Tree of Memories honours lost loved ones
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A Brandon funeral home is hosting its 28th annual Tree of Memories candlelight service next week to support people grieving a loved one during the holiday season.
Brockie Donovan Funeral and Cremation Services is preparing special ornaments that include the name of a loved one in printed gold writing along with a poem.
Attendees can hang their ornament on a Christmas tree during the evening ceremony at McDiarmid Drive Alliance Church to honour the legacy of someone they lost.
“We come together in the spirit of comfort and companionship,” said Lisa Hammond, Brockie Donovan’s special events and after-care co-ordinator.
“I think it just helps people feel that, you know, they’re not alone and they are part of this greater community who is grieving alongside them.”
Those interested in receiving a free ornament must contact the funeral home before Monday to ensure it will be ready ahead of the ceremony, which begins at 7 p.m., she said.
The ornaments are a round, flat circle made from a heavy cardstock material with a green hook and either a gold or green bow.
Funeral celebrant Kim Lewarne and Knox United Church minister Craig Miller will officiate the service, which features a musical performance by Wildflower Whiskey, the duo of Julianna Moore and Rob Lovatt.
In the past, up to about 600 people have attended the service, Hammond said.
“The people attending the service should know that they are among friends who understand the significance of the evening,” she said, adding that everyone in the congregation will receive a candle.
The Christmas season is “bittersweet” for many people who are remembering someone who died, Hammond said. She lost her dad in 2019.
“Not having him over the holiday season, it’s really hard to, you know, not have him present at the dinner table, have the laughter and the jokes that we’re used to,” she said.
“One ritual that I have done to remember him over the holidays is, I have his playlist on my phone, so we always play his favourite Christmas music during the day.”
Although her dad died six years ago, she said the feeling of grief is always with her.
“I think you carry it with you forever. It’s never going to leave you, but it softens.”
Hammond said there are different supportive rituals people can start, such as leaving an empty chair at the table with a photo of their loved one, create a memory box, light a candle and continue to speak about them.
“If it’s the first Christmas without your loved one or a couple of Christmases, I mean, you have to be strong and do what is best for you as a grieving person. Everybody grieves differently,” she said.
“There’s no time frame on grief.”
People are welcome to retrieve their ornament following the ceremony or wait to pick it up at the funeral home at another time.
» The Brandon Sun