Park Memorial Blog

Comfort, Warmth & Care: Inside Our Recent Park Memorial Renovations

Mon, 30 Mar 2026 20:56:32 GMT

At Park Memorial, we believe the spaces where families gather to remember and honour a loved one should feel welcoming, comfortable, and cared for — in every season.

Over the past year, we’ve been quietly working on a series of renovations and upgrades throughout our Edmonton facility. Some are immediately noticeable, and others are the kind of improvements you may not see right away — but you will absolutely feel.

Not every renovation is meant to look different. Some renovations are meant to serve families better: improving warmth, comfort, accessibility, and the behind-the-scenes capacity that allows us to support families with care and timeliness.

We’re honoured to share a few highlights of what’s been updated.

A Refreshed Lobby — Warmth from the Moment You Arrive

Our lobby is often the very first space families step into — a place to pause, gather, and take a breath. This area received a noticeable refresh, designed to feel warm and grounding from the moment you enter.

One of the most meaningful additions is our beautiful new horizontal fireplace feature, which now serves as a comforting focal point - visible from many areas in the lobby and throughout the surrounding spaces. It adds a sense of warmth, calm, and welcome — a gentle presence that fits the purpose of this building.

The Chapel — The Same Sacred Space, Even More Comfortable

For many families, the chapel is the heart of Park Memorial. It’s a space for ceremony, reflection, and remembering — and we wanted to preserve its familiar feel while improving comfort and function.

Our chapel updates included:

• Brand new flooring

• Brand new pew seating

• Window replacement throughout (upgrading from single-pane to triple-pane)

• New sound system and livestream camera

While the chapel may look very similar to many who have been here before, these upgrades make a significant difference in the experience: the space is quieter, warmer, and more comfortable — especially during Alberta winters.

Families may not immediately notice the difference visually, but they will feel the difference in the overall warmth, comfort, and atmosphere.

Just off the chapel, our family room also received a full refresh, including updated furniture and fixtures selected with comfort and calm in mind. This space is designed as a quiet place for families to gather privately — whether that means taking a breath before a service begins, stepping away for a moment of reflection, or simply being together in a quieter setting. With these updates, the family room now feels even more welcoming, offering a warm and supportive environment during some of life’s most difficult moments.

Updated Parlours & Mezzanine — Comfort That Supports Connection

Our parlours are where families spend meaningful time: sharing stories, receiving visitors, gathering close, and holding space for one another.

To support that experience, several areas received updates including:

• New carpet

• Updated furniture

• A refreshed mezzanine level

• New lighting

While these updates may seem simple on the surface, each one was made with the experience of families in mind.These changes weren’t about trending design — they were about creating surroundings that feel soft, calm, and comfortable, so families can focus on what truly matters.

Improving Capacity Behind the Scenes — Serving Families More Efficiently

Some of our most important renovations weren’t “front-facing” at all — but they have a direct impact on how we care for families.

An Additional Crematorium

We have added one more crematorium , which significantly improves our ability to serve families in a timely manner. This added capacity allows us to care for families more promptly, helping reduce wait times during an already difficult period. It gives us greater flexibility, helps reduce delays, and supports our commitment to care that is both compassionate and efficient. With on-site cremation, families can have peace of mind knowing their loved one never leaves our care.

Expanded Staff Spaces

We also added one additional office for staff on the mezzanine level and expanded our control office on the main lobby level . These staff-focused improvements strengthen our behind-the-scenes support systems and allow our team to serve families with greater coordination, comfort, and care.

Throughout these updates, we were equally mindful of preserving the character and history that have shaped Park Memorial as a third-generation, family-owned funeral home serving our community for over 80 years.

Not every renovation is meant to look different — some are meant to feel different.

To our community: none of us ever want to need a funeral home — but if you do, we hope you feel the intention behind every improvement we’ve made: to offer a space that holds you with dignity, comfort, and care. To learn more about Park Memorial, visit our "About Us" page .

With care,

Park Memorial

Giving a Little. Helping A Lot.

Wed, 25 Feb 2026 22:48:46 GMT

Why our team donated blood — and why you might consider it too.

There are some moments in life that quietly remind us just how connected we all are.

Last night, our Park Memorial team gathered for a blood donor evening. Nine team members rolled up their sleeves — including three first-time donors — and gave something simple, yet profoundly powerful: time, compassion, and a small donation that has the potential to save lives.

And from where we stand, in a profession that walks alongside families during some of life’s most difficult moments, that act carries an even deeper meaning.

A Perspective Shaped by Our Work

In the funeral profession, we see firsthand how fragile and precious life truly is.

We witness the ripple effects of loss. We see the families, the stories, the futures that are forever changed in a single moment. Because of that, acts that support life — even in quiet, unseen ways — resonate deeply with us. Blood donation is one of those acts.

It is not dramatic.

It is not loud.

It is simply human kindness in motion.

And yet, it saves lives every single day.

The Reality: Canada Needs Blood Donors

Many people assume blood is always available when it’s needed. The truth is far more sobering.

• Only about 4% of eligible Canadians donate blood each year

• A patient in Canada needs blood every minute of every day

• One donation can help up to three people

• Blood and blood products are needed for surgeries, cancer treatments, trauma care, and chronic illnesses

Behind every statistic is a real person — a child in surgery, a parent in treatment, a trauma patient fighting for survival. Someone’s loved one.

Why This Matters to Us, Professionally and Personally

Working in funeral service gives us a unique lens on community care. We are often present after life has been lost. Blood donors are part of the quiet chain of care that helps preserve life before that moment ever arrives. In many ways, donation is an act of prevention, hope, and compassion long before anyone knows they may need it.

It is a way of saying: “I may never meet the person this helps, but their life matters.”

That philosophy aligns deeply with the values we hold as a profession — dignity, service, and care for others, even when it requires something of ourselves.

A Small Act with Lasting Impact

For many of our team members, this was their very first donation. Like many people, they felt a mix of curiosity, nerves, and quiet pride. And afterward?

The most common response was simple: “I commit to donating again”. The process is safe, well-supported, and guided by trained professionals every step of the way. More importantly, it creates an immediate and tangible impact in our healthcare system and community.

Community Care Extends Beyond Our Walls

At Park Memorial , community care has always been at the heart of what we do. Supporting families does not begin or end at our doors — it extends into how we show up in the world. Donating blood is one of the most direct ways to care for the living, while honouring the value of every life.

It is quiet service.

It is compassion in action.

It is community, at its very best.

A Gentle Invitation

If you have ever considered donating blood, we encourage you to take that step.

You may never know the name of the person your donation helps. You may never see the story unfold. But somewhere, a life will continue — a surgery completed, a treatment made possible, a family given more time together — because someone chose to make that call and donate.

That someone could be you.

To learn more or book your appointment, visit Canadian Blood Services or connect with your local donation centre at 1-888-2-DONATE ( 1-888-236-6283 ).

Give a little. Help a lot. And be part of the quiet, life-saving chain of care our communities rely on every single day.

When We Skip the Goodbye: Why Grief Needs a Place to Land

Mon, 23 Feb 2026 23:40:27 GMT

There is a phrase we hear more and more often, spoken with the best of intentions: "Grandma didn’t want a service — so we’re not having one."

It comes from a place of love. A desire to honour a wish, to keep things simple, to spare people the formality of a gathering they might not have wanted. And that impulse is not wrong. But there is something important that often goes unconsidered in that decision — something that has less to do with the person who died, and everything to do with the people still living with the loss.

A Service Was Never Really for the Person Who Died

This is perhaps the most important reframe in how we think about funerals, memorial services, and gatherings of remembrance. The ritual of farewell is not for the deceased. It is for the living — for the people who are now tasked with carrying a loss they didn’t choose and weren’t fully prepared for.

Grief doesn’t disappear because we keep things simple. It doesn’t respect our attempts to be practical, to ‘not make a fuss’, or to move through loss as quietly as possible. It waits. And while it waits, it finds places to sit — in unspoken goodbyes, in stories that were never shared, in a love that had no formal moment to be expressed.

Honouring the wish of someone who didn’t want a service is a beautiful act of love. But it doesn’t have to mean honouring it at the expense of your own need to grieve.

What Happens When We Skip the Pause

There is a growing body of understanding — both in psychology and in lived experience — around what happens to grief when it isn’t given somewhere to go. The short answer is: it doesn’t go away. It goes sideways.

When we skip the collective pause that a service or gathering provides, grief tends to surface later in ways we don’t immediately connect back to the loss. It shows up as exhaustion that doesn’t make sense. As irritability, or emotional numbness, or a low sadness that arrives months down the track with no obvious cause. As an inability to talk about the person who died without feeling like you’re breaking open.

Grief researchers often describe this as ‘unprocessed’ or ‘delayed’ grief — not because the emotion wasn’t felt, but because it was never given a container. It was never witnessed. And grief, more than almost any other human experience, needs to be witnessed to move through us properly.

 The people we love deserve to be mourned. And so do we — because the part of us that loved them needs tending to as well.

Remembrance Doesn’t Have to Mean Tradition

One of the reasons families defer to a loved one’s wish to skip a service is that the word ‘service’ itself can feel heavy. Formal. A procession of things one is supposed to do in a certain order in a certain place.

But intentional remembrance can take any shape you need it to. A small gathering at home with the people who loved her most. A walk to somewhere that mattered to him, followed by a shared meal. A private ritual — just family, just one quiet afternoon, just a moment where everyone is allowed to say the things they might not otherwise say.

None of these things contradict the wish to keep things simple. What they do is honour something equally important: the relationship. The love. The fact that this person existed, and mattered, and left a mark on the people who are still here.

A moment of intentional remembrance — however quiet, however private — gives grief somewhere to exist. And it gives love somewhere to be spoken out loud, perhaps for the last time.

The Heart Needs What the Mind Is Still Processing

In the days immediately following a death, the mind is often in a kind of protective fog. There are logistics to manage, calls to make, practical decisions that demand attention. It can feel like you are coping well — because in a way, you are. The busyness of loss keeps you moving.

But the heart works on a different timeline. It processes slowly, in layers, and it needs landmarks along the way — moments that mark the transition from before to after. A gathering, a service, a ceremony of any kind serves as one of those landmarks. It is a line drawn in time that says: this happened. We are acknowledging it, together.

Without that moment, grief can linger in a kind of liminal space — unanchored, unresolved, present but shapeless. The mind knows the person is gone. The heart is still waiting for the moment it’s allowed to respond.

Giving Love the Space It Deserves

Avoiding a service doesn’t eliminate grief. It only postpones the moment grief asks to be felt. And grief, sooner or later, always asks.

Honouring someone’s life — in whatever way feels right, however small or informal — is not about doing more than they wanted. It is about recognizing that the people left behind need somewhere to begin. Somewhere to say goodbye. Somewhere to be held in the presence of others who understand what has been lost.

What would feel right for the people you love? If you're sitting with that question, we're here to help you answer it — in a way that honours both the person who has passed and the people still here. When you’re ready… we’re here .

Wills, Estates & Final Wishes

Thu, 29 Jan 2026 18:47:24 GMT

The conversations that protect the people you love most.

At Park Memorial, we often meet families at one of the most emotional moments of their lives. And while we are honoured to walk alongside them in their grief, there is one sentence we hear far too often:

“We didn’t know.”

We didn’t know we needed a will.

We didn’t know our old will no longer reflected our life.

We didn’t know probate worked that way.

We didn’t know an executor had that much power.

That is exactly why we partnered with Megan Koper of WillWise to host our Wills, Estates & Final Wishes educational series — honest, factual conversations designed to make a complicated topic feel clearer, calmer, and more manageable.

Here’s what we covered — and why it matters to you .

Episode One: "What happens if I die without a will?"

Why Having a Will Isn’t Optional — At Any Age:

One statistic stopped people in their tracks: Only 48% of Canadians over 18 have a valid will.

That means that more than half of adults are leaving their loved ones to navigate:

Legal confusion
Delays in accessing money and assets
Emotional strain layered on top of grief
Government rules deciding who inherits — not the person who died

We shared real situations that we see in aftercare: sudden deaths, blended families, estranged relatives, and young adults with assets but no plan in place. When there is no will, families can face months of paperwork before they can even begin settling affairs.

Megan helped us understand that:

A will is not just a form to fill out — it requires thoughtful, legally sound planning
DIY kits and handwritten (holograph) wills can create serious problems if done incorrectly
Marriage, divorce, new children, or changes in assets are all reasons to update a will
An Enduring Power of Attorney is not a substitute for a will — they serve very different purposes

The biggest takeaway? A will is an act of care. It protects your family from confusion at the exact time they are least able to handle it.

Episode Two: "The importance of a well-written will and a carefully-chosen executor."

Executors, Relationships & When a Will Doesn’t Tell the Whole Story:

This episode surprised many viewers.

We explored a case where a man left everything to his adult children in a will written years earlier — but Alberta law required that his long-term partner be notified because she had the right to claim against the estate. Key lessons from this conversation:

1. Wills don’t override everything

Certain people — such as spouses, long-term partners, and dependent children — are legally protected, even if they are left out of a will.

2. An outdated will can create conflict

A 10- or 15-year-old will may no longer reflect:

New relationships
Blended families
Changed assets
Changed intentions

3. Choosing the right executor is critical

We talked openly about something families don’t often realize: an executor has significant power and discretion . Even when acting properly, they make major decisions about the estate. If they act improperly, it can be difficult and costly to challenge them.

We discussed the traits to look for in an executor:

Organized
Emotionally steady
Fair and able to manage conflict
Willing to do the work
Able to communicate clearly

This session also connected deeply with our funeral preplanning work — because the person with legal authority can influence how final wishes are carried out. That’s another reason planning and communication matter so much.

Episode Three: "The truth about probate."

The Word That Sounds Scarier Than It Is:

Many people come into probate conversations assuming the worst: endless delays, huge costs, and a legal nightmare.

What we learned? Probate is actually a system of checks and balances that protects:

The executor
The beneficiaries
The estate itself

Probate:

Confirms the executor’s authority
Allows financial institutions and land titles to safely release assets
Ensures debts and taxes are properly handled
Prevents fraud and mistakes

We also discussed important updates in Alberta that are improving timelines and making the process more efficient than in the past.

One powerful shift in perspective was this: Probate is not a punishment — it’s permission. Permission to move forward legally and safely

The Heart Behind These Conversations

None of these topics are easy. Talking about death, legal documents, and end-of-life wishes can feel uncomfortable.

We see every day what families are left to navigate when these conversations haven’t happened — and we share this information because a little preparation can make a very big difference. Our goal with this series was only to educate and help our community be empowered to make decisions that feel intentional and informed.

If watching these sessions prompts you to:

Review your will
Update your executor
Speak to a lawyer
Talk to your family about your wishes

… then these conversations have done exactly what they were meant to do.

Whether you’re 21 with your first savings account, part of a blended family, supporting aging parents, or simply wanting peace of mind — this information is for you. Because planning ahead isn’t about expecting the worst. It’s about making things gentler for the people you love — no matter what life brings.

Planning = A final act of care

If this conversation has reminded you how clarity can make things easier for families, funeral preplanning is one of the most meaningful gifts you can leave.

It allows your wishes to be known, your decisions to be made calmly —not in crisis— and removes heavy choices from the people you love most.

A will isn’t just paperwork — it protects your family

If you’ve been meaning to update your will or create one for the first time, a simple conversation with a knowledgeable professional can bring more peace of mind than you might expect.

Thoughtful legal planning helps ensure that your wishes are clear and your loved ones are protected when it matters most. To learn more, book a complimentary consultation with the WillWise team

Our support doesn’t end at the funeral

If you’re walking through grief right now, please know you don’t have to do that alone.

Our community grief support events offer connection, understanding, and space to heal alongside others who truly get it.

When Sound Becomes Memory

Wed, 17 Dec 2025 19:48:55 GMT

A Christmas Remembrance Service

The Christmas season is often filled with sound — the laughter of family gathered close, the hum of familiar carols, the gentle rustle of wrapping paper and tradition.

But for many, this season also carries another sound — the quiet left behind by someone deeply loved and dearly missed.

At Park Memorial’s Christmas Remembrance Service: The Sounds of Christmas , we gathered in that tender space between sound and silence. Together, we paused — not to rush grief away, but to honour it, to sit with it, and to remember.

From the moment guests entered the chapel, the atmosphere was intentionally calm and reflective. Soft candlelight, evergreen boughs, and seasonal florals created a setting that felt warm, welcoming, and grounded — a place where memories could safely surface.

Music played a central role throughout the service. Each piece was chosen not for performance, but for presence — melodies that gently held the room and allowed hearts to open. The music carried emotion when words felt heavy, offering comfort without expectation, thanks to musicians David Moret and Ella Zenari.

The spoken reflections of Connie Kobylko invited guests to listen differently this Christmas — not only with their ears, but with their hearts. She reminded us that sound becomes memory, and memory becomes love that continues to echo, even in absence.

“Thank you for hosting this; I feel better for having been here.”

“This was exactly what I needed.”

“Thank you for creating something so beautiful and gentle. I had no idea that you offered so much to the community!”

These were just a few of the sentiments shared by guests afterward — quiet confirmations that gathering together matters, especially during the holidays.

Grief does not disappear at Christmas, and it does not follow a schedule. Our hope with this service was never to remove sorrow, but to soften the season — to remind those who are grieving that they are not alone, and that remembrance can coexist with warmth, music, and love.

For those who were unable to attend in person, we invite you to watch the full service below. Whether viewed alone or shared with family, we hope it offers a moment of peace, reflection, and connection.

Watch the Full Christmas Remembrance Service:

A Reminder That You Don’t Have to Walk This Season Alone

Grief does not end when the funeral service does — and support shouldn’t either.

At Park Memorial, we offer monthly grief support gatherings designed to meet people where they are, in ways that feel gentle, accessible, and human. From creative workshops and facilitated conversations to nature-based gatherings and educational events, our programs are open to anyone in our community who is grieving — regardless of when or how loss occurred.

Whether you are newly grieving or carrying loss from years past, you are welcome.

Explore our upcoming grief support events here: www.parkmemorial.com/coming-events

As the Christmas season continues, may you find comfort in the sounds that carry memory — a favourite song, a familiar voice, a quiet moment of stillness. And may you know that your grief is seen, honoured, and held with care.

With warmth and remembrance,

The Park Memorial Family

What to Expect at Our Monthly Grief Support Programs

Fri, 10 Oct 2025 21:35:41 GMT

Your Questions, Answered.

Grief has no timeline, no rulebook, and no “right way” to move through it. At Park Memorial, our monthly grief-support programs — Art for the Grieving Heart and Men’s Grief Support * — were created to offer a safe, welcoming space for anyone navigating loss.

Whether it’s been weeks, months, or years, we know that taking that first step toward connection can feel intimidating. You may not know what to expect — and that’s okay. To help ease those first-time nerves, we’ve compiled answers to some of the most frequently asked questions from our guests.

*This is an event series for men only

Do I need to bring anything or prepare in advance?

No workbook, no supplies, and no homework are needed.

There’s no curriculum — just a compassionate space to show up exactly as you are. Some guests join to listen quietly; others to share or create. Every way of showing up is the right way.

Do I need to attend every month?

Not at all.

