Demand letter

Perhaps a "demand letter" carries some legal force in another state, but in Massachusetts it may amount to no more than a scare tactic. Perhaps the demand letter was sent with the intention of trying to get you to make payments that you may not be responsible for making. There are extensive legal procedures that creditors must follow before the situation would ever get to the point where a sheriff could be involved. A lawsuit would have to be filed on a timely basis against your husband's estate (and perhaps against you, if the creditors are claiming that you bore some responsibility for or received some benefit from the debt). The estate would have the right to file an answer to the lawsuit, and the creditors would have to prove that they have a valid debt.

Talk with your probate attorney.  In most states the home can be set aside for the surviving spouse and any minor children.

The executor or administrator of your husband's estate has a duty to assemble the assets, pay the debts and distribute the rest according to the Will or, if there is no Will, according to the state's laws of inheritance.  In most states the homestead and a certain amount of personal property can be set aside for the surviving spouse and/or minor children.  Talk with your probate attorney.