroken. The night before he left us we shared a beautiful conversation of how blessed we are, our children all successful and happy, and that we could only brag to each other. We spoke every day, he was my family.”
She concluded: “I chose this photo not only because it was one of his favorites but because he had a youthful spirit and will be forever young. Happy Birthday my angel.”
