Every year, many of those families return to the annual Memorial Butterfly Release.
According to Madawaska Valley Hospice, “Butterflies are an international symbol for hospice/palliative care because they represent change, hope and life.”
The 8th annual Memorial Butterfly Release takes place Sunday, July 28 at the Water Tower Park, behind the Opeongo Seniors Centre.
According to Hospice’s executive director Lisa Huber, it is a time for families to reflect and honor their loved ones who have passed.
“[People] can purchase butterflies and then be able to attend in person where we have a life cycle celebrant who speaks to grief and loss, there’s really beautiful, appropriate music. We have activities for children so it’s a full family event.”
Huber says people can choose to have a private event as well.
“Some people when they are doing a celebration of life, they plan it on this weekend. They pick up butterflies for their family and they have their own way of honoring that person, maybe at someone’s cottage or at someone’s home.”
While the main purpose of the event is to honor loved ones, the Butterfly Release also raises money to support the many grief programs at MV Hospice, such as grief groups for those who are struggling with the loss of a loved one and need support:
“Maybe they don’t have their family or friends, or they think their peers wouldn’t understand their loss and so they would reach out to a grief group. They might be with other people they can talk to, then it feels like, ‘Oh yeah, this person gets me’ because they had a similar loss. And that’s really helpful.”
Since it takes time to raise the butterflies, which come form a farm near Peterborough, pre-registration is required. The deadline to reserve a live butterfly is Friday. The cost to reserve a butterfly is $35 each or three for $100.
You can reserve a butterfly by contacting 613-756-3045 ext. 217, online at Memorial Butterfly Release – St. Francis Valley Healthcare Foundation (sfvhfoundation.com), or in-person at 7 St. Francis Memorial Drive (inside the hospital.)