You are welcome to come as often or as little as feels right for you. Each session stands beautifully on its own — and each time you return, you’ll find familiar faces ready to welcome you back.

What can I expect?

For many people, walking through the door that first time is the hardest part.

But over and over again, we hear the same thing: “I’m so glad I came.”

Art for the Grieving Heart combines two gentle elements — a creative project with its roots in grief, and a facilitated, informal grief discussion that allows space for reflection and connection.

Men’s Grief Support offers a safe, informal space for men to share (or simply listen) among peers, led by two facilitators: one specializing in traumatic / child loss, and one in general grief and healing.

While both programs have structure, there is never any expectation to speak or participate. Guests are free to simply be present, feel their grief, and engage in whatever way feels right that day.

Do I need to be a Park Memorial client to attend?

No — our grief-support programs are open to everyone in the community.

Loss touches every life, and these gatherings are here for anyone who needs a place to process, create, or connect.

You don’t have to walk this road alone.

Whether you come once, occasionally, or every month, our doors — and our hearts — are open.

No prep. No pressure. Just presence.

Art for the Grieving Heart

�� Monthly | Nominal fee of $20 to attend | Refreshments and all art supplies included

Men’s Grief Support

�� Monthly | Free to attend | Two facilitators specializing in different aspects of loss | Light refreshments served

Visit www.parkmemorial.com/coming-events to RSVP and see upcoming dates, or reach out to our Public Relations Coordinator, Kristi Hammond for more information ( 780-426-0050 , khammond@parkmemorial.com ).

Honouring, Healing, and Carrying Forward: Reflections on Truth and Reconciliation

Tue, 30 Sep 2025 22:49:14 GMT

On September 30, Canadians pause for the National Day for Truth and Reconciliation.

It is a day to honour the children who never returned home from residential schools, to recognize the pain endured by survivors and families, and to acknowledge that the work of reconciliation belongs to us all.

This year’s theme, “The Gifts We Carry” reminds us that even in the face of deep loss and injustice, Indigenous peoples have carried forward their languages, cultures, teachings, and resilience. These are gifts that enrich not only their communities, but our shared society.

At its heart, this message echoes the work we do each day: helping families honour the past, find healing in the present, and inspire the future through remembrance.

Honouring the Past

Truth and Reconciliation Day calls us to remember those who suffered and those whose lives were cut short in residential schools. In our own work, honouring the past means creating spaces where every story is acknowledged, every life is remembered, and every family is supported in their grief.

We know that remembrance is not about numbers or dates—it is about lives lived, however long or brief, and the love that continues after death.

Healing in the Present

Grief is a weight carried in the present. Just as survivors and families of residential schools seek pathways of healing, so too do the families who come through our doors. Healing does not happen alone — it takes ceremony, community, and support.

Through aftercare programs such as Art for the Grieving Heart , our Men’s Grief Support , and our Annual Christmas Remembrance Service, we walk alongside families in their unique grief journeys. These gatherings remind us that even in sorrow, healing is possible when we come together.

Inspiring the Future

The theme “ The Gifts We Carry ” also points to what we pass on: stories, values, and lessons that become the inheritance of future generations. Funerals and memorials ensure these gifts are not lost. They keep the wisdom and love of those who came before alive in the hearts of those who follow.

This is why we say, every life matters . It is why our Baby Memorial service holds space for families whose babies are gone too soon — reminding us, with deep tenderness, that even the briefest lives leave an indelible mark.

A Shared Responsibility

Reconciliation is not a single event or a government program—it is a responsibility that belongs to all of us. In our own calling, that responsibility is expressed in how we honour life, how we care for families in grief, and how we help communities come together to remember.

On this National Day for Truth and Reconciliation, may we each reflect on how we can carry forward the gifts of truth, compassion, and remembrance. May we listen, may we learn, and may we never forget.

At Park Memorial , we remain committed to walking alongside families in grief, and to building a community rooted in compassion, remembrance, and healing. If you would like to learn more about our aftercare programs or memorial services, we invite you to www.parkmemorial.com/coming-events .

World Suicide Prevention Day

Wed, 10 Sep 2025 18:54:12 GMT

Standing Together in Hope & Care

Each September, communities across the world pause to recognize World Suicide Prevention Day . It is a time to raise awareness, reduce stigma, and remember that behind every statistic is a story, a family, and a life that mattered.

At Park Memorial, we walk alongside many families through their most difficult days. We know that the pain of losing a loved one to suicide ripples through circles of family, friends, workplaces, and entire communities. These losses can be overwhelming, complicated, and often wrapped in silence, guilt, and shame.

We believe that no one should ever feel alone in their struggle . Suicide prevention begins with compassion, conversation, and connection. When we open space for asking important questions and listening without judgment, we make it possible for someone to share their pain and - in that sharing - find hope.

If You Are Struggling

If you or someone you love is thinking about suicide, please know that help is available—day or night.

Call or text 988 , the Suicide Crisis Helpline (available across Canada).
Reach out to local support services in Alberta, such as Canadian Mental Health Edmonton Region.
Speak with someone you trust: a friend, a counsellor, a spiritual leader, or a health professional.

If You Are Grieving

For those who have lost someone to suicide, grief can feel isolating. You may wrestle with questions, guilt, or anger, alongside deep sadness. Please know that your grief matters and deserves a place to be held with care. Our grief support programming, such as Art for the Grieving Heart and Men’s Grief Support gatherings, are open to the community and provide safe spaces to connect with others who are also on their own grief journey.

Walking Forward Together

Suicide Prevention Day reminds us that every life has value, and every person carries a story worth honoring. Let us continue to build a community where it is safe to reach out, safe to talk, and safe to hope.

➡️ To learn more about Park Memorial’s grief support programs, please visit our coming events page.

Park Memorial Funeral Home – here for our community in times of loss, AND in times of hope.

National Grief Awareness Day

Mon, 01 Sep 2025 18:31:42 GMT

It is Love... Remembered Daily

August 30th was marked as National Grief Awareness Day , and while we missed the official calendar date, we reflect on this truth: grief doesn’t live on a calendar. It doesn’t circle one day in August or only come up during anniversaries and holidays. Grief lives with us — in our mornings and our midnights, in our quiet drives and crowded rooms, in the memories that warm us and in the tears that surprise us.

Because grief is a part of our everyday lives, every day can be a Grief Awareness Day .

Grief awareness is not about dwelling on sorrow, but about opening space for love. It’s about recognizing the invisible weight that someone near us might be carrying. It’s about softening our words, practicing patience, and remembering that the people we pass each day may be navigating heartbreaks we cannot see.

For those who are grieving, awareness is about allowing gentleness for yourself—permission to feel what you feel, to honor what you miss, and to know that your grief is a reflection of your love .

For those who walk alongside the grieving, awareness is about showing up in simple ways: a text that says “thinking of you” …a smile that carries kindness… a coffee placed in someone’s hand on a hard day. None of it fixes loss, but all of it whispers: you are not alone .

If you are grieving today, please know this: you are seen, you are loved, and your story matters. If you love someone who is grieving, may you find small, tender ways to remind them of the same.

Because grief is not a moment in time; it is a lifelong journey of love. And every single day is worthy of awareness. ��

Our monthly grief support events renew in September and are open to our community. If you are looking for a place to safely feel and journey through your grief, please consider joining us for Art for the Grieving Heart , Men’s Grief Support , or the other grief support events that we schedule throughout the year. Visit www.parkmemorial/coming-events for more information.

Leaves, Laughter, and Letting Go - Our Grief Walks Begin

Thu, 07 Aug 2025 18:53:48 GMT

Gentle Steps Toward Healing

Last night, under the golden light of the soft evening sun, we gathered for the first in our summer series of Grief Walks—gentle steps taken in the company of others, held by nature, memory, and quiet connection.

The air was light and warm. Birds sang overhead. Squirrels scurried through the grass, and bunnies played near the trees. Life pulsed all around us, even as we each carried the ache of absence in our own ways. We began with a simple check-in and a shared intention. Then, we took a few moments to ground ourselves—to arrive fully in the moment, in our bodies, and in the truth of what we were each holding. The theme that guided us was this:

“Who am I missing today? And what would I say to them if they were walking beside me?”

And then, we walked.

There was an option for each guest to walk in silence, letting the sounds of the birds and the breeze do the talking. Or they could walk together, sharing stories, laughter, and tears along the way. There was no right way to walk—only the way that felt most honest in that moment.

As we walked, we invited participants to find a leaf—any leaf—that could hold a message for the one they were missing. Words were written gently. One leaf, shaped like a butterfly, seemed to find its way into someone’s hands at just the right moment. And in a quiet act of release, each leaf was placed on the water and let go.

We ended with a short grief conversation, circling back together to reflect. Each person shared where their heart and mind had landed, and each closed their time with a quiet thank-you—and an “I love you”—spoken to the one they’d walked with in spirit.

It was beautiful. Simple. Profound.

This is why we walk.

To remember.

To reconnect.

To breathe.

To feel.

To honour the love that lives on.

If you missed this inaugural event, we’d love to walk with you next time. Until then, may you find moments of peace in the steps you take—wherever you are on your grief journey.

If you would like to attend our next Grief Walk, or any of our other upcoming events, please register at www.parkmemorial.com/coming-events .

Step-by-Step Guide: What to Do with a Loved One’s Facebook Account After They Pass Away

Thu, 24 Jul 2025 20:07:18 GMT

If Your Loved One is Still Alive and Wants You to Manage Their Account Later:

Have them log in to their Facebook account .
Click the menu (top right corner) and go to Settings & Privacy → Settings .
Scroll down and click Memorialization Settings .
Under “ Choose Legacy Contact ”, have them type your name and select you .
Optional: Check the box to allow you to download a copy of their posts and photos later.
Click Save .

This means you’ll be in charge of their account if something ever happens.

If Your Loved One Has Already Passed Away:

You cannot log in to their account, even if you know their password, as this contravenes Facebook’s security regulations. Instead, follow these steps:

Step 1: Gather Documents

You will need:

A death certificate, obituary, or memorial service program.
The link to their Facebook profile (copy it from the browser bar).
If possible, proof of your relationship (like a marriage certificate or executor documents).

Shape

Step 2: Request to Memorialize the Account

1. Go to this Facebook form: www.facebook.com/help/contact/228813257197480

2. Fill in:

Your full name and contact info.
Their full name.
Date they passed.
Link to their profile.
Upload a death certificate or similar proof.
Choose what you want: memorialize the account, close it, or request info.

3. Click Submit.

What Happens After the Account is Memorialized

Their profile will say “ Remembering [Name] ” at the top.
No one can log in to the account anymore, but stories and memories can still be posted by their friends.
The posts and photos stay on Facebook (unless the account is deleted).
If they chose a Legacy Contact (possibly you), you can:

- Post a tribute.

- Change the profile and cover photos.

- Accept friend requests.

- Request account deletion, if needed.

Here is an optional document templates you can download, fill out, and upload as proof:

Facebook Memorialization Request Letter – Download

You can fill in:

The deceased’s name and date of passing
Your relationship to them
The link to their Facebook profile
Your name and contact information

A Season of Connection

Thu, 26 Jun 2025 19:45:37 GMT

A Season of Connection: Wrapping Up Men’s Grief Support with Warmth and Community

Last night marked the final gathering of our Men’s Grief Support program for the season*— and what a meaningful close it was. Over the past several months, this group has grown not only in numbers, but in connection, trust, and true community. To celebrate that growth, we decided to do something special: we hosted a dinner together in the Park Memorial kitchen.

Fourteen men arrived ready to cook, connect, and reflect. Together, they prepared comforting baked potato soup and buttery garlic toast before settling in for their discussion. After a brief check-in and introductions, the group was invited to share their stories. Some spoke of recent losses; others shared how long they’ve carried their grief. Each story honored the name of a loved one and the enduring love that now takes the shape of sorrow. There were tears and laughter, nods of understanding, and the quiet strength that comes from being seen and heard.

Then the kitchen came alive—just as kitchens are meant to. It was full of warmth, conversation, savory smells, and the joy that rises when people cook and eat together. The meal was simple but delicious. One guest brought a chocolate cake with “Enjoy Dinner” written across the top, a sweet and thoughtful touch that added to the sense of shared care.

Helping to host the evening was Brad Eleniak, one of our Park Memorial Managers. Though it was his first time attending this group, Brad has long been a champion of our Men’s Grief Support program. In his 33 years of funeral service at Park, he’s witnessed time and again that “men often get forgotten in the grief process.” His presence and openness to share some of his own story made the evening all the more meaningful.

After dinner, the kitchen fun continued. Inspired by a TikTok reel seen the day before, our Public Relations Coordinator Kristi Hammond put leftover bacon grease to creative use by making bacon popcorn. The verdict? A salty, crunchy, TikTok-approved hit!

As the evening drew to a close, the room was full of warmth—this time not just from the soup and popcorn, but from the hugs, handshakes, and heartfelt goodbyes. Guests lingered with gratitude, promising to return when the group resumes in September.

These words from Brad perfectly captured the spirit of the evening: “The soup was hot, the conversation was meaningful, and the warm hospitality did not go unnoticed… and created a space for connection and healing.

Every person there appreciated this event and as they left, they said how they are looking forward to the fall when they can meet up again.”

We are deeply grateful for every man who has attended Men’s Grief Support this year—for their courage to show up, speak up, and support one another. We are equally grateful for our amazing facilitators, David, Nathan, and Mike who help to create this safe space for men to connect and heal. We look forward to welcoming everyone back in September.

Our Park Memorial monthly grief support events are available September through June inclusively and are open to the community at large. To find out more about these and other events that Park Memorial hosts, please bookmark and re-visit www.parkmemorial.com/coming-events . We hope to welcome you.

Click here to learn more about our other grief support events .

Remembering Our Losses: 2025 Baby Memorial

Fri, 30 May 2025 21:10:34 GMT

On a warm spring afternoon, families, healthcare professionals, and community members gathered at Park Memorial Funeral Home for the 2025 Baby Memorial Service

—an annual tradition every May, dedicated to honouring and remembering babies who died during pregnancy, at birth, or in early infancy.

This year’s service once again gently embraced Park Memorial’s Teddy Bear theme , offering a symbol of love and comfort. Teddy Bears, often given in moments of joy and held close in times of sorrow, served as quiet reminders of the babies we carry in our hearts.

Park Memorial also warmly welcomed donations of teddy bears that families generously brought with them in memory of their own babies. The donated teddy bears get a special card attached to them, some with a special message from the family donating, and are collected for The Pregnancy and Loss Program to be given to another family in the future who experiences a loss.

This touching poem by Ron Tranmer, “ Teddy Bear ,” beautifully captures the ache of absence, the power of memory, and the hope of reunion:

TEDDY BEAR

By Ron Tranmer

It’s my very favorite place.

I feel closer to you there.

We rock the hours away.

Me and your Teddy Bear.

The rocking chair is squeaking,

as rocking chairs will do.

I pretend the one I’m holding

isn’t Teddy Bear, but you.

I miss your little chubby cheeks.

They were so fun to kiss.

Cuddling you, and hearing you goo

are among the things I miss.

Precious memories of you linger.

My child I miss you so.

I hope one day my heart will heal.

It’s hard to let you go.

When in time God calls me home

to be with you up there;

With joy I’ll hold you in my arms

instead of Teddy Bear.

During the ceremony, each baby’s name was read aloud; the families who attended in person spoke their own baby’s name out loud to be heard and acknowledged by all, and additional babies’ names were read by Patti Walker , the Bereavement Coordinator for the Pregnancy & Infant Loss Program. As each baby’s name was read aloud, a candle was lit in their memory.

Families also placed handwritten messages to their babies into a heart shaped, biodegradable urn; each personalized note being a tangible expression of love and remembrance. The urn with its messages inside was then interred during a ceremony at Northern Lights Cemetery, symbolizing that while grief is deeply personal, it is never carried alone. The ceremony itself took place close in proximity to where all of the babies are resting together in the cemetery… they will never be alone .

The 2025 Baby Memorial was made possible through the compassion and partnership of Alberta Health Services and Covenant Health’s Pregnancy and Infant Loss Program , along with the support of funeral professionals and volunteers who ensure this annual ceremony remains a meaningful space of remembrance.

To every parent who has experienced the unimaginable loss of a baby: Our hearts are with you, and with all who loved your baby, as you grieve.

Wanted. Loved. Remembered. Always.

We invite you to watch this year’s Baby Memorial Service, which reflects the tenderness and shared emotions of this day ( click here to watch the 2025 Baby Memorial Service ).

At Park Memorial , the heart of our service is caring for bereaved families. Though no two families are the same, and no two losses feel the same, the loss of a baby connects families in a way that nobody else can fully understand. Our hope is that gathering to remember and honour your baby with other families who are walking a similar grief road brings some comfort, along with understanding that you are not alone.

Click here to learn more about our other grief support events .

I Wish I Would Have…

Wed, 02 Apr 2025 22:47:01 GMT

A Heartfelt Letter From a Father to His Daughter

My Dearest Daughter,

As I write this letter, I can already feel the weight of my absence pressing upon you. There is so much I wish I could have told you, so many moments I wish I could have shared with you. But now, as you face the daunting task of being my Executor, I realize how much I have failed to prepare you for what lies ahead.

I am deeply sorry for not leaving you the information you need to make solid, informed decisions about my funeral, my wishes, and my estate. I should have organized everything, laid out my intentions clearly, and ensured that you had all the necessary details. But in my procrastination and perhaps denial, I left you with uncertainties and complexities that you now must untangle on your own.

You are now faced with decisions that I should have made easier for you. The stress and time it will take to sort through my affairs, to understand what I wanted, and to navigate the legal and financial intricacies, weighs heavily on my heart. I apologize for the burden it places on you, and for the emotional toll it will undoubtedly take.

Please know that my love for you is unwavering and that I have always been proud of the person you have become. Your strength, your resilience, and your compassion are qualities that I admire deeply. Though I may not be here to guide you through this process, I believe in your ability to handle it with grace and determination.

I wish I could have spared you this hardship. I wish I could have left you with clarity and peace instead of questions and confusion. But even in this, I hope you find some solace in knowing that I trust you implicitly, and that I am with you in spirit, supporting you every step of the way.

Forgive me, my dear, for these mistakes I've made. And know that you are loved beyond measure.

With all my love,

Dad

 While this letter is fictional, it is based on the situations and conversations that we as funeral professionals observe daily in serving bereaved families.

So often we see the guilt that those left behind feel as they try to guess what their loved one would have wanted. Not only does it lead to feelings of regret, but it also creates further complexities in an already hard situation. Grief becomes complex, as well.

What if there was a better way?

Park Memorial recently partnered with Canadian-owned Cadence, a company from Saskatchewan that offers an online platform that helps families to avoid situations like these. The Legacy Planner platform provides a safe, digital vault so that all of the documents and decisions that your Executor will need to close your estate will be actionable and available when needed. Eliminating the guesswork and guilt that comes with not knowing your loved one’s last wishes means that they will be better able to grieve and heal after your loss.

1. From your will to your wishes to be buried and where, to your life insurance policy, all of your accounts, your passwords, and your wedding certificate, Cadence at Park Memorial’s Legacy Planner holds it all with secure socket layer technology.

2. After answering a series of questions, Legacy Planner will create a guided roadmap of unique-to-you tasks and commonly overlooked considerations to help cut through the confusion of what needs to be done to create a seamless handoff to your executor.

3. “30% of executors’ administration time is spent doing repetitive and unnecessary tasks when dealing with institutions. Executors often get inaccurate guidance and information when contacting companies after a death. Cadence helps eliminate misguidance and confusion, saving your executor up to 100 hours of time.” Our Park Memorial Preplanning Experts will guide and support you every step of the way.

We understand that the decision to make sure that your loved ones have no guilt or guesswork by preplanning your funeral and establishing your end-of-life wishes is a difficult one, and we honour your commitment to doing so. Park Memorial is proud to make this decision even easier and more meaningful for every family that we serve with Cadence at Park Memorial . We believe in this platform’s ability to save families stress, time, and guesswork so much that we include it in our services for every person who pre-arranges their funeral with us. It’s one more way that our Park Memorial family cares for your family.

Click here to learn more about Cadence and how to cut through the confusion using our new, cutting-edge online preplanning tool.

Navigating the Stress of Being an Executor

Tue, 25 Mar 2025 17:14:32 GMT

A Compassionate Guide

Being named the executor for a loved one is both an honour and a significant responsibility. As you step into this role, it is understandable to feel overwhelmed by the myriad of tasks and decisions that lie ahead. While the process can be complex and time-consuming, it is essential to approach it with warmth, empathy, and unwavering professionalism.

At our funeral home, we understand the profound stress and time loss that can accompany the executor role. With over 80 years of experience in guiding families through their most challenging moments, we are committed to providing a compassionate and supportive environment to ease your burden .

Understanding the Role of an Executor

As an executor, you are entrusted with settling the estate of your loved one, ensuring that their final wishes are honoured and their affairs are properly managed. This includes tasks such as:

• Probate court proceedings

• Gathering and managing assets

• Paying debts and taxes

• Distributing inheritance to beneficiaries

Each of these tasks requires attention to detail, patience, and a significant investment of time. It is not uncommon for executors to feel the weight of these responsibilities, compounded by their own grief and the emotional impact of losing a loved one.

Empowering You with Knowledge and Support

Most families that come through our doors have little to no knowledge of what to expect from the funeral process or the responsibilities of an executor. Our team is here to educate and explain all details, answer any questions, and provide personalized guidance tailored to your unique needs. We believe that informed decisions, made with clarity and confidence, can help alleviate some of the stress and uncertainty you may be experiencing.

Embracing Tradition and Innovation

While our approach is rooted in tradition and expertise, we also embrace innovation and modern practices to ensure that we exceed expectations in every aspect of our service. Our partnership with Canadian-owned and operated Cadence is a recent innovative addition to our full-service funeral approach that we are extremely proud of. The Cadence online Executor Assistant provides a safe, digital vault so that all of the documents and decisions that you will need to close your loved one’s estate will be actionable and available when needed. After answering a series of questions about your loved one, Executor Assistant creates a roadmap of tasks and their timing that will be needed to be completed over the next year. Eliminating the guesswork and overwhelm that so often come with being an executor means that not only will you save time and stress, but you will be better able to grieve and heal after the loss of your loved one.

“Executors spend an average of 320 hours over 16 months on estate settlement, with 127 of those hours on administrative tasks. With Cadence, you can save over 100 hours in total, so you can allow yourself time and space to go through the grieving process and be with those you love.”

The Park Memorial Difference

As a family-owned and operated funeral home, we take pride in our role as pillars of support within our community. Beyond our funeral services , we actively engage with our community by hosting grief support events and initiatives. These efforts demonstrate our ongoing dedication to serving not just as a business, but as compassionate neighbours and friends.

In summary, navigating the stress and time loss as an executor for a loved one is a challenging journey, but you do not have to face it alone; Park Memorial’s team of professionals along with our partnership with Cadence will help you every step of the way. Our service embodies care, compassion, professionalism, and community support, reflecting our enduring commitment to serving families with dignity and respect during their most challenging moments. We are here to provide the guidance, resources, and emotional support you need to fulfill your role with confidence and ease.

If you have any questions or need assistance, please do not hesitate to reach out to our dedicated team . We are here to help you every step of the way.

Park Memorial: A Proudly Canadian Family-Owned Business

Fri, 21 Mar 2025 15:19:32 GMT

At the heart of our daily operations lies a deep-rooted pride in being a Canadian family-owned and operated business.

While other funeral homes in Canada are owned by US corporations, we are proud of our Canadian heritage . Our journey, steeped in tradition and expertise, has always been guided by the principle of serving families with unwavering care and respect during their most challenging moments. In celebrating our Canadian heritage and family values , we continue to uphold the standards that make us not just a business, but an integral part of the community's fabric. Our enduring commitment is to serve with heart, and to be there, always, for those who trust us in their times of need.

"I selected the name Park Memorial at a time when all other funeral homes in Edmonton carried the names of their owners. I wanted to ensure there were no overtones suggesting a preference to serve one religious denomination or a specific ethnic group over another."

~ Tod Smolyk, Founder of Park Memorial

Our commitment echoes the values that are essential to the Canadian identity: inclusion , diversity , empathy , and resilience . We believe in fostering a community where every person is equal , and everyone feels welcomed and supported, mirroring the spirit of unity and diversity that defines our great nation . Our product line continues to offer a strong selection of Canadian-made caskets and urns . Through every service we provide, we strive to embody the strength and compassion that Canadians are known for, ensuring that each family experiences a sense of belonging and peace during their most trying times.

Click here to learn more about our proudly Canadian family-owned business.

Healing Through Art: A Journey with Park Memorial's Grief Support Events

Fri, 21 Feb 2025 22:46:51 GMT

Embracing Grief, Finding Connection

Grief is a journey that knows no bounds, touching everyone in deeply personal ways. Understanding this, Park Memorial launched a unique series of monthly events in January 2018, aimed at providing a safe space for those navigating the pain and sorrow of loss. These events, which focus on grief expression through art therapy and informal conversation, have grown to become a cornerstone of support for our community.

The inception of this initiative was serendipitous. Our first event, ‘Express Your Heart Through Art Day’, coincided with Bell Let’s Talk Day on January 31, 2018. This perfect alignment inspired us to brand this event series Art for the Grieving Heart , a community event integrating artistic expression and grief support. We partnered with two wonderful organizations, Box Social Events and The Art of Cake, setting the stage for a meaningful journey of healing.

The art project at our February 2025 event was creating beautiful dot mandalas on paperback journal books. Our focus was on 'repeating simple tasks with care' not only in the art project, but also as an approach to the overwhelming road of grief.

Deanne Ferguson of Box Social led our inaugural session, guiding guests through the creation of their own terrariums. Each terrarium was a unique blend of thoughtful pieces and mementos, personalized with messages and memories. This crafting session was more than just an art project; it was an intimate experience that allowed each participant to channel their grief into something tangible and beautiful.

From the very beginning, our events have been about meeting people where they are in their grief journey. We provide a safe and practical space where guests can sit together, share their experiences, and simply be with others who understand their pain. Each event has fostered connections among individuals united by a common experience, despite the unique nature of each person's loss.

As the months progressed, these intimate gatherings continued to flourish, with an increasing number of attendees each month. We have now welcomed over 200 individual guests to these monthly events! We are incredibly fortunate to have the support of local grief experts who generously give their time to facilitate the informal conversations that follow each art session. These discussions often center on self-care, daily challenges, and the ways grief impacts our lives. The comfort and understanding shared in these conversations have been invaluable to all who attend.

"The art projects allow me to gently access the pain of my grief" ~Doris, Event Guest

The pandemic brought a temporary halt to our gatherings, but we have since resumed our monthly events with a couple of changes. Our new location in our Park Memorial reception centre provides a welcoming environment, and Alexandra, our talented staff member, now leads our art projects as Deanne and her family relocated during the pandemic.

Alexandra's ability to create art projects that resonate with the journey of grief is truly remarkable. Her personal passion for using crafting to support her own grief journey shines through in every aspect of her art facilitation, from ensuring that we have a regular guest's favourite colours for every project that she creates (pink and purple remind him of his daughter who passed away) to ensuring that every detail and piece of her instruction is thought out completely.

The Art of Cake continues to delight us with their exquisite sweet treats, maintaining their long-standing partnership and support.

Park Memorial's grief support events are more than just a gathering; they are a beacon of hope and healing. By embracing the power of art and community, we are able to offer solace and connection to those who need it most. We invite you to join us and witness the transformative power of shared grief and creative expression.

Click here to access our coming events page and follow the upcoming dates for Art for the Grieving Heart and our other grief support events.

Guest Blog: Men and Grief

Tue, 05 Nov 2024 20:02:02 GMT

Navigating Expectations and Authentic Expression

What does it mean for a man to grieve “Correctly?”

Better question… “Who gets to decide what “correctly” looks like for you?

According to grief experts like Dr. Alan Wolfelt , there is no one-size-fits-all model of grief. All of our journeys are unique. And while I know this to be true, the reality is that most men I have spoken to feel a lot of pressure about how they are supposed to grieve. We recently explored this topic at our Connect’d Men’s group meeting, and I wanted to share my experience unpacking grief for men and some of the common themes we heard about grief. I hope you may see some commonalities in your grief journeys and feel less alone on the trip.

Men and Grief: Am I doing it right?

On October 2, 2015, I experienced unimaginable loss. My girlfriend Colleen was murdered by an ex-boyfriend who subsequently took his own life. The grief hit me hard. The pain was real and raw, and the uncertainty of how I would cope added to the weight. I had no frame of reference for how I was supposed to do this. I remember walking into my office immediately after hearing the news, throwing my phone to the floor and crumpling to the ground, exclaiming through tears, “I don’t even know what to do!”

All I knew was that I had a lot of loved ones around to support me. Friends, family and co-workers alike. They constantly console, reassure, and remind me to “be strong.” While these words were meant to comfort me, they only reinforced this unspoken rule to hold back my tears. I can assure you that the last thing I wanted to do was “be strong.” I wanted to curl up in a ball and cry like a baby. I love them all for their intentions of support. However, it makes me sad that our Western culture’s version of “Be strong.” still seems to be interpreted as avoiding, suppressing and sucking it up when it comes to difficult emotions.

Many of the men in our group wondered:

“Am I doing it right?”
“Am I grieving enough?”
“Am I grieving too much?”
“How do I need to be in order to keep those around me comfortable?”
“Am I showing up for my loved ones who are also grieving?”
“How am I supposed to show up for those around me who also need support?”

To understand why so many of us men struggle with how they are perceived while grieving we need to look at the roots of these expectations.

Men and Grief: How did we get here?

As men, there are many historical and cultural pressures on how we are supposed to feel, be, and act. There is a misconception that we need to remain stoic in the face of difficult circumstances. That true strength is shown through mastery of one’s emotions and not allowing oneself to be swayed by grief or joy.

Cultural representations in media

Hero Archetypes : Popular culture has reinforced these standards through stoic male heroes who endure hardships without showing any emotion. From classic Westerns featuring characters like John Wayne to action films with protagonists like James Bond or even more modern heroes like Jason Bourne, male figures have been portrayed as emotionally impenetrable, setting unrealistic standards for male behavior.

Shift in Narrative : Although there have been changes in recent years with more complex and emotionally open male characters, these older archetypes still contribute to societal pressure for men to grieve privately or suppress emotions.

Religious and Moral Teachings

Many religious teachings have historically emphasized male leadership, strength, and emotional control. Phrases such as “Be strong and courageous” have been interpreted to discourage men from openly expressing grief or vulnerability.

Impact on Community Expectations : In religious and moral contexts, men were often expected to be their families’ spiritual and emotional pillars, minimizing their grief to support others. These expectations can lead men to believe that admitting emotional pain is some kind of moral failing, leading to an invisible spiral of additional grief or shame.

Workplace and Productivity

The Industrial Revolution shifted the focus to men as the primary breadwinners. This reinforced the idea that emotions were a distraction from productivity. Men were expected to show up and do the work unaffected by any personal turmoil in their own lives.

Modern Day: Today, there is much less pressure on men to be the primary providers. However, almost all of the men I talk to still strongly desire to be the producers, providers, and performers. These lingering beliefs still shape how men see their roles despite the more open conversations encouraging emotional openness.

Men and Grief: Where are we now?

When Colleen was killed, a friend shared with me a letter written by Ram Dass to the parents of a young girl who had been killed. One line that deeply resonated with me:

“Now is the time to let your grief find expression. No false strength.”

This phrase challenged everything I had previously believed about what it meant to be a “strong man.” In that moment, I understood that my path to healing was through expression, not suppression. I realized then that strength wasn’t about hiding, burying, or suppressing how I felt. True strength was about having the courage to “let my grief find expression.” That meant sharing my story and creating a space for men to explore their emotions actively.

Many of the men in our group shared feelings of guilt or inadequacy in how they were grieving. The struggle with not feeling weak when expressing vulnerability was real for all of us. We shared how it felt to be unsure how to support those around us who were also grieving. We talked about performing to meet what we believed were societal expectations.

One of the things I found most interesting as we unpacked what it was like to grieve as a man was that most of these expectations were self-imposed and rooted in internalized beliefs absorbed from the media, culture or our upbringing. Most of us agreed that letting go of perceived expectations and showing up authentically was a powerful way to grieve. This collective realization gave some powerful insights into how we each approached our individual grief and left us with a shared sense of validation.

Men and Grief: Those around us

We discussed that most of us do not know how to show up for others when they are grieving. It can be awkward and uncomfortable for those around us when we are in the midst of our grief. There was a consensus that we felt like we did not want to be a burden to those around us. Many of us felt obligated to “keep it together” so others would not be uncomfortable.

We shared frustration with those around us who could not show up for us when we needed them. I know I have many personal stories of those closest to me who did not know how to show up, yet some acquaintances, who I least expected it from, showed up powerfully.

One of the most memorable moments was when two of my teammates, instead of asking what I needed and putting the burden of support on me, simply messaged, “Are you home tomorrow at 11? We’re bringing coffee and donuts.” And they did just that—they showed up and sat with me for a few hours.

We talked about having empathy for those folks and that we are never taught “how to support someone who is grieving” any loss. Understanding that their discomfort often stems from their own fears about grief can help release some of that frustration. For me, my mantra when it comes to others is simple: Surround yourself with those who “get it” and have empathy and forgiveness for the ones who do not.

Men and Grief: The Bottom Line

Whether you’re grieving the loss of a loved one, the dissolution of a relationship, the loss of a job or even an unmet expectation, grief is different for all of us. There is no “right” way to grieve, just your way. Surrounding yourself with others who let you drop all the armour and all the masks we tend to wear as men is incredibly powerful. Finding ways to articulate your grief and experimenting with what “Letting your grief find expression” means were meaningful ways the men in our group navigated their grief.

True healing comes when we permit ourselves to grieve as we are rather than as we think we should. Allowing ourselves to be seen in our grief is not a weakness; it’s a profound act of courage that opens the door to genuine healing.

To access Mike's original post, please click here .

To read more about our Men's Grief support events that Mike helps to facilitate, please click here.

Youth Suicide Grief Support

Tue, 10 Sep 2024 21:56:00 GMT

Canadian Mental Health Edmonton Region

Urgent Announcement: Youth Suicide Grief Support Program Relaunches on September 11th 2024

Attention Edmonton community! The Canadian Mental Health Association - Edmonton Region is pleased to announce the relaunch of its impactful Youth Suicide Grief Support Program, starting tomorrow (September 11, 2024)! This vital program is designed to support youth aged 12-25 and their families/caregivers who have experienced a loss due to suicide.

“It isn't that you didn't reach for them. It's just that it was too hard to see your hand in the blackness”.

The in-person weekly sessions will be held at our Prosper Place location, 10455 172 Street NW, Edmonton. These sessions provide a safe space to process grief, learn new tools, and receive much-needed support. Additionally, information sessions will introduce participants to the group, allowing them to ask questions and determine if the program is the right fit for them.

Time is of the essence! Register now to secure your spot and take the first step towards healing. For more detailed information, please visit https://edmonton.cmha.ca/brochure/youth-suicide-grief-support-services/ . Don't miss this opportunity to join a supportive community and embark on a healing journey together. Click here to download this program brochure .

Healing After the Shattering of Reality

Thu, 29 Aug 2024 22:32:36 GMT

A Virtual Grief Support Event for Medical Families

When a child is diagnosed with a critical illness or suffers a critical injury, their family’s life shatters into pieces. Parents and siblings are catapulted into new terminology, clinical discussions, hospitals, treatments, huge changes, and fear along with the child in care. Families who receive ongoing care for their child or children at the Stollery Children’s Hospital know this too well.

Park Memorial was invited to facilitate one of our Art for the Grieving Heart events for a group of Stollery parents and caregivers recently. We were asked to focus our grief discussion on the grief experienced because of all of the changes to the life and future that a family has imagined after a child’s diagnosis. Our art facilitator, Alexandra created the perfect art project: abstract canvases with shapes subdivided by washi tape and filled in with different colours of paint. Once the paint had dried, the tape was removed, and the words and expressions that had come to the hearts and minds of each guest as we journeyed through both written and discussion exercises found their way onto the canvases. Our discussion and writing exercises were gentle and thought-provoking, and centred on some writings of poet Ullie Kaye.

“Your session was well thought out and beautifully presented. Grief always comes up in our regular support group – usually by about week three of five, even when it is not named. It was wonderful today to go into it more deeply, and the combination of the peaceful art activity with the writing and thinking parts created such a balanced approach."

This was the first time that we took this event into the virtual space, and we were pleased at the connection that could still be established virtually.

Thank you to the Stollery's Family and Patient-Centred Care team for allowing us into this beautifully vulnerable space to serve your families.

If you would like to attend one of our Art for the Grieving Heart grief support events, please click here .

For more information about all of our Park Memorial grief support events, please visit www.parkmemorial.com/coming-events .

A New Addition to Our Team

Fri, 02 Aug 2024 20:33:37 GMT

How Park Memorial Supports You After the Funeral

Park Memorial recently added Aftercare Specialist Sarah Kucharski to our team of funeral professionals. Her role is to make the aftercare process of completing forms and applications, and closing a loved one’s estate a little easier; she walks beside each of our families to assist with these tasks after the funeral. She comes to us with almost 20 years of experience as a Licensed Preneed and Aftercare Specialist. Park Memorial is a full-service funeral home, therefore Sarah’s care is included in our professional services to each family that we care for.

"I lost my mom when I was 20 and she was only in her early 40s. Unfortunately, our experience in another province with the funeral home selected was not great. This experience inspired me to serve better and do better for the families that I care for; I don't want anyone to go through the same things I did."

We took some time to interview Sarah about her role:

Q: Sarah can you tell me a little bit about yourself as far as your background - specifically with aftercare?

A: I've been in the death care profession for nearly 20 years looking after families for both their pre-arrangement needs as well as their post-bereavement needs. I walk them through all the important information in the comfort of their own home to get them started on the necessary paperwork after the death of a loved one: the CPP death benefit application, Survivor’s Benefit application, and many of the steps necessary to close out their loved one’s estate over the next year.

Q: Can you tell me why you're passionate about this work?
A: I am a product of my own experience; I lost my mom when I was 20 and she was only in her early 40s. Unfortunately, our experience in another province with the funeral home selected was not great. This experience inspired me to serve better and do better for the families that I care for; I don't want anyone to go through the same things I did.

Q: How do you follow up with the family in their home after the funeral service is over, knowing they must deal with so many tasks that arise from the loss of a loved one?

A: This is all about ensuring that they have the details or answers to the questions that are on their minds. Often, I will ask questions that generate conversation around things that maybe they hadn't even thought about. For example, canceling insurance: some insurance companies won't pay out funds immediately, depending on the cause and manner of the death. Families don't always necessarily realize that if an insurance company is asking for a death certificate, they are required to apply for a registered death certificate instead of providing the funeral director's statement of death that the funeral home creates. This is because the insurance company is looking for cause and manner of death information. Not understanding details like this can cause multiple applications to be needed and likely delay the funding from the insurance settlement. When dealing with someone's livelihood in terms of their financial well-being, we want to help ensure that all components of aftercare that impact the financial outcomes are expedited quite quickly. And although I don’t always have all the answers to their questions, I will help to guide the family in the right direction to get those answers.

Q: What should a family have ready for your appointment when you're coming to meet with them for aftercare?

A: Ideally things such as their loved one’s marriage license if that's applicable, passport, driver’s license, and anything else that falls under the category of primary legal identification. Everything else that they will need, we will identify together as I ask them very specific questions about their loved one.

Q: One of the additional supports and benefits that Park Memorial includes in our services to all bereaved families is the use of an online platform called Cadence that we acquired recently to help families with the aftercare process. How would you describe Cadence?

"There are so many things that must be dealt with in the first year after a loved one dies; for someone to just go out-on-a-limb and try to remember and track down and look after things can take 350-plus hours. Cadence helps pare that down to an average of about 75 hours worth of work, which is a huge time savings."

A. I honestly have never seen anything quite like it - it is amazing! It is so user-friendly and is very in-depth with questions to help segment out tasks and simplify things for families so that they can dial into the appropriate things that they need to look after and the timeline that they need to do those things within.

To start, it takes 10 – 15 minutes to answer a few short “yes” or “no” (or “unsure”) questions specific to the person who has died: ie if they have social media accounts, rewards cards/memberships, business /personal memberships and subscriptions. These will all need to be cancelled to not only mitigate unnecessary ongoing charges, but also to mitigate identity theft. And they need to ask certain questions before cancelling.

There are a lot of things that we don't think about as survivors: we go right to the bank account or life insurance, but we don't always think about canceling tenant insurance on a rental property, or returning a handicap placard if there was one in use. From the answers to those preliminary questions, Cadence creates a ‘road map’ of sorts with the items/tasks to be dealt with, along with suggested timing that the family must attend to over the next year. It gives them the breakdown of what's to be done in months one, two and three, and towards the calendar year-end which is typically used the following year when trying to wrap up the estate and complete final taxes.

Q. What would you say to families who might think that Cadence is just one more job on their burdening list of things to deal with after the loss of their loved one?

A. There are so many things that must be dealt with in the first year after a loved one dies; for someone to just randomly try to track down information, remember all the relevant details, and look after all the related tasks can take 350-plus hours. Cadence helps pare that down to an average of about 75-hours worth of work, which is a huge time savings. I've worked with families that didn't have an opportunity to use a program like Cadence that have taken numerous days, weeks, and months to adapt and collect the same information that Cadence will prompt you to do within the first week of using it. And if you are employed when your loved one dies, many companies don't offer an extended period of bereavement time, so having that time efficiency is crucial in today's world.

If your family has been served by Park Memorial recently prior to Sarah’s arrival, and you would like to book an appointment with her or you are interested in learning more about Cadence, please contact her at 780-426-0050. She will meet with you in the comfort of your own home with both evening and weekend appointments available.

Read more about the importance of wills here .

Read more about choosing an executor here .

Don't Leave Your Estate to Chance

Fri, 02 Aug 2024 20:33:34 GMT

The Importance of Having a Will

A will is a legal document that reflects your end-of-life wishes and values, and it can provide peace of mind and clarity for yourself and your loved ones. Having a will is important because it allows you to decide who will be charged with managing your estate (your executor), such as overseeing your liabilities, who may take care of minor children and who will inherit your assets. A will can also help you avoid or reduce taxes, fees, and conflicts among your family members or other beneficiaries. If you die without a will, the law will determine how your estate will be distributed, which may not match your preferences or expectations. Furthermore, dying without a will can cause delays, expenses, and stress for your survivors, who may have to deal with legal procedures and disputes. Therefore, having a will is a responsible and compassionate way to plan ahead and protect your legacy. You can even take things one step further and include funeral preplanning in your will to eliminate guesswork and guilt for your family, with your last wishes being clearly defined, and your funeral investment protected from inflation.

"Having a will is a responsible and compassionate way to plan ahead and protect your legacy."

Park Memorial recently added Licensed Preneed and Aftercare Specialist Sarah Kucharski to our team of funeral professionals. Her role is to make the aftercare process of completing forms, applications, and closing a loved one’s estate a little easier; she walks beside each of our families to assist with these tasks after the funeral; she comes to us with almost 20 years of experience. Park Memorial is a full-service funeral home; Sarah’s care is included in our professional services to each family that we care for.

We took some time to interview Sarah about the importance of having a will:

Q: Where do you start with families with regards to discussions about wills?

A: I will generally ask a family: Do you have a will? Do you understand the importance behind having a will?

Whether the answers are yes or no, we then discuss that there are three types of wills available to residents of Alberta:

1. A holographic will which you create yourself, must be 100% in your own handwriting, and must be dated and signed as a legal binding will.

2. A secondary option is a will kit that you would obtain at your local bookstore or registries office. It's a do-it-yourself will kit that has pre-typed information on the page, along with blank areas for you to add your own specific written information. These types of wills require two witnesses to sign at the same time that you, the testator, sign it.

3. Thirdly, you have the option of having a will that's created through a law firm. If you feel that there could be any issues or that someone may contest the will due to being a blended family or having difficult family dynamics, or if there are businesses owned or a more complicated estate to settle, it is wise to seek out legal advice and have a will written with the assistance of a lawyer.

"Dying without a will can lead to crippling financial burden for your loved ones left behind: they will need to apply for and await a Grant of Administration before they can sell your home, vehicles, etc, and must keep paying for the accompanying insurances, taxes, and utilities for these assets until it is granted."

Q: What are the risks in dying without a will?

A: Dying without a will may lead to complication, confusion, and delays. A lot of people believe that a will is only about leaving tangible or financial things behind; that's only one piece of a will. Equally as important is that a will names someone to be left in charge - the executor – of your estate. The executor is the person who can go to the bank and close the bank account when it's ready to be closed, can sell your home, car, or other assets, and has sole decision-making capacity with regards to your assets and liabilities. Having that person in charge is critically important; without an executor, families could be held up in court to obtain a Grant of Administration. I've actually had personal experience with this: my mother-in-law passed away intestate (meaning she did not have a will) and it took almost 11 months to obtain a Grant of Administration. This meant that for the duration of that 11-month time frame, we had to carry the expenses of two households (mortgage, insurance, property taxes, car payments, utilities, etc.) as we couldn't dissolve any of those pieces of the estate until we had that one important piece of paper from the King’s Bench stating that we could administer the estate. This was difficult for us, and for most families, this creates crippling financial burden.

Q: At what age / stage of life do you need a will?

A: There are a lot of people who are under the false impression that you only need to have a will once you have a mortgage, investments, and / or children. But the reality is that everyone who is over the age of 18 and is considered a legal adult in the province of Alberta should have a will: kids will go into university and obtain student loans that will need to be cared for, there may be car loans, and potentially RESP’s or RRSP’s to deal with. We never want to think about losing a loved one so young, but preparedness that starts at a young age leads to better preparedness through adult life. Canadians should actually go through about four to five will revisions in a lifetime to reflect their changes in assets, liabilities, and dependents; yet the reality is that of the number of Canadians who even have a will, half of those have only created the one, unchanged, original version of their will.

Your will is not only a legal document, but also a way to express your wishes and care for your loved ones so that their days and months after your passing can be spent without guilt or worrying about decisions made, as well as additional financial burden.

PLEASE NOTE: The information provided in this post is for general information and educational purposes only and does not constitute legal advice or an opinion on any issue. Park Memorial is not a legal entity nor expert in wills, but seeks to provide timely, empathetic and valuable information regarding wills for the community that we serve. You should always consult a qualified legal professional before making any decisions or taking any actions related to your estate planning. Park Memorial disclaims any liability for any loss or damage arising from your use of or reliance on this information.

To read more about Park Memorial’s Aftercare Program, please click here .

To read more about choosing an Executor, please click here .

Reflections on The Strength Within: Balancing Life, Loss & Chaos

Fri, 17 May 2024 22:48:09 GMT

Unleashing Inner Greatness

As the sun sets on our incredible event last Friday, we find ourselves reflecting on the profound journey of self-discovery and empowerment that was The Strength Within: Balancing Life, Loss & Chaos. Over the course of the day, we witnessed remarkable transformations, forged deep connections, and witnessed the extraordinary power of resilience in action.

Throughout the day, participants delved deep into their inner worlds, exploring the depths of their emotions, beliefs, and aspirations. Guided by experienced facilitators and supported by a community of kindred spirits, attendees embarked on a journey of healing, growth, and self-awareness. From the moment they arrived, participants were enveloped in a warm embrace of support and understanding. Through group discussions, therapeutic workshops, and experiential activities, they navigated the complexities of grief, loss, and life's challenges with grace and courage. Together, they shared stories, shed tears, and celebrated victories, forming bonds that will last a lifetime.

One of the most powerful aspects of The Strength Within was the sense of community it fostered. In a safe and nurturing environment, participants found solace in shared experiences, strength in solidarity, and hope in the collective journey towards healing. As they opened their hearts and minds to one another, they discovered that they were not alone—that together, they were stronger than they ever imagined.

But perhaps the most profound takeaway from The Strength Within was the realization of the innate power within each of us. Through mindfulness practices, expressive arts therapy, and introspective exercises, participants tapped into their inner reserves of resilience, courage, and wisdom. They discovered that true strength lies not in the absence of struggle, but in the ability to rise above it—to embrace our vulnerabilities, honor our truths, and cultivate a deep sense of self-love and acceptance.

As this incredible event draws to a close, we are filled with gratitude—for the courage of our participants, the wisdom of our facilitators, and the transformative power of community. We leave The Strength Within with hearts full and spirits renewed, knowing that we are stronger, wiser, and more resilient than we were before.

To all who joined us on this incredible journey, we thank you for your openness, your authenticity, and your willingness to embrace the journey of self-discovery. May the lessons learned and connections forged at The Strength Within continue to inspire and empower you in the days, weeks, and years to come.

Until we meet again, may you always remember the greatness that lies within you—the strength, the resilience, and the boundless potential to shine brightly in the world.

With love and gratitude,

The Park Memorial Family

Click here to learn more about our upcoming grief support events .

Photos by Dalystock

Community Spotlight: Aspen Service Dogs

Fri, 29 Mar 2024 05:25:24 GMT

Providing Furry Comfort and Care in Times of Need

Park Memorial Funeral Home hosts a Christmas Memorial Service every December to give the families that we have served over the past few years, as well as the community-at-large, the opportunity to gather together to remember their loved ones who have passed away.

For the past two years, we decided to support three local organizations while also allowing our families to pay meaningful tribute to their loved ones via our memorial donation. In order to choose which organizations we would support, we first gave our staff family a list of local organizations and asked them to vote on their top three. The vote netted that Roozen Family Hospice Centre – Pilgrims Hospice, Edmonton Food Bank, and Aspen Service Dogs would be the benefitting organizations. We then gave each individual who RSVP’d for the service the opportunity to choose which of the three charities would best honour their loved one with our memorial donation.

On January 18th a few members of our staff family delivered the corporate donation as well as the list of loved ones that each donation honoured to each of the three organizations. Each organization gave some time to our team to explain more about who and how they serve, and answer our questions about their impact in the community, how this memorial donation will help them, and what the greatest needs of the organization are at present. Here is the story of our time with Aspen Service Dogs:

At Park Memorial Funeral Home, we understand the profound impact of loss and the importance of finding solace and support during difficult times. That's why, as part of our commitment to our community, we're proud to highlight organizations like Aspen Service Dogs, whose work brings comfort and companionship to those who need it most.

Empowering Lives Through Service Dogs

Aspen Service Dogs is dedicated to training and providing service dogs to individuals facing various challenges, including those coping with PTSD, autism, and more. With a mission rooted in compassion and empathy, Aspen Service Dogs aims to enhance the quality of life for their clients by offering the invaluable support and companionship of a professionally trained service dog.

Investing in the Legacy Breeding Program

Your donation to Aspen Service Dogs will contribute to their Legacy Breeding Program, a cornerstone of their efforts to cultivate a new generation of service dogs. For more information about this program and how your contribution will make a difference, visit their website and explore the detailed information provided.

Making Service Dogs Accessible

The cost of acquiring and training a service dog can be prohibitive for many individuals and families. At Aspen, they understand the financial barriers that may prevent people from accessing these life-changing companions. That's why they've committed to keeping the cost of their training program affordable, priced at $30,000 per dog—a fraction of the typical cost, which can range from $40,000 to $55,000 elsewhere.

Urgent Call for Dog Raisers and Puppy Raisers

Aspen Service Dogs relies on the dedication and generosity of volunteers to raise and care for the puppies and dogs in their program. Currently, there is an urgent need for dog raisers and puppy raisers to support their mission. By opening your heart and home to these furry companions, you can play a vital role in providing emotional support and companionship to individuals navigating Mobility Limitations, Autism , PTSD , and Facility , Hearing and Diabetic Alert .

Healing Through Connection

Caring for a service dog or puppy not only benefits the recipient but also provides emotional support and healing for the raiser. For those struggling with grief, depression, or isolation, the companionship and responsibility of caring for a dog can be profoundly therapeutic. This has definitely been the experience of our staff member, Nicole, an Adult Raiser with Aspen Service Dogs. She is foster-raising her second adult dog with this organization and speaks highly of the training, flexibility, and impact of the program. Having suffered the loss of her mother and a significant long-term relationship one after the other, foster-raising these pups has given her purpose and drive in healing the hurts of her losses. She also speaks very highly of the value of furry cuddles. She says that working with Aspen helped her walk through her grief in a healthy way by becoming the dogs' best partner. In order for the pups to succeed in their training, she needed to ensure that they had access to the experiences required to lead them to graduate from their program and help those in need. By nurturing and training these dogs, raisers find purpose and connection, helping them navigate their own journey of healing and recovery.

oin Us in Supporting Aspen Service Dogs

As we come together to honor the memory of our loved ones, let us also extend our support to organizations like Aspen Service Dogs, whose work brings comfort, companionship, and hope to those in need. Whether through donations, volunteering, or spreading awareness, your support can make a meaningful difference in the lives of individuals facing challenges.

For more information on how you can support Aspen Service Dogs or get involved as a dog raiser or puppy raiser, visit their website or follow the link provided. Together, let's continue to uplift and empower our community through the love and companionship of service dogs.

To learn more about the Aspen Service Dogs Organization: https://aspenservicedogs.com/

To volunteer as an adult or puppy raiser: https://aspenservicedogs.com/volunteer/

To learn about Aspen's Legacy Breeding Program: https://aspenservicedogs.com/legacy-breeding-program/

Here's a video of hi-lites of our Park Memorial Donation Day:

To join the Park Memorial team in the Hike For Hospice fundraiser for Pilgrim's Hospice on April 27, 2024, click here
To read about our past support of Pilgrim's Hospice, click here
To see all of our upcoming grief support events, click here

Community Spotlight: Edmonton Food Bank

Fri, 29 Mar 2024 04:36:24 GMT

Serving 34,000 Edmonton Families in Need Every Month

At Park Memorial Funeral Home, our commitment to community extends beyond providing compassionate funeral services. Each year, we endeavour to honor the memory of our community's departed loved ones while supporting local organizations that enrich the lives of Edmontonians. In line with this tradition, we are proud to spotlight the Edmonton Food Bank, an indispensable lifeline for thousands of individuals and families in our city.

Serving with Compassion and Dedication

The Edmonton Food Bank operates from a sprawling 30,000 square foot warehouse, a testament to their scale and impact. Since their inception, the demand for their services has surged exponentially. In 2022, they assisted an average of 30,000 people per month, a number that rose to 34,000 in 2023, solely through the distribution of individual hampers. Over the past decade, the need for their services has doubled and a half, highlighting the critical role they play in our community's welfare.

A Nutritious Bounty for Every Household

A typical hamper from the Edmonton Food Bank isn't just a collection of non-perishable items; it's a testament to their dedication to providing wholesome nourishment. Each hamper contains staples like pasta, pasta sauce, and beans, supplemented by fresh produce donated by food industry partners. Moreover, every hamper is ensured to include essentials like peanut butter, eggs, and milk, items the Food Bank procures specifically to bolster the nutritional value of their offerings.

Beyond Food: Addressing Essential Needs

Recognizing that hunger isn't the only challenge facing vulnerable households, the Edmonton Food Bank goes the extra mile to support the holistic well-being of their clients. Personal hygiene items, such as toothbrushes, toothpaste, and deodorants, are available upon request, whenever supplies permit. Additionally, they provide pet food and items, sourced from generous grocers and pet agencies, understanding the importance of caring for every member of the family, furry or otherwise.

Volunteerism: The Heartbeat of the Food Bank

Volunteers form the backbone of the Edmonton Food Bank, contributing their time and energy to ensure its smooth operation. In 2022 alone, volunteers dedicated a staggering 118,000 hours to support their mission. Remarkably, some individuals, like one full-time volunteer who has served for a decade, epitomize the spirit of selflessness that defines the Food Bank's community. Whether sorting donations, assembling hampers, or assisting with food drives, volunteers play a vital role in addressing hunger in our city.

How You Can Make a Difference

As with any organization reliant on community support, the Edmonton Food Bank has specific needs to fulfill its mission effectively. In addition to financial contributions, which are always appreciated, they have identified primary needs such as baby diapers (sizes 4, 5, 6) and canned dinners. Furthermore, they welcome both individual and groups of volunteers, offering opportunities to engage directly with their vital work.

Join Us in Supporting the Edmonton Food Bank

As we come together to commemorate the lives of our departed loved ones, let us also rally behind organizations like the Edmonton Food Bank, whose tireless efforts nourish our community's body and soul. Your support, whether through donations, volunteering, or spreading awareness, can make a meaningful difference in the lives of those facing food insecurity. Together, let's ensure that no one in our city goes hungry.

For more information on how you can support the Edmonton Food Bank, visit their website or reach out to their team directly. Let's make a difference, one hamper at a time.

