By Barbara Sutherland

When a member of a community passes away, fellow residents and employee care partners are deeply saddened by the loss of their friend. Now, at Golden Sands, there is a pretty and peaceful place they can go to remember those residents who, while no longer in the community, are still in their hearts.

New Memory Tree

“On Friday, Sept 18, we had a small gathering of residents in our multipurpose room as we presented our new Memory Tree,” says office administrator Theresa Cardinal. “Sadly, since our opening June 2018, we have had 20 residents that have passed away, so we had 20 memory bulbs to hang on the tree.”

The balls were created by Theresa and hospitality aide Rachel Werk. Each clear bulb contains a handful of sand – white sand for women and blue for men – a white feather and a picture of the resident. The resident’s nametag is attached to a ribbon and tied to the ball.

Poems and Individual Memory Bubbles

In a simple ceremony Wellness Supervisor, Ali Knechtel (pictured above) and General Manager Iona Wolstenholme read two poems, and Theresa handed Iona the balls as she read out the names and hung each one on the memory tree.

“We are all here on this earth for a short season,” says Theresa, “And as we look upon our Memory Tree with kindness and warm thoughts, we think of those who have touched our lives and have called Golden Sands home. They will never be forgotten and will forever be missed.”

Photo: Wellness Supervisor Ali Knechtel reads a poem of remembrance at a simple ceremony inaugurating the new Memory Tree at Golden Sands.