To learn more about The Edmonton Food Bank: https://www.edmontonsfoodbank.com/

To volunteer at The Edmonton Food Bank https://www.edmontonsfoodbank.com/volunteer/

To donate to The Edmonton Food Bank: https://www.edmontonsfoodbank.com/ways-give/

Here's a video of hi-lites of our Park Memorial Donation Day:

To join the Park Memorial team in the Hike For Hospice fundraiser for Pilgrim's Hospice on April 27, 2024, click here
To read about our support of Pilgrim's Hospice, click here
To see all of our upcoming grief support events, click here

Community Spotlight: Pilgrims Hospice

Fri, 29 Mar 2024 04:10:46 GMT

Family-Centred End-of-Life Care at Roozen Family Hospice Centre

For the past two years, we decided to support three local organizations while also allowing our families to pay meaningful tribute to their loved ones via our memorial donation. In order to choose which organizations we would support, we first gave our staff family a list of local organizations and asked them to vote on their top three. The vote netted that Roozen Family Hospice Centre – Pilgrims Hospice, Edmonton Food Bank, and Aspen Service Dogs would be the benefitting organizations. We then gave each family who RSVP’d for the service the opportunity to choose which of the three charities would best honour their loved one with our memorial donation.

In the early 1990’s, Dr. Helen Hays, Marion Boyd, and Patricia Lynch Ordynec recognized the need for truly dignified end-of-life care for those with terminal illnesses, as well as ongoing support for their grieving families. In 1994 the women registered Pilgrims Hospice and began running programs to fulfill this mission out of a basement space rented from a convent. When the convent was demolished in August 2019, the organization moved to a temporary location, and construction commenced to develop the ideal facility to provide the care that the founders had dreamed of.

In February of 2021, the Roozen Family Hospice Centre was opened, becoming Edmonton’s first residential community hospice. It was a privilege to be warmly welcomed in for a full tour of this innovatory facility, and gain a deeper understanding of how their approach to care impacts individuals, families, and our greater Edmonton community.

A fire jumped and flickered in the wide fireplace, and a comforting aroma of homemade soup beckoned from some unseen simmering pot; the icy winter air which had blustered in behind us was quickly engulfed by the warmth. It felt like stepping into a familiar relative’s cherished home.

Our group was greeted in the foyer with kind smiles and introductions. “We rarely ever say, ‘no,’” the administrator mentioned as the Thursday afternoon bar cart trundled past our group. “Sometimes we say, ‘maybe not today,’ but I don’t think I’ve ever really heard a hard ‘no.’”

The Roozen Family Hospice Centre is run entirely through charitable donations and grants. Stewardship of the facility and its residents is overseen by a number of dedicated staff in addition to over 100 volunteers actively devoting their time and skills. An RN, an LPN, and 2 additional healthcare aids are scheduled on each shift, with direct support volunteers there to assist up until 8:00 p.m.

There are 12 intuitively designed private suites in the facility, these have been created with intentional consideration to allow for any potential mobility limitations or medical equipment, and to comfortably accommodate family members—even pets—who may wish to stay by their loved one’s side. Thoughtful amenities are everywhere, such as Cuddle Beds, which can expand at the push of a button allowing family members, loved ones, or pets to sit or lie beside their loved one. The additional furniture in the suite can be converted into a bed with ease, as well.

When an individual is given the difficult prognosis where their treatment options have narrowed and their life expectancy comes down to just a few months, they may apply for residency at the Roozen Family Hospice Centre. Intake is based on greatest need, and the average length of stay is just 29 days.

One of the first simple luxuries requested by many residents is a spa treatment. In one of two spacious spa rooms designed and equipped to make the joy of a quiet bubble bath accessible to all, residents often choose to spend their first moments at the Hospice Centre soaking in the restful and calming ambiance—aromatherapy, soft music, fairy lights and salt lamps—while receiving high-quality hygienic care.

In the kitchen, a new pot of homemade soup is made every day; it simmers invitingly throughout the day. The menu rotates on a four-week basis to ensure that meals and treats are varied and interesting for residents and their families. If they are mobile, residents can come and go throughout the day and take snacks from the pantry. Or, for anyone with limited mobility, meals are served directly to their rooms at mealtimes, or food and snacks can be brought down to them upon request. Everything stocked in the kitchen is entirely free to take, or people can also bring in their own food. Bonton Bakery donates pastries, cookies, treats and sweets for the tea cart. During the holidays, special feasts are prepared for residents and families; everything for the holiday meals is donated by FreshCo.

The courtyard is a beautiful space where residents and their families can go; to gather for a wedding, or to hear the live music performances by members of the Edmonton Symphony Orchestra, or simply for one’s own quiet contemplation. The courtyard has also been a silent witness to the passing of souls; it is not uncommon for residents request to be outdoors as they pass away, so the doors were intentionally designed to be wide enough to allow a bed to be easily rolled through.

When a resident passes, a sunflower wreath is placed on the door outside their room until that person can be brought into the care of a funeral home. The sunflower wreath is a symbol that a resident has recently moved on and their physical self is within the suite, waiting to be released into care. This way, staff and volunteers can be mindful, and they may choose to silently pay their respects as they walk by.

Once the funeral home attendants arrive, the deceased is brought to the front of the building with care and reverence, where the staff gather for the Walk of Honour; a deeply respectful and dignified farewell. Once all sentimental words have been spoken over the resident and goodbyes have been said, a final poem is recited for them and then the witnesses in attendance all walk out with them through the front door and witness their departure.

People enter through the front door, so they are also always given the dignity of passing through the front door as they leave… This practice challenges the common social norms of keeping any sign of death out of sight. Instead, the stewards of Pilgrims Hospice have established a beautiful tradition of holding time, space, and reverence for those they have served.

Family members of residents are also enveloped in care by the stewards of Pilgrims Hospice as they begin their own journeys with the grief of loss; the support begins with the time they spend at Pilgrims with their loved one.

Spaces such as this one, The Reflection Room, are intentionally provided for residents and their families to reflect, express emotion, or spend time together in comfort.

In the family room, the couch doubles as an overnight bed with washrooms conveniently available nearby for guests' use.

Free massage therapy is offered for family members, a service made accessible thanks to certified RMT volunteers.

The commitment to holistic support for families is considerate of children and teenagers, acknowledging that grief touches our lives at all stages. The facility has a dedicated activity room for young kids and a separate reflection and expression room tailored for teens. These spaces provide the opportunity for kids and teens to connect with their own feelings, an environment where young ones can spend time with others their age, share the difficult experiences they are going through, and relate to each other.

Families are connected to an extensive network of support through community programs facilitated by Pilgrims Hospice, including music and art therapy. They also offer an 8-week support program designed just for teenagers. Anyone in our Edmonton community can participate in the Pilgrims Hospice wellness programs, which are offered for free.

The Roozen Family Hospice Centre Day also hosts another Day Program for residents which is run by Alberta Health Services. Sessions are held Monday through Wednesday, and these sessions come with a cost of $11 per day and require registration beforehand.

Often, family members of previous residents make their way back to Pilgrims to volunteer their time. This can be a helpful healing experience; feeling that their loved one is near and easing the pain of grief. There are approximately 100 volunteers available to assist at Pilgrims Hospice at any given time, but there will always be room for more! Volunteers are trained over the course of a 28-hour program, and upon completion they receive their palliative care certificate. These training programs run quarterly now because there is so much need and demand. If you are interested in volunteering visit their website and click on volunteer.

Another way you can connect to the Pilgrims Hospice community is to join them for the Hike for Pilgrim’s Hospice being held on April 27th, 2024.

Impact Points

• Anyone in our Edmonton community can participate in the Pilgrims Hospice wellness programs, which are offered for free.

• A resident’s family members are thoughtfully and generously cared for through the duration of the time they spend with their loved one at Pilgrims Hospice and after that loved one passes; some family members return to the facility and volunteer their time and services.

• The Walk of Honour is an intentional and highly respectful practice of celebrating and bidding farewell to a deceased resident; they leave through the front door, and all other foot-traffic is halted to accommodate their departure.

• The courtyard is a beautiful space where residents and their families can go to hear the live music performances by members of the Edmonton Symphony Orchestra

• Pilgrims Hospice has hosted three weddings! There were two cases where residents were able to marry the ones they loved, and in one case it was a resident’s family member being married where their loved one could be with them.

To learn more about Pilgrim's Hospice: https://pilgrimshospice.com/#

To volunteer at Pilgrim's Hospice: https://pilgrimshospice.com/get-involved/volunteer/

To donate to Pilgrim's Hospice: https://pilgrimshospice.com/get-involved/make-a-donation/

To join the Park Memorial Team for the Hike for Hospice Fundraiser: Click HERE

Here's a video of hi-lites of our Park Memorial Donation Day:

To join the Park Memorial team in the Hike For Hospice fundraiser for Pilgrim's Hospice on April 27, 2024, click here
To read about our past support of Pilgrim's Hospice, click here
To see all of our upcoming grief support events, click here

Navigating Grief: Unique Challenges and Considerations for Women in Leadership Roles

Tue, 26 Mar 2024 19:21:21 GMT

Navigating grief is a deeply personal journey, one that touches individuals from all walks of life.

However, when it comes to women in leadership roles, the experience takes on added layers of complexity and nuance. From balancing the expectations of strength and composure with an already chaotic life schedule to facing unique challenges shaped by intersecting factors like race, ethnicity, and socioeconomic status, women leaders encounter a distinct set of hurdles when coping with loss. By shedding light on these issues, we aim to foster a deeper understanding of the intersection between grief, gender, and leadership, while providing insights and strategies to support women navigating these difficult circumstances.

Gendered Expectations: Women in leadership roles may face unique challenges when navigating grief, as societal expectations around femininity often encourage emotional expression and empathy. However, in leadership positions, there may be pressure to suppress emotions and maintain composure, which can complicate the grieving process.

Intersectionality: Intersectional factors such as race, ethnicity, socioeconomic status, and sexual orientation can intersect with gender to shape women's experiences of grief and mental health outcomes. For example, women of color in leadership roles may encounter additional barriers to accessing culturally competent support services or face unique cultural expectations around grief expression.

Double Bind: Women in leadership roles may experience a "double bind" when grieving, as they may feel pressure to demonstrate strength and resilience while also being expected to fulfill caregiving and nurturing roles within their personal and professional lives.

Support Networks: Building strong support networks is crucial for women in leadership roles who are navigating grief. This may include seeking support from peers, mentors, or professional networks, as well as prioritizing self-care and seeking therapy or counseling if needed.

Work-Life Integration: Balancing the demands of leadership positions with personal grief can be particularly challenging for women, who often shoulder a disproportionate share of caregiving responsibilities within families. Employers and organizations can foster a supportive environment for women in leadership roles by implementing policies and practices that recognize the impact of grief on mental health, such as flexible work arrangements, compassionate leave policies, and access to counseling or support resources.

Stigma and Stereotypes: Women in leadership roles may face stigma or stereotypes related to their ability to lead effectively while grieving. Challenging these stereotypes and fostering a culture of empathy and support within organizations can help mitigate the negative impact of grief on women's mental health in leadership positions.

Role Modeling: Women leaders who openly acknowledge and discuss their experiences of grief can serve as role models for others, challenging stigma and encouraging open dialogue about mental health in the workplace. This can contribute to creating more supportive and inclusive organizational cultures.

Navigating grief as a woman in a leadership position presents unique challenges, but also opportunities for growth and resilience. By acknowledging the intersectionality of gender, grief, and leadership, and by implementing supportive policies and fostering a culture of empathy within organizations, we can create spaces where women feel empowered to navigate their grief while continuing to excel in their roles. As we strive to break down stigma, challenge stereotypes, and build communities of support that uplift and empower women leaders through every stage of their journey, the tangible benefits of these measures will reverberate not only within workplaces but also within families and across our broader communities, illuminating the profound impact of empowered, supported women on physical, mental, and emotional well-being.

To read about the supportive event that Park Memorial is hosting to help professional women who are trying to balance grief and loss into an already chaotic life, click here . To see how we are also supporting the unique journeys of men and grief, please click here . To see all of our upcoming grief support events , please click here .

Happy International Women’s Day 2024

Fri, 08 Mar 2024 15:02:38 GMT

International Women's Day presents the opportunity for reflection and discussion: about women's victories and celebrations, our trials and sorrows, and our collective responsibility to thoughtfully shape the world our children will inherit.

Encouragingly, we have seen that between women that there is a sturdy thread that runs through the spectrum of all of life's experiences. This thread is made of a resilient hopefulness, and it holds many of our communities together.

March 2024; we are entering the near-halfway point of a decade that has seemed thus far to consist of a series of "unprecedented" circumstances in rapid succession. In addition to individual personal grief, we are keenly aware of the external challenges that weigh heavily on our human hearts. Even as some of us are still reeling from the pandemic, busy schedules have resumed in full force, and grief seems to have a new complexity.

Loss is one of the only inevitable experiences we can be sure to have in life, so it's natural that it can also be one of the most unifying if we allow it to be. Pain will leave indelible marks on the heart, specifically the irreversible loss of death and its unique grief which is almost unbearable at times. Yet, from such disrupting instances of pain, we are often jolted out of what was comfortable, familiar, and routine, and we are forced to grow and adapt... Amidst the darkness of grief, it is almost always in the exchanged commiseration, the sharing of happy memories, and in the tender support of cherished loved ones who are willing to walk beside us in those darkest hours where we find comfort, reprieve, and where we find the light again.

When we come together to honour the lives of those we have lost, and we discover strength in the bonds created through shared experiences, that is when we truly understand the power of community. We can find strength in our collective resilience, and our determination to survive and heal, while also preserving the sanctity of our compassion. With small acts of kindness and with well-organized efforts of solidarity and networks of mutual support, we can navigate the challenges that lie ahead.

As through history, modern women are still prominently fulfilling the critical roles of service in thriving communities: caregivers and healers, communicators, and helpers. Thanks to the efforts of the many women who preceded us, more and more women are justly afforded roles as leaders and social influencers. With these roles of leadership also come the heightened demands of time and energy as professional women try to juggle family life, career, relationships, and stress... all while holding themselves to an often-unachievable standard of perfection.

And then the loss of a loved one occurs... and that same time-pressed woman with so much on her plate must juggle the demands of life with the side effects of grief: exhaustion, brain fog, forgetfulness, and a constant tsunami of emotion. She worries that she isn’t grieving the right way because it takes so long to heal.

The need for community and connection with others who understand is immense.

With knowledge of the need for opportunities such as these in our Edmonton community, Park Memorial is proud to present, " The Strength Within: Balancing Life, Loss and Chaos " on May 10th. This will be our day to find our way, as women are invited to come together and share the weight and complexities of grief and loss in the company of kindred spirits.

Our keynote speakers will guide us with their knowledge and a selection of breakout sessions will facilitate opportunities for education, reflection, feeling, and remembrance... and a little fun, too. This day is where individuals will find comfort, grace, and healing, and leave with practical tools for coping with grief and a sense of connection amongst their personal journeys.

We believe that experiences and opportunities like this can thread our entire community closer together while bringing attention to the extra challenges that loss brings while already trying to keep an extremely busy life in balance.

Clic k he re to learn about this unique event and to secure your seat!

Connection Through Shared Experiences

Fri, 27 Oct 2023 17:19:35 GMT

The positive side of social media

If the positive side of social media has taught us anything, it’s that something pretty special happens when people connect through shared experiences. Whether they connect through a passion for Disney vacations, are avid gardeners, or – yes – even connect because of shared loss and grief – there is power in that shared connection.

Our team at Park Memorial continues to be humbled by the privilege that we have to serve our grieving community by providing safe spaces for people to come together and connect in their grief. This past week saw both our Men’s Grief Support group coming together for their monthly grief discussion as well as our return to our monthly Art for the Grieving Heart program that joins a grief-related art project with a facilitated grief discussion.

Our Men’s Grief Support group is a new monthly program at Park, offering men a safe space to come together with others who truly understand to share, listen, and explore their grief with as much vulnerability and participation as they feel comfortable. The gentle spirit of the group facilitator, David St. Arnault, helps to create this haven that is such a rarity for men, even though grief doesn’t discriminate. After two sessions, we have received guest comments like “A tip of the Biltmore to Park Memorial for hosting this very important session” and “I felt safe and listened to”. One of the things that we also offer at these complimentary group sessions is some tactile distraction that can help free the mind and the heart to better engage. One of these activities is the making of a key chain whereby guests can each choose a word and incorporate it into a simple keychain that they create and keep.

We welcomed some new faces to October’s Art for the Grieving Heart where the focus was on the ‘prickles of grief’ as we were led in a pom-pom cactus crafting activity by our funeral director, Alexandra. In addition to facilitating our monthly crafting activities, Alexandra uses her passion for crafting as a tool to heal her own grief. We talked about how not only grief can feel suddenly very prickly out of the blue, but that it can also make us as grievers feel – and be – prickly. We came up with some strategies for self-care to help soften the prickles, including reframing that the prickles only exist in areas where love also exists; grief is simply love that no longer has an earthly place to go.

Park Memorial was founded almost 82 years ago on the values of family, kindness, and community. We strive in every facet of our service to live by these as we serve today, and hopefully for many years to come. One of our beliefs that aligns with those values is that our community needs us to be of service beyond the funeral. To that end, our grief support programs are open to attendance by any members of the communities that we serve. We are grateful for each person who trusts us not only with the final care of their loved one, but also with their resulting grief.

To see all of our upcoming grief events, please visit: www.parkmemorial.com/comingevents

George's Final Ride

Wed, 04 Oct 2023 20:13:55 GMT

A Funeral Professional's Perspective

A funeral service guest recently asked me if I actually enjoy my role as much as I seem to. I would imagine that this is a fairly common question: why do funeral professionals choose this profession? For me… it is the humble grace of being able to make someone’s hardest of days just a little lighter, while helping them honour the life and legacy of their loved one. My role finds me often behind the camera for families who have chosen to livestream their loved one’s funeral service. It is a role that I take seriously and treat with some reverence, as I only get one chance to properly capture the stories, messages, songs, poems, and sentiments shared.

On the day that I was asked this question, I was behind the camera for the funeral service of a farmer who had greatly and meaningfully lived all of his 95 years. His children worked with our Park Memorial team to create an incredibly personalized service to honour his life, and my heart was blessed in being a part of it. I asked permission to share what my heart took in that day, and was given the family’s blessing.

My morning began with following the funeral processional for about 3 km down gravel roads to a little country church that had served George’s family for several generations. As you may know, the processional is usually led by our green coach (hearse), carrying the decedent in their casket for their final ride to rest. This particular processional was highly unique: George’s beloved team of horses were leading, pulling the farmer’s wagon on which was lovingly loaded George’s casket, surrounded by his children and their spouses, who took turns at the reigns. His wife of 70 years followed closely in a family car, and the wagon was flanked by a few of his grandchildren on horseback. I dare say that despite the gravel dust and the heat of the day, George’s arrival at his ceremony was likely exactly what he would have chosen.

Once at church, a traditional Ukrainian Orthodox service was performed by the priest and cantor, including the bittersweet sound of church bells ringing out as he was carried in. These services are largely sang – or canted – and the voice of the cantor was beautiful in its harmony. The casket remains open for the duration of these services so that the family can gaze upon their loved one for the last time. My favourite part of these services is the closing song, Vichnya Pamyat, which means ‘Memory Eternal’. Its melody is beautiful, as the voices of the funeral guests join with the cantor in acapella song. I generally have to work a little harder to hold back my tears at this point in the service because it is so poignant.

Following this beautiful song, all of the funeral guests filed by to pay their final respects to George, in a tradition called ‘the last kiss’. The family always files by last, as these are their last and final moments with their loved one. After all of the family, and George’s wife Elizabeth, had paid their tear-filled respects, I watched as George’s children all gathered around his body, and lovingly tucked his favourite black and red blanket around him. His feet, legs, arms, and chest were tucked into the cuddle of his familiar blanket… and I felt incredibly privileged to have witnessed this final act of love, as tears escaped my eyes.

Later after George had been laid to rest in the church cemetery, family and friends gathered in the nearby hall to share a time of refreshment together. While guests enjoyed a traditional Ukrainian meal, they heard stories of George’s life as the eulogy and tributes were spoken. There were moments of laughter and sadness together, and the beginnings of healing.

A video tribute of George’s life allowed us to see both he and his sweet Elizabeth leading the same team of horses that had carried him for his final ride – their faces beaming at each other as the horses carried them both in the wagon.

I am a stranger to this family. I had never met their beloved George, yet I gloried in the small glimpses that I was allowed of his great life.

Being part of these beautiful ceremonies is definitely part of my ‘why’… not only for what I give, but also for what I receive. I am not only present to do my job, I am wholly present to hear the stories that you share… to glory in your love and remembrance… and yes, sometimes I am wiping my own tear away as I listen.

Personalization matters, even to a stranger. Service after funeral service, I am blown away by how our Park Memorial team listens as families share memories and stories, and then help to create the perfect remembrance and tribute.

For more information on how to plan and personalize your loved one’s funeral service, visit “ How to Personalize a Funeral Service ”, “ The Art of Ceremony Personalization ”, “ Can I Personalize a Funeral ?“, or contact us at info@parkmemorial.com / 780-426-0050 .

Donations and Reflections At Pilgrims Hospice

Thu, 13 Jul 2023 21:53:35 GMT

Dear Guests of Moments with Dr. Wolfelt Grief Support Seminars 2023,

As you know, the funds collected via tickets sold to our Caregivers’ session were to be donated to The Roozen Family Hospice Centre - Pilgrims Hospice . We delivered ‘your’ donation today, and it was accepted with gratitude…

While there, we visited The Reflection Room where guests and their families - past and present - can sit and reflect and remember. It’s an idyllic, soft space featuring natural light, comfy chairs, and a water feature.

On one of its walls are crisscrosses of twine to which are clipped messages of love, remembrance, grief, and - yes - sadness and ‘missing’ from family members to their loved ones. Some are carefully penned by children to their Grandma or Uncle… others are penned by the guests themselves, reflecting on their experience in facing the end of their own life.

We wanted to share the words penned on one of the messages on the wall, as it seemed a fitting thank you to each of our guests who attended Dr. Wolfelt’s seminar and allowed for the donation delivered today:

“It would be wonderful if we devoted as much training, experience, compassionate service, and resources to the end of life, as we do to the beginning. Pilgrims is doing an outstanding job in that regard.”

It is signed simply ‘P.’

It is our hope that as our Park Memorial team continues serving bereaved families in our community, we, like Pilgrims Hospice, will do well our job of lending our experience and compassionate service to families walking the loss of a loved one.

To find out more about our upcoming grief support events, please visit Grief Support Events - Park Memorial Funeral Home

National Indigenous Peoples Day 2023

Wed, 21 Jun 2023 15:40:10 GMT

One of the many traditions of Indigenous culture that we as funeral professionals respect and appreciate is the tradition of drumming.

There is something almost reverent at being present when a family honours their loved one with the moving tradition of drumming. The rhythm seems to reverberate through your body and soul as you listen to its solid beats…

“Drum is a voice, a prayer to Spirit, is the voice of the Earth coming through to speak of its heart. Drumming connects us to our Creator, connecting our heart to the heartbeat of the Earth. It is a way to connect one’s spirit with the Great Spirit.” ~Terriea Harris, BWSS Aboriginal Women’s Outreach Counsellor

The drum is looked upon as the heartbeat of each soul, also connecting us to the heart of Mother Earth. Music and song are among the First Peoples’ strongest traditions, and the drum is the sound of every life occasion from birth through death.

This piece that aired on CBC a few months ago explains not only the importance of drumming to the ceremony of a loved one crossing over to the spirit world, but also some of the other traditions maintained by First Peoples during and after the death of a loved one: Inside an Indigenous funeral: How a First Nation sends a member to the spirit world | CBC News

On this National Indigenous People’s Day, our Park Memorial team is grateful for our opportunity to serve our Indigenous community and experience their beautiful culture and customs in honouring the life of a loved one.

May we all dance in our souls to the beat of ‘Drum’…

To learn more about Indigenous funeral traditions, please visit our National Truth and Reconciliation Day blog post .

Art for the Grieving Heart - May 2023

Fri, 19 May 2023 21:48:01 GMT

Feel The Warmth

Each of our Art for the Grieving Heart events begins with the group creating a craft piece with its roots in grief. Though the project is the same for all guests, each person gets to personalize theirs to their own liking and creativity. This month’s craft was no exception: customized candle tins.

Our craft facilitator, Alexandra, who in addition to being a funeral director and embalmer with Park Memorial uses crafting as an outlet for her own grief, created the following lead-in to our craft project:

“Today’s theme is ‘feel the warmth’. Often candles come up when we speak about grief because they are wonderfully symbolic. Today I want to talk about feeling the warmth that comes from a flame. This is something that we can’t see but we can feel. I bring this up in relation to grief because we can feel the warmth of those supporting us, and the warmth of the memories our loved ones have left us. Even though we can’t see them or touch them we can feel them - much like the warmth of a candle. I know in my home sometimes I burn candles just because I want to enjoy them. Likewise, sometimes our memories can be nice just because. But another reason I burn candles is to cover up a funky smell that is hanging around. Likewise, joyful moments with our loved ones can be called to mind to help us get through a funky feeling that we have going on internally. Today each of you will be making two candles: one to keep so you can feel the warmth and one to give to share that warmth. I encourage you to combine the warm moments with your loved one with the physical warmth of the candle so this may always be something that allows you to feel the warmth.

The samples I have today are comprised of two for myself and two to share. For my candles I opted to make warm hearts which smells like cinnamon hearts and is wrapped in blue floral. This captures two distinct memories I have of my Baba. My second personal candle is in memory of my Mama. My mom believed that any problem could be solved over a bowl of ice cream. So to keep that reminder close I made “There is always room for ice-cream” a vanilla-citrus candle decorated with brightly coloured sprinkles.

To share with others I decided to share two messages. One is this cheeky corset candle called beautiful beneath to serve as a reminder that sometimes when we feel like we’re cracking apart, what shines through is often beautiful to those on the outside. My second is “Sad Dino” which reminds the recipient that bad days are ok and shows that big strong, scary Dinos cry too.

As you make your candles I encourage you to embrace whatever inspiration comes your way.”

Guests were able to choose their decorations for their candle tins, their wax colour, and the scents placed in their candle. Guests shared the memories of their loved ones that led them to choose the scents and decorations that they chose as grief specialist Lori-Ann Huot led our facilitated, informal grief discussion.

Our final photo of all of the candles crafted that evening shows not only the diversity of choices made by our guests, but also spoke to the diversity of the grief experience for each of us.

We are gathering together again on Tuesday, June 13th, and warmly welcome you to consider joining us… we will take a summer hiatus for June and July and return once again in September.

To register, click here  to visit our  coming events page  (please save that page on your favourites so you can access our updated list of grief support events). You can also click here to subscribe to our newsletter .

Three Years… Three Looong Years

Thu, 20 Apr 2023 14:42:49 GMT

This week was pretty epic in our Park Memorial world. After THREE LONG YEARS (including a pandemic you might recall)… we brought our beloved monthly Art for the Grieving Heart (AFTGH) event series back to our community.

Our President, Kirstie Smolyk opened the event by saying how the last three years feels like both the blink of an eye and a full decade all at once.

Familiar faces from our pre-Covid events came through the door ready to give and receive long-awaited hugs, and bubbling with gratitude to ‘be back’ while newcomers came shyly through the doors, unsure what to expect, but hopeful to discover a safe space to explore their grief.

Since beginning in January 2018, Art for the Grieving Heart has called ‘The Art of Cake’ home. Once again Owner Gloria and her team opened the doors of their perfect, warm little space to our group along with delicious treats and warm beverages.

Our craft activity was a brightly coloured spring front door wreath, with the focus being ‘welcoming what is on the other side of the door of grief’. We were honoured to have one of our funeral directors, Alexandra, lend her crafting talents and instruction to our event, opening with a beautiful explanation of our ‘why’ in welcoming whatever is on the other side of the door.

As hands crafted, there was a buzz of conversation as guests connected over a shared activity and shared experiences. There was laughter… shared empathy… and a few tears.

Our facilitated grief discussion was led by Patti Walker, a local grief support expert and also a bereaved mother herself. Many guests shared their experiences and thoughts of their grief journeys as the conversation wound through a range of topics. We learned that sometimes grief and anger feel very alike… that sometimes we need to exit certain individuals from our world of grief in order to make room for those who are willing to sit in grief with us… and that sometimes going for a walk needs to rather be going for a ‘stomp’ on those heavy grief days.

Guests crafted the most beautiful wreaths, adding their own personalization through their choice of colours, decorations, and words on their attached little signs…

Oh was it good to gather again! Guests left amidst more hugs, tears, laughter, and shared empathy with and for one another.

We are currently finalizing our dates for May and June, and warmly welcome you to consider joining us… we will take a summer hiatus for June and July and return once again in September.

We hope you will join us.

Click here to visit our coming events page (please save that page on your favourites so you can access our updated list of grief support events). You can also click here to subscribe to our newsletter .

Compassion and Care for Pilgrims Hospice

Tue, 28 Mar 2023 21:10:52 GMT

A new way for 'Moments with Dr. Wolfelt' to support our community.

Compassion and care. These are the base reasons ‘why’ Park Memorial has been bringing the wisdom and insights of Dr. Alan Wolfelt to our community for over two decades. His gentle humour and passion for serving others as they grieve are the perfect complements to the wisdom and education that he shares surrounding the complexities and the very human experience of grief. His commitment to the highest of care echoes that of Park Memorial.

Our ‘Moments with Dr. Wolfelt’ (MWDW) events offer two different experiences: the first evening session is geared towards those who have experienced a loss and are grieving. Our families that we have served get early access to this session, and then the general public is invited to attend. We have seating for up to 800, and the room is usually comfortably full. If people come expecting an evening of 'doom and gloom', they are instead surprised to find some soft humour amid the tips and tools for maneuvering through grief and mourning after a loss. In the tradition established by our late Park Memorial patriarch, Jerry Smolyk, this session is followed by milk and cookies and a time of connection.

The next morning offers an experience for the caregivers that support those who are grieving – both professionals and lay persons. During the morning caregiver session, Dr. Wolfelt focuses his teachings on those in our community who care for both the dying as well as the bereaved. This is an opportunity for caregivers to not only ‘fill their cup’ but also to receive encouragement and insights to help them better care for the needs of those whom they serve. Both sessions with Dr. Wolfelt are accompanied by a ‘trade fair’ style gathering of local organizations where guests can ask questions and better understand the resources and grief supports that are available in our community, and how grief pertains to mental and physical health.

This year, the caregiver’s session features a new kind of compassion and care: giving back. There is a charge of $10 per seat this year for the first time ever. Not only does this allow for a better way of assuring that those who wish to attend can do so, as less seats are tied up by those who RSVP and then don’t attend, but with all ticket purchases being donated back to Pilgrim’s Hospice , guests of this session will be part of a greater good.

We are excited to welcome our ‘MWDW’ guests for both sessions on May 10 &11, 2023. And we are equally excited to support Pilgrim’s Hospice Society. Not only does the organization offer a 12 bed, family-centred-care-setting end-of-life hospice via the Roozen Family Hospice Centre, they also offer an array of barrier-free grief support classes for the community. Here is some of the impact that their complimentary grief support programs have had in 2022:

97.5 Expressive Art Therapy Hours

245.25 Adult Group Therapy Hours (Including Drop In)

1183 Counselling Therapy Sessions

________________________________

1525.75 Hours of Support Across the Year (Group and Individual)

209 New Clients – Individual Counselling

+201 Group Clients

+107 Drop-In Clients

__________________________________

517 Clients Across the Year

Our Park Memorial team has referred many of our bereaved families to the grief support programs at Pilgrims Hospice. Hopefully this small gesture of support will help their team to continue providing complimentary grief support programs to children, individuals, and families in our community.

Happy National Puppy Day 2023

Thu, 23 Mar 2023 21:54:52 GMT

From our furry friend Kojack.

There is a sweet movie called A Dog’s Purpose that alludes well that dogs are not only man’s best friend, but that they are suited for higher purposes to serve and connect. Our community definitely understands this with having several dogs serving in Victims Services units across Alberta and Canada at large, as well as the sweet pups who serve the littles at our Edmonton Zebra Centre so incredibly well.

Recently one of our staff team, Nicole White, applied successfully to be an ‘Adult Raiser’ for Aspen Service Dogs Inc. “Having met the requirements of the Alberta Training Standard, per the Service Dog Act of Alberta, Aspen Service Dogs prides itself on supplying highly trained, well-behaved canines that are able to perform a variety of tasks for their human partner. Aspen Service Dogs is one of only a handful of organizations approved to produce and train Service Dogs in Alberta”. Nicole was looking for something to give her some additional self-purpose in addition to her purpose-filled career as a funeral director and embalmer, and Aspen’s Adult Raiser program fit the bill. Her role is to support her pup’s skills training in the home setting, further implementing what he learns on a daily basis at ‘school’, as well as to provide a warm and loving home setting for him to relax and renew in so that he can be a better service dog student. She loves that her care for her pup equates to giving care to others, and his furry presence has impacted her world in ways that she did not expect.

After an extensive intake and training process, Nicole was matched with the sweet, kind, and intuitive Kojack. His demeanor is that of a solid mix of both playful and compassion. He is highly intuitive and gentle, and can sense anxiety, stress, and sadness in the humans in his world, coming close and even laying a paw or his head on them to provide his sweet care and comfort. He loves to be loved on with pets and belly rubs and engages fully with every person who engages with him. He has learned several skills, the most recent being pushing and activating automatic door-opening sensors. He’s quite the student!

Kojack has brought his care to our Park Memorial team, as well, with frequent visits to the funeral home. You can always tell when Kojack is on-site, as he will have a revolving group of our staff surrounding him, benefitting from his calm presence and a boost to the day’s morale – especially needed on our very heavy of days. He has also served at one funeral at the request of the decedent’s family, and he was a welcomed calming and comforting presence.

Kojack has been paired with a little girl whose needs match Kojack’s skill set, and he is poised to graduate from Service-Dog-In-Training to a fully-fledged service dog. In doing so, Nicole will say a bittersweet farewell to Kojack as he journeys into service and awaits her next Aspen Service Dogs furry friend who needs her care. We wish Kojack every good tail wag, treat, and belly rub as he journeys into service.

Good boy, Kojack… Good boy.

Happy National Pup Day from Kojack and Park Memorial…

National Funeral Director Recognition Day

Sat, 11 Mar 2023 18:07:04 GMT

Compassionate care on your hardest of days.

The funeral profession isn’t entered into lightly. It is no secret that the role of funeral director is one that requires the highest of professionalism, compassion, organization, and care. Their service is not one that is largely sought after; in fact most of us would rather that we never had to seek the services of a funeral director. But on those hardest and saddest of days, they are the hub of the wheel of all of the questions, planning, paperwork, and choices that come with preparing to honour a life.

Families generally come through our doors in a state of shock, grief, sadness, and often feeling very overwhelmed. Our funeral director team comes alongside each family that we serve and with their soft questions, knowledgeable information, and clearly defined options, they help lift the fog of shock and overwhelm. They instill confidence and certainty as the family makes the necessary decisions to honour their loved one.

They have a special way of making our families feel like their needs and their loved one are the only ones that matter. What you may not know is that when your family is being served by one of our funeral directors, they are most often serving several other families at the same time. They work hard to ensure that your decisions, details, and desires in honouring the life of your loved one are clearly defined and communicated to our team so that your service is exactly as you planned and pictured.

Not all superheroes wear capes.

Today we recognize and thank our team of funeral directors and our entire staff team that supports the care of our families. If you have been cared for by a funeral director who made your worst of days just a little bit lighter, consider reaching out with a thank you…

International Women's Day 2023

Wed, 08 Mar 2023 22:10:31 GMT

Today is a day that we celebrate women on an international platform.

It is a day to honour the strides that have been made in equality, to honour the contributions of women in the workplace, in education, and in the home. The funeral profession, historically male-dominant, now sees and welcomes women in a variety of roles in providing professional, compassionate care for bereaved families.

Park Memorial is proud to not only be a woman-led business, we are also proud to have some of our profession’s most exemplary women serving on our team. From funeral directors to funeral attendants, embalmers, administration, customer service, accounting, and everything in between, our families are served by a team of incredible women (and equally incredible men) whose mission each day is to use their skills and passion to make our families’ worst days just a little bit lighter.

Since its beginnings, Park Memorial has been a business influenced by women: our founders were a husband-and-wife team, Tod & Lucy Smolyk, and Lucy was as crucial to our humble beginnings as was Tod – she was the funeral home’s largest initial investor. The tradition continues today with Tod & Lucy’s granddaughter, Kirstie Smolyk leading our team and organization in serving our community – and she is flanked by her mother, Midge, and her sister Lindy who play supportive roles.

Our thanks goes out to all of the women on our team who further our service and profession, and all of the women globally who are doing the same. We salute all of the women who seek to lead and make space for the next generation of funeral professionals and do so with the greatest of grace, care, and integrity.

Happy International Women’s Day 2023

Spring Bench Chats 2023

Wed, 15 Feb 2023 22:40:45 GMT

Spring is in sight... and, after another cold and grey winter, many of us are missing the warmth — the warmth of connecting with each other. So, imagine, if you will....

You are walking through a beautiful forest. Spring has brought tiny green leaves to the trees and the crocuses and tulips splash colour through the underbrush after such a dark and monotone winter. You come upon a familiar bench; a cozy blanket, some throw pillows, and hot chocolate are set out for two. You look around and see somebody walking towards you.

Maybe it’s a loved one who has died... Maybe it’s your favourite actor or actress. Perhaps it’s the teacher whose empathy and instruction greatly impacted your life’s journey. Maybe there is someone newer to this life that you would call to join you at the bench so that they can meet that cherished loved one from an earlier generation. There are no limits as to who you might imagine joining you on your magical spring bench.

You have been given the gift of one hour to sit and chat with the person walking towards you.

Who would you choose to share your bench? What would you talk about? How would it make you feel?

We would be honoured to hear the stories from your magical bench chats. If you would like to participate, please click one of the buttons below where you can choose to share your story in the comments on our Facebook or Instagram platforms.

Ukrainian Christmas 2023 - We Need Peace and Empathy Instead of Merry This Year

Fri, 06 Jan 2023 17:55:02 GMT

This Ukrainian Christmas, our global Ukrainian community has one shared wish: peace.

This wish is fervent and comes from the heavy hearts of a country and its people shattered by war and scattered across the world. Since the war began last February, over 18 000 people have found home in Alberta after fleeing their homeland, and of those over 5 000 have found home in the Edmonton region. Tomorrow they observe Christmas according to the Julian calendar living in a new and foreign land, without the traditions and keepsakes that made the season feel familiar, and likely without many of their loved ones to gather around the table.

Like the families that we serve as funeral professionals who grieve their loved ones missing from the Christmas table, these families are grieving, too. The layers of grief are many and complex, and are compounded by the worry about loved ones left behind to survive the war and its hardship. And some are grieving losses of loved ones to the horror of this war.

We are left to wonder: HOW CAN WE HELP?

There are many practical and financial ways that we can help to surround these families with compassion and care during the Christmas season and beyond. The first is to volunteer your time. Organizations like Free Store Edmonton need volunteers to help welcome and outfit new refugees arriving in our city. The second is to reach out to Ukrainian refugee support organizations such as The Ukrainian Canadian Congress for Alberta. Through this organization, you can be paired with a family in need and help them get settled; provide a welcoming and safe home space, emotional support, answer questions and offer advice about daily life in our city and region. Skip The Depot also has a few other great ideas for those who feel compelled to offer aid.

Regardless of what methods by which we as individuals may be able to help, and regardless of cultural differences or similarities, there is just one prerequisite that allows us to embrace each other as one strong community – empathy . Empathy for the shock. Empathy for the lost. Empathy for the grief. Being empowered in empathy for one another helps us all to feel a little less alone, and a little more understood.

Our Park Memorial Christmas Memorial Service that was held in early December was themed "We Aren’t Meant to Mourn Alone"; it seems to fit well within a call to empathy. Please feel welcome to watch and share. As well, our Tribute Tree is available for our community at large to pay tribute to the ones missing from the season’s celebrations. We intentionally extended this complimentary way to honour your grief and your loved one(s) until January 10th to include those observing Ukrainian Christmas.

It is a very normal practice of our service as funeral professionals and our vocabulary to wish peace to those hurting during the holidays. These wishes for peace at this time come from the very bottom of our hearts.

Sincerely,

The Park Memorial Staff Family

How To Beat the Winter Blues When You Are Grieving

Thu, 05 Jan 2023 21:48:02 GMT

Winter and grief are not unalike.

Both are cold, stark, unfeeling, and dark. Combine them, and the winter blues can feel absolutely desolate. Motivation dwindles, and it’s difficult to find energy for even the everyday things. Here are a few strategies to combat the winter blues while grieving:

• Since the weather outside is frightful… start that list of indoor projects that you have been meaning to get to: home improvements, closet cleanings, mending, and organization. Once you have your list together, start working through it, one item at a time. As you work through it and can check things off your list, the dopamine response that is created will not only lift your mood, but will likely inspire and motivate you to keep working through your list

• Sign up for some virtual courses or events that are of interest. One of the silver linings of the pandemic is definitely the availability of online education. Find something fun or meaningful to you to study and learn about. (Might we recommend a beginner’s cell phone photography course? This has a dual positive effect, in that not only do you learn some new skills, you can then put your new skills into practical use outside, and possibly even ENJOY winter a little bit.)

• Help someone else. When we are sad and grieving, we can often have blinders to the needs and pain of others. It can be as simple as shoveling an elderly neighbour’s driveway, or even signing up as a regular volunteer for a charity or organization that is in need. Just THINK of the dopamine!

We live in a world of very long winters; they are a challenge even without grief. Together, the winter blues and grief can feel hopeless and overwhelming, but there are practical ways to try to make things a little more gentle. We hope these ideas are helpful, and will encourage you to create a few more.

Park Memorial Christmas Memorial Service 2022

Wed, 14 Dec 2022 19:58:02 GMT

We Aren’t Meant to Mourn Alone

For many years, Park Memorial has held an annual Christmas Memorial Service where the families that we have served during the year prior are invited to gather and mourn their loved one(s) with other bereaved families. It has been a treasured time of shared grief and togetherness for families needing somewhere safe and sacred to honour the loved ones missing from the season’s festivities. The pandemic changed how we gathered for the past two years, mandating that our memorial services move into the virtual space. While this was less than ideal, as the primary goal of the service is to gather together to offer and receive comfort, going virtual no longer constrained us to a set capacity like our in-person services of years past, and we were able to invite the community at large to join us to receive some comfort and support.

With the restrictions to gathering lifted, our 2022 Annual Christmas Memorial Service was able to offer BOTH an in-person experience for the families that we have served over the past year, as well as a virtual experience for past families and our community at large. It felt lovely to gather together in-person once again for those who opted to do so, and those who attended virtually were also able to remember and grieve with us. All guests who RSVP’d, both in-person and virtual, were invited to share the name(s) of their loved one(s) whom they are missing this Christmas, and they were able to see their loved one’s name(s) displayed on the screen both in our chapel for our in-person guests and as part of the virtual experience for those joining us online. All guests also had the opportunity to honour their loved one(s) on our Park Memorial Tribute Tree .

Our theme of "We Aren’t Meant to Mourn Alone" seemed especially fitting for our first in-person gathering in three years. The feedback from both in-person and virtual guests resoundingly reinforced that there is value and comfort in gathering to remember and mourn together.

“Every piece of the service was like a balm for my broken heart. I applaud Park Memorial for how much thought and care was given to my pain almost a year after losing my wife”

A poem, written by Becky Bourque, one of our Park Memorial Staff Family, was the perfect ending to the service:

Christmas Isn’t

Christmas isn’t joyful

Since we were drawn apart…

I can’t seem to recall those carols

That once rang from my heart.

Christmas isn’t merry,
At least, it’s not for me.
No glowing warmth to thaw my soul
As I stare down a dazzling tree.

Christmas isn’t sweet –
No cookies here, Saint Nick!
The mere mention of festive food
Only makes me sick…

Christmas isn’t peaceful
Nights don’t pass silently…
I lie awake, trace empty shapes,
Where you once fit perfectly…

Christmas isn’t magic;
It won’t heal this blinding pain,
Won’t clear my path through treacherous grief,
And my sorrows deep, remain.

Christmas isn’t warm or bright,
Nary a breath I breathe in cheer.
One day I may regain spirit,
But surely not this year.

For now, Christmas just isn’t…
I am lonesome and forlorn.
Please, my friend, just sit with me,
Stay near, but let me mourn.

We invite you to take in a virtual replay of our Park Memorial 2022 Annual Christmas Memorial Service:

A Place in The Procession

Tue, 13 Dec 2022 20:57:43 GMT

Yearning for purpose and direction in my life, I responded to a job posting for Customer Service and Administrative Assisting for Park Memorial LTD.

I had driven past Park Memorial on 97th and 111th countless times, regarding the building without much concern apart from my own deep appreciation for it as a spectacularly maintained monument of early 1960’s architecture and design. Upon leaving that interview, and after accepting the job offer only a couple of hours later, I had the strange sense that I was making an abrupt shift onto an entirely new path.

To my surprise, some of my friends and family had awkward, scandalized, or stunned reactions to the news that I had taken a job at a funeral home.

“Won’t you get super depressed?”, “Doesn’t it make you uncomfortable?”, “What if there are dead people there?”

Spoiler: there would, in fact, be dead people there.

I brushed off the doubtful responses. Truthfully, I had no idea what to expect, but doubt would do me no good now. I had committed, and I needed a good job. I had done some research on the business, I had met my future boss, I had over 10 years of experience in customer service… but I had no certain expectations. What I was certain of were these facts: I didn’t seem to squirm the way others sometimes would through conversations about death I have so far led a life that equipped me to be adaptive, deeply empathetic, and resilient through complex and strenuous situations. If I was going to have to spend most of my life working, I wanted to put my time and my efforts toward something that had deeper meaning beyond profit margins… something that really helped people.

So, like stepping barefoot into a rushing river, I arrived for my first day – a little bit nervous and vulnerable – and was immediately enveloped and drawn into the flow; becoming a part of something so much bigger and older than myself.

My very first impression was that Park Memorial itself struck me as if it were pulled from the pages of a Neil Gaiman novel; what could be unsettling to some being inexplicably comforting to me. The maze-like halls and many locked doors and hidden nooks and crannies have been simply a delight for the Goonie in me to explore. But what’s far more captivating than quirky little closets is that – if you pay attention and are open to such things – you can feel the years of emotional highs and lows intangibly layered like an invisible lacquer throughout the mid-century modern building. The effect is not stifling, not haunting, not sorrowful… rather there is a strong feeling of unity and companionship, a sense that you are not alone. Like an old friend inviting you to be vulnerable alongside them without exchanging a word, the very walls seem to wrap around you in a silent comforting embrace.

Yet most welcoming and engaging of all are the people inside. I’ve come to care very quickly for my coworkers who pour so much of themselves into their work here. Each department a wealth of vibrant, kind, dedicated, helpful, intelligent, compassionate, and modestly spectacular individuals – collectively, a dazzling array of highly skilled and knowledgeable staff, drawn together by shared core values. Each person dutifully carrying out their daily work; caring for the deceased and their grieving families. I realized quickly that the responsibility of providing such solemn and significant services, for which every single detail is so critical and crucial, and the resulting weighty emotional burden of those particularly long days, can only be managed by sharing the load and extending grace and kindness to each other, as well as to every family we serve.

It seems that the more I come to learn, the more I am invited to dig ever deeper. Park Memorial’s story of foundation is one of perseverance, dedication, and romance. Steady commitment to providing outstanding funeral services in Central Alberta for decades has secured for us a most dignified reputation, while the legacy of strong leadership at Park Memorial LTD. spanning three generations is inspiring and demonstrative of the founding family’s enduring passion for the profession.

The Funeral Profession; one of the oldest and most honourable. The humanity of respectfully caring for our deceased, and the loved ones they leave behind, is universally felt. Funeral practices have been upheld across almost all cultures and throughout most of human history. From the mumification of the great Pharos of Ancient Egypt, to present-day controversy around the practice of Aquamation. Yet no matter how the conversations around practices and procedures, or understanding grief and loss, morph through the decades, some of us have always regarded with wonder the knowledge which lies beyond our reach, haven’t we?

What’s out there amidst the vast expanse of stars?

What’s down there in the icy, black depths of the oceans?

What happens when you die?

So, just as astronomers and deep-sea explorers chase the skies and the seas, some of us find ourselves tucking in next to this great mystery of death and what awaits us after, even though we’ll never be able to untangle it with our hands or see it clearly with our eyes or measure it with any instrument of human invention. For the time we are granted above ground, we’re fulfilled and content to work as exemplary stewards in this realm in service of the souls making their transitions onward, knowing one day we will all follow.

We each have a place in the procession.

Healing Your Holiday Grief

Tue, 29 Nov 2022 17:27:00 GMT

If you could go back in time and relive a special holiday, which one would you choose?

Close your eyes for a moment and think about this holiday. Now, slowly, walk through this memory in your mind.

What made it so special? What were the surroundings like? Who inhabits this memory with you?

Holidays have such rich associations for us because humankind created them as a way to honor and celebrate that which is truly important. We step out of the hustle and bustle of our day-to-day routines and into a world where our spiritual beliefs and connection to others matter above all else. We give pause to give thanks, and we share of ourselves.

As the Grinch learned that memorable Christmas, the holidays don't really come from a store - they come from the heart and soul.

Which is why when someone loved dies, the holidays can be so very painful. The heart of the holidays has been torn apart. Without love, what is life? Without the people we love, what are the holidays? I want you to know that you can find continued meaning in the holidays and in life. You can continue to live and love fully. You must grieve, but you can also celebrate.

Setting Your Intention to Heal

It takes a true commitment to heal in your grief. Yes, you are changed, but with commitment and intention you can and will become whole again. Commitment goes hand in hand with the concept of "setting your intention:” Intention is defined as being conscious of what you want to experience. A close cousin to "affirmation;” it is using the power of positive thought to produce a desired result.

How can you use this in your journey through holiday grief? By setting your intention to heal.

Turning to Ritual

Setting your intention to mourn and heal during the holidays - and beyond – is one important way to move forward in your grief journey. Harnessing the power of ritual is another. We create holiday rituals because everyday activities and normal conversations cannot capture our most profound thoughts and feelings. Rituals give them voice and shape. So, we decorate our Christmas trees, light our menorahs, give gifts, hold hands, and say prayers.

During your time of grief, the very rituals of the holidays can help you survive them. Try participating in some of your normal holiday traditions but with a focus on your grief. When you light candles in your home, do it in honor of the person who died. You might also create a special holiday ceremony or private ritual in memory of the person who died. The holidays are ritualistic and ritual can help you survive (and heal) right now. Remember this when you are considering whether or not to participate in your next holiday tradition.

Living in the Now

Return once more to the holiday memory I asked you to conjure up at the beginning. This memory is so special to you because you were so very present to the moment. When your grief overwhelms you this holiday season, try focusing on the now. Your grief wants you to live in the past through memories of the precious person who died. Remembering is indeed important, and your memories will always be a special part of your life.

Your grief will also project you into the future at times. You will worry about what the coming months and years hold for you. Looking ahead is also a normal and natural part of grief.

But when remembering and projecting exhaust you - and they will - return yourself to the present moment. Concentrate on what is going on around you right now. Hear the sounds and see the sights. Try drawing on the power of now to find continued meaning in your holidays and in your life.

You'll notice I have used the generic term "holiday season:' By that I mean the winter holidays bookended, in the United States, by Thanksgiving and New Year's Day. In between are the spiritual/religious holidays of Christmas, Hanukkah, and Kwanzaa. But whatever holidays you celebrate and no matter where you live, the principles apply to the holidays that are most meaningful for you - including other holidays, birthdays, and anniversaries sprinkled throughout the calendar year.

Click here if you want a ready-to-print PDF version of this post.

About the Author: Alan D. Wolfelt, Ph.D., is the founder and director of the Center for Loss and Life Transition and a member of the TAPS Advisory Board. This article is excerpted from his book, Healing your Holiday Grief: 100 Practical Ideas for Blending Mourning and Celebration During the Holiday Season, published by Companion Press and available at centerforloss.com.

Because We Aren’t Meant To Mourn Alone

Tue, 01 Nov 2022 20:15:33 GMT

The Importance of Funerals & Ceremony

When a loved one dies, we are thrust into a variety of states emotionally, intellectually, and even physically. Initially we can experience shock, confusion, sadness, disbelief, fatigue, and even anger. Eventually grief will settle in, and the bridge to healthy grieving is a funeral or ceremony where friends and family can gather and remember and mourn together.

“ Rich in history and rife with symbolism, the funeral ceremony helps us acknowledge the reality of the death, gives testimony to the life of the deceased, encourages the expression of grief in a way consistent with the culture’s values, provides support to mourners, allows for the embracing of faith and beliefs about life and death, and offers continuity and hope for the living. ” - Center For Loss

Why is mourning together so important, you might ask? The support that is both given and received when we mourn together not only provides comfort and companionship to our sadness and remembrance, but it helps us intellectually accept the reality of our loved one’s death. Our need to mourn together was made very clear during the pandemic when restrictions made being together to mourn difficult at best. Many families who were prevented from having a traditionally well-attended service for their loved one during the pandemic are now choosing to plan a ceremony to give themselves as well as their friends and family an opportunity to remember together. We aren’t meant to mourn alone.

Grieving is a normal and necessary outcome of loss. While it can be heavy, uncomfortable, and a foreign process for all who walk its road, grief is required to heal and to process the loss while also creating a new relationship or connection to the person who has died. This might seem counter-intuitive, but the reality of grief is that it is simply a statement of our love that once existed for the person who has died. The person ceases to exist, but the love remains; this is grief.

Park Memorial is proud to be a pillar of comfort and connection for bereaved families in northern Alberta. We are grateful to be recognized by the communities that we serve as Edmonton Journal’s Reader’s Choice for funeral home for 2022.

National Truth and Reconciliation Day 2022

Thu, 29 Sep 2022 15:16:11 GMT

Traditions and Tributes

One of the values that Park Memorial was founded on is that we serve all cultures, faiths, and communities with equal care and compassion. We pride ourselves in learning and executing the customs and traditions of all cultures, faiths, and families who trust us with the care of their loved ones.

September 30, 2022, is Canada’s second annual National Day for Truth and Reconciliation . “The day honours the lost children and Survivors of residential schools, their families, and communities. Public commemoration of the tragic and painful history and ongoing impacts of residential schools is a vital component of the reconciliation process”*. These are some of the ways that truth and reconciliation are observed as Park Memorial honours the funeral customs and traditions of Indigenous Peoples and their families:

One of the traditions that are observed is the wake, which is a vigil of watch over the deceased that is kept all day and all night with sacred songs being sung and a feast being shared by family and friends. Park Memorial offers complimentary transportation of the casket to and from the wake location of the family’s choice.

Smudging and drumming are also customary parts of the wake and the funeral. Smudging is the burning of sage/cedar bundles, believed to purify and cleanse the soul. Drumming and chanting are the heartbeat of the funeral service, the sounds of which are both somber as well as strong and soul-stirring.

Our funeral professionals team also assists with the customary placement of sage and tobacco into the casket and the inclusion of the Pendleton blanket. At the end of the graveside portion of the funeral service, as the casket is lowered into the ground, guests add more tobacco and sage into the grave, and our team ensures that a pail of soil is present for the funeral guests to add a handful of soil into the grave as a show of final respect for their loved one.

The mosaic of Indigenous culture is rich with sacred customs and traditions for all areas of life and death. Steeped in a deeply spiritual tie to nature and the earth, each tradition holds meaning and strength of history and culture. Above all, it is an incredible honour and privilege to be part of these rituals and traditions as our team serves our Indigenous community.

* https://www.canada.ca/en/canadian-heritage/campaigns/national-day-truth-reconciliation.html

Universal Grief

Wed, 14 Sep 2022 17:57:02 GMT

And the Loss of a Monarch

In the wake of the death of Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II, there is palpable universal grief at the loss of this woman whom most of us have never met but who has been in the background of our lives for longer than most of us can even remember. No matter how each of us feels about the monarchy, the Queen’s passing touches a nerve that not only reminds us of the passing of time, but also twinges our own losses over that time. The grief is real.

As the world mourns together, there is again that wondering why we are so affected by the passing of someone we have never met. The answer is simple: we are wired to grieve change, loss, and trauma… and we are wired to grieve and mourn together. This is why the tradition of funerals is so critical to the grieving process for those left behind when a loved one dies: it is a time to stop, gather, share stories and memories, remember, and feel the emotions of loss and grief ‘together’. It serves as a healthy segway into grieving the loss of someone held dear.

As our universal mourning progresses through the coming days of official tributes and ceremonies in honour of the Queen, the reality of our loss will become more real and will allow us to begin to accept the changes ahead. We will process the memories and feelings that we hold towards the Queen and her role in our world. And likely we will feel twinges of our own losses, silhouetted against the passage of time felt by the loss of the Queen in the richness of her 97th year.

The grief is real.

As funeral professionals, our hearts are with all of the family and friends of Her Majesty who will grieve this loss deeply. We also hold close our fellow funeral professional colleagues who are serving the queen and her family, as they help the family to honour her unique life and great legacy. In the difficult days ahead, we will come together with our family, friends and colleagues across the United Kingdom, the Commonwealth, and the world to celebrate her extraordinary lifetime of service.

Thank you for your service, your Majesty. We will remember you…

God Save the Queen.

The Queen’s funeral service promises to be highly personalized to best share the story of her incredible life.

Excerpt From a Funeral

Wed, 24 Aug 2022 21:45:27 GMT

Why we gather to mourn and remember together.

This quote was part of a daughter’s opening welcome at her father’s celebration of life at which our team had the privilege to serve. It serves as a gentle reminder that funeral ceremonies aren’t meant for those who have died, but rather for those left behind to remember, mourn, and grieve. And that we gather when someone dies to mourn together and find meaning and comfort in the loved one’s life through the sharing of stories and memories. There is sometimes a perception that planning a funeral ceremony is a burden on those left to do so. While the planning process is definitely riddled with a range of emotions to feel and decisions to be made, it also allows for those mourning the loss to connect and remember together - which often brings comfort amidst the pain.

If you have been thinking that you wish that no service or ceremony be held in your memory when you die so that you aren’t burdening your loved ones, perhaps consider that doing so might instead be the gift of comfort and healing for those who love you.

For more information on how to plan and personalize your loved one’s funeral service, visit:

How to Personalize a Funeral Service?

Fri, 03 Jun 2022 18:27:55 GMT

Questions to consider as you plan your loved one’s farewell service.

How do you fit a whole life into one farewell service? Whether you choose a traditional or contemporary service, personalizing as many aspects of the service as you are able really helps to share the story of your loved one’s life, far beyond the stories shared in the eulogy. Here are some questions that you may wish to consider as you plan:

1 - What would your loved one want every person at their farewell service to hear and remember about them?

This is such an interesting question to consider. If the answer(s) to this question don’t come as easily as hoped, which is a common thing when mired by grief, this is a great question to put out to friends and family. Guaranteed there will be a variety of answers that you can use to incorporate your loved one’s unique personality and preferences into their service.

2 - What were their favourite hobbies, activities, and passions?

This is also a great question that will help to really personalize the service. Here are some examples and ideas:

Was your loved one an avid reader? Host a book exchange at their service, invite funeral guests to bring a new children’s book to donate to a children’s charity or school library, or collect financial donations for a literacy charity.

Did your loved one like to bake or cook? Consider printing their favourite recipe in their memorial card, or displaying some of their most-loved kitchen utensils at the front of the funeral venue, or including one of their best recipes at the luncheon reception.

Perhaps your loved one was an avid photographer… consider having some of their photos on display in the entryway or at the front of the funeral venue, or having a slide show of their art playing as guests arrive and are seated.

Did they love a certain sport or recreational activity, or have a unique career? Golfers, pilots, gardeners, etc. … there are so many ways to incorporate these and more into a meaningful and personalized funeral service.

Read more about funeral service personalization here .

3 - Was there a charity that they were passionate about?

There is so much that can be incorporated if your loved one was an avid volunteer or supporter of a charity: consider directing all memorial donations to this charity, organizing a memorial volunteering event with the charity, or even asking someone from the charity to take part in the service in some way (reading a poem, sharing stories of your loved one’s commitment to their organization, etc.).

4 - What made your loved one laugh?

This is the root of what promises to bring forth some rich stories… a simple question whose answers will bring smiles, laughter, and catharsis as you prepare to honour your loved one’s life.

5 - Can the service be created as a unique and personalized tribute event instead of a more traditional service?

This is absolutely possible! Your loved one’s ceremony can be planned more in the style of an event, incorporating whatever holds meaning for you and your loved one. Our team of funeral directors is here to help you brainstorm and plan accordingly.

6 - Is it wrong to include fun and laughter into the service?

It is a very common occurrence to have the presence of both sadness and humour during a funeral. As the stories of your loved one’s life are told, they may bring both tears and laughter. This is very normal, and a healthy way to mourn together.

7 - What photos were their favourites?

This is one of the hardest yet most cathartic tasks in planning a funeral service: looking through and choosing photographs to use during the service, whether for photo displays or in a video tribute. The stories, laughter, and tears that are sure to accompany this piece of preparation will likely not only be cathartic, but will also likely provide more stories and memories to be shared during the service.

It might feel a little bit awkward, but these times and conversations are worth video recording. That way nobody needs to feel like they need to write memories and stories down as you look at photos together, and those stories are then preserved for the service and beyond.

There are a few pointers to keep in mind when selecting photos to be used for the service:

Ensure that the photo file size and quality are appropriate for the medium being used (newspaper requirements for an obituary will be different than printing a clear 8x10 photo to display at the service). Our in-house Graphics team can assist in letting you know if your selected images are of the right size and quality for intended use.

Facebook photos are not likely going to be large enough to be used without severe pixelation.

If you would like a memorial tribute video played at your loved one’s service, our graphics team will provide this service. Ask your funeral director about Park Memorial’s Treasured Memories Package.

We know that planning a loved one’s service is emotional and stressful. How do you honour a life in such a short time? And how do you communicate just how important they were to you and all who loved them?

We will ensure you have support for all of that and more. Our experienced team will help you to plan a personalized, meaningful service.

Call 780-426-0050 if you prefer to speak by phone.

Five Qualities to Consider When Choosing a Funeral Home

Wed, 01 Jun 2022 21:31:31 GMT

Giving this important decision the consideration it deserves.

When it comes time to choose a funeral home, it can be challenging to know where to start. How do you know which funeral home is right for your loved one's funeral? Or perhaps you’re thinking about preplanning your own funeral - what should you look for in a funeral home?

Today, we're sharing the answers you're looking for in the form of five qualities to consider when selecting a funeral home. These considerations will ensure you make the best choice for your funeral planning needs.

(Are you curious about whether you should preplan your own funeral? We cover that topic in this post ).

Reputation

One of the first and most important things to consider when choosing a funeral home is its reputation. How long have they been in business? What do people in your community say about them? A good funeral home will have a solid reputation that they've built over many years of service.

There are a few different ways to learn about a funeral home's reputation. Here are some places to begin:

Talk to your friends, family, and neighbours. Ask if they've ever used the funeral home and if they would recommend them.
Check online reviews. Look for reviews on Google, Yelp, and Facebook to start.
Call the funeral home and ask about their experience level and what kind of reputation they have in the community.
Book a complimentary consultation and visit the facility in person and talk to the staff. See if they are helpful, friendly, and professional.

Compassionate Staff

No one should sense coldness or indifference from the funeral home staff after losing a loved one. The team should be compassionate and understanding as you navigate this difficult time.

They should also be able to answer any questions you have, no matter how difficult they may be. Further, they should be available to provide support before, during, and after the funeral service, including offering resources for grief support.

(Learn more about the aftercare services we offer at Park Memorial here )

Transparency about costs and expectations

When planning a funeral, it's also important to know what the costs will be upfront—this isn't a time for surprises. A good funeral home will be transparent about its prices and its services and will provide this information over the phone. They will also ask you questions about your wishes so that they can provide you with the most accurate information and give you various things to think about that you may not have otherwise considered. They should also be clear about any expectations they may have for you and your family.

Willingness to create a personalized and meaningful service

Another one of the most important things to look for is a willingness to work with you to create a personalized, meaningful service, including everything from the music, readings and displays to the eulogy and funeral procession.

Will you require accommodations for faith-based and cultural practices? No two funeral homes are exactly alike, and the way that they can help you honour your loved one's faith-based and cultural beliefs won't be either—so be sure to include this in your list of considerations. Expertise in this area can be of great value.

(Learn more about the art of funeral personalization here )

Funeral home facility and services provided

Finally, you'll want to be sure the funeral home you choose offers the services you are looking for in a suitable location with clean, comfortable, well-kept facilities.

If you're looking for a facility that can accommodate a large service, has a crematorium on site, can create memorial tribute videos, or one that offers special services like catering a memorial lunch or allowing live music, be sure to ask about those options.

As you choose a funeral home, these factors will play a role in your decision-making process. When you've taken the time to consider all of these factors, you'll be in a far better position to select the right option for you and your loved ones.

If you are searching for a funeral home in or around Edmonton, we invite you to consider Park Memorial. In addition to our Edmonton location, we also have locations in Lamont, Mayerthorpe, Smoky Lake, and Vegreville.

Learn more about us or contact us when you're ready so we can help.

Did you learn a lot from this post? Here are three more to read next:

How To Talk About Final Wishes?

Coping With the Death of a Parent

What to expect when making funeral arrangements?

Children in Grief

Wed, 25 May 2022 19:00:35 GMT

Now with all the recent shootings that have left so many dead and the injured others, it’s important to remember, Children read our feelings and mirror our emotions. They will soak up our reassurance or fear, love or hate, safety or danger.

While these were written for children, they are just as true for adults:

Do not try to keep what is going on from your kids. These videos on are Snapchat and other social media. Even elementary school kids talk about the news. Focus on how people came together and helped out to keep people safe and the bad people have been arrested. Your family style may be to protect the kids from this reality, but many other families are telling their kids and then all kids talk to each other in school.

During the unfolding of a tragic event such as the shooting at a synagogue and the bombs and other situations, most TV is live and you cannot anticipate what your children may see. Turn on the radio or show them pre-recorded news broadcast.

Talk to your kids about the event that is happening in simple language that they can understand, which is age appropriate (i.e. Some bad people shot at some people in a building etc. Some people are hurt and some have died).

Reassure the kids about their safety. Tell them that while this is important that most of the world is safe and that the area you live in is safe. Also, reassure them that the police, security and many other government officials are doing a lot of things to keep them safe.

Children need words. Tell them what you are feeling, what you think about the situation. Then, encourage them to talk about what they think. It is important to validate their feelings and clear up any misunderstanding and misinformation they have.

Be proactive and find ways to help. Say a prayer, light a candle, give blood, go to your place of worship, you and your kids can donate some money to an organization that is helping with the situation. Make sure some of it comes from your kids, no matter how small the amount.

Reassure your kids a little more, watch them a little more, do obvious gestures that show you are keeping them safe and watching over them. Remember kids may have very illogical fears.

Kids grieve very differently from adults. They may not talk about things for weeks or months. Be available to talk about their grief whenever it may come up.

Keep as many normal routines going as possible; but, allow a little more time knowing that grief is exhausting for you and your children. Routines are very important, because doing normal things in abnormal times help us to feel normal again.

Remember for your kids and for yourself, the concept of possible vs. probable. Shootings are possible anywhere, anytime, but they are not probable in our lives today. But are children should know what to do. While events may be tragic, try to put losses in perspective; that many things we do are risky in life, but we do them because fear does not stop death, fear stops life. Most of us will go to the movies and be very safe.

To find out more about our Park Memorial Community Grief Events, please visit https://www.parkmemorial.com/grief-support-events

Connection During Devastating Disconnect

Wed, 30 Mar 2022 20:28:56 GMT

The impact of Park Memorial’s livestream services during the pandemic

On March 12, 2020, as the world went sideways with the start of the pandemic, our profession and the families that we serve were about to face massive changes and restrictions. Over the next two years, in-person attendance at funerals would rise and fall without warning, meaning that most families who experienced the loss of a loved one during the pandemic were required to maneuver through their loss and their loved one’s funeral service without the traditional support of unlimited friends and family.

“…Finally, and most simply, funerals serve as the central gathering place for mourners. When we care about someone who died or his family members, we attend the funeral if at all possible. Our physical presence is our most important show of support for the living. By attending the funeral we let everyone else there know that they are not alone in their grief.” - Dr. Alan Wolfelt, Ph.D.

The importance of gathering to mourn was definitely front of mind as our team discussed how we were going to pivot our service model to include virtual funeral attendance within the continual landscape of change. As you may be able to appreciate, ours is not a profession that pivots frequently nor quickly. But pivot we did.

In the two years since the pandemic began, over 1000 families served by Park Memorial have opted to offer their friends and family an opportunity to attend their loved one’s funeral ceremony in the virtual space. Since this was a service that was provided on a complimentary basis by Park Memorial during the pandemic, there was no barrier for any family wishing to welcome friends and family virtually.

The measurable impact is actually quite staggering:

We have livestreamed over 1000 funeral services since March 12, 2020
There have been 255 491 views of these services to date
There have been 41 800 hours of viewing time, with viewership coming from 41 countries

If we are to look for silver linings against the backdrop of the pandemic, the fact that some guests were able to attend a loved one’s farewell service that – even without the pandemic – they would have been unable to attend due to distance, time, and cost is a beautiful reality. Families were able to feel a little less alone and more connected with one another due to the gift of technology. And future generations will now be able to hear the stories of their loved ones, preserved and recorded because of our team’s desire to bring connection during devastating disconnect.

We continue to hear from our families that the value of this service is incredibly important to them. It is for this reason that we are proud to be keeping funeral ceremony livestreaming as part of our menu of services, even now that the pandemic is no longer restricting attendance. We believe in the power of connection that we can offer bereaved families through the gift of technology.

To read more about our livestream tips and tools, please click here .

National Funeral Director & Mortician Recognition Day

Fri, 11 Mar 2022 23:52:14 GMT

Celebrating our Staff Family & Our Profession

Today, on National Funeral Director and Mortician Recognition Day, I salute our entire funeral professionals’ team. To say that most people truly don’t understand the heart and soul that goes into the daily work of a dedicated funeral professional employee is an understatement.

Funeral professionals don’t receive enough praise or recognition for what they do. They serve a critical role in a community, yet consistently fade into the background of community/health/politics and more, while paying attention to a multitude of details and orchestrating everything to run smoothly for the family. They are the ducks who often have feet paddling furiously below the surface, but who look poised and in control on top of the water.

In honour of this day, I celebrate all the tasks that are done behind the scenes – often unseen and seamlessly to give the family being served the most meaningful farewell ceremony possible. I celebrate the men and women who consistently show empathy and care for the bereaved.

To our staff team: I appreciate all that you do for the families you serve and their loved ones, our communities, and for each other today and every day.

Kirstie Smolyk, President

Park Memorial Funeral Home

We Stand With Ukraine

Tue, 01 Mar 2022 20:11:11 GMT

And with those in our community who are of Ukrainian heritage and have hearts that are feeling so heavy.

It is impossible to watch the news coming out of Ukraine right now without feeling so many emotions: sadness… anger… hopelessness… fear. For those in our community who are of Ukrainian heritage, many with loved ones living amid the chaos and violence, have hearts that are feeling so heavy.

Park Memorial is proud of the Ukrainian heritage that is central to our story via our founders Tod and Lucy Smolyk, as their family ancestry hails from Ukraine. Like the refugees who are fleeing Ukraine right now, Tod’s father came to Canada to start a new life with almost nothing but his prized violin. The one outstanding difference being that he did not have to leave under the threat of war. He had the freedom of choice.

While we inclusively serve families of all faiths and cultures, the Ukrainian community in northern Alberta represents a large sector of the bereaved families who trust our team to be the last hands to care for their loved ones. As a business, it is difficult to find the right words to share to encourage our community considering what is happening in Ukraine. However, if the pandemic has taught us anything, it has certainly reminded us that in as much as we are a team of dedicated funeral professionals, we are human first and foremost.

The Park Memorial staff family stands with the people of Ukraine. Our hearts are heavy, and our fears are real, too. We share your grief and your hope for peace. In a comparable way to there being no words that can heal grieving hearts, we know that there are no words that we can share to heal the world.

What we CAN do is pour every ounce of empathy, compassion, and hope into every interaction with the families we serve, with each other, with our community, and with our families and friends. Right now, the people of the world are demonstrating how to stand together with bravery and humanity in the face of this nightmare. We are hopeful and inspired.

We stand in love and light with the people of Ukraine. Our prayers are with you.

Grief and Valentine’s Day

Fri, 11 Feb 2022 22:58:05 GMT

The Pain of Hearts & Flowers

Valentine’s Day is one of those occasions that pierces our grief like a pin to a balloon with its messages of love and romance and togetherness. As you walk the aisles of even the grocery store, the red and pink cards, messages, candy boxes, and valentines are prominent reminders of the empty space in our hearts that our loved one used to fill. For those who are grieving a spouse or life partner the cards and messages of love prickle the heart. For bereaved parents, the packages of colourful valentines and treats for school hit at the knees. Yet most of our family and friends who are not on their own grief journey don’t connect the dots of Valentine’s Day and grief pain.

For some of us, simply acknowledging the pain of grief at Valentine’s Day and surviving the day is what is needed. For others, there is a deeper need to connect with and remember our loved ones in meaningful and tangible ways. Our Park Memorial family understands the need to speak the names of our loved ones, share stories of our loved ones, and share messages of love and remembrance. Did they love Valentine’s Day? How did they make it special for you every year?

If you are a friend or family member that is supporting someone who is grieving this Valentine’s Day, know that this day has as many triggers and emotional tolls as all of the other special days on the calendar. Acknowledging the day and the pain that it holds gives the person who is grieving not only permission but validation to feel all the feels and share with you how much they miss their person.

For more information on how to support a loved one who is grieving, read our blog post “ How Do You Support A Grieving Friend? ”

Our New Website is Live!

Thu, 10 Feb 2022 14:39:50 GMT

A new look and new features to better serve our community.

If you are reading this blog, you are visiting our brand new Park Memorial website that launched earlier this week. One of the new features that we are so proud of is this blog; we hope that you will find writings here that offer education, information, comfort, and support. We will be sharing relevant blogs from other experts and organizations, and we are even inviting our community to submit guest blog posts !

This website has been a ‘labour of love’ for our team. It has been in development for over two years, its completion often delayed because of the pandemic and its demands on our organization. This is the first time that we have had website that is copyrightable, as all pieces (minus guest blogs which are transparently linked and marked as such) have been written internally by our team.

We are so proud of our entire team who has had a thumbprint on this new site, especially our small team of graphic designers and writers who have driven the design, concept, flow, and content. Our hats are off to their creativity and hard work.

Take a few moments to explore; we invite you to provide your comments and feedback via our comments section on this blog post. See something that resonates? Let us know! Have a topic or subject that you would like to see included in our blog or elsewhere on our website? Let us know!

Thank you for being part of this milestone with us…

The Role of a Funeral Director

Wed, 02 Feb 2022 22:17:37 GMT

Why they are critical to the funeral planning process.

Everyone, at some time in their life, will experience the death of a loved one. You can rely on a licensed funeral director to compassionately and respectfully guide and support you and your family during this emotionally challenging and vulnerable time. At Park Memorial, we believe every life has a story to tell and your funeral director’s responsibility is to guide you through the many choices and decisions to be made to create a meaningful ceremony that honours the life of your loved one.

Funeral Directors attend college for two years, in addition to fulfilling an apprenticeship and passing an examination to become licensed. To maintain their licensed status, each funeral director and embalmer must complete a certain amount of certification training every three years. This licensure and ongoing training ensure that your family will be guided within the framework of all provincial laws and mandates that govern the funeral profession and will be given factual answers to all your questions.

Whether you choose burial or cremation and a public or private ceremony, the director arranges each aspect of the funeral, respecting your wishes and budget, and religious and cultural traditions. The director arranges to bring your loved one into our care, meets with you to gather details about your loved one and register the death with Vital Statistics, applies for permits, notifies Canada Revenue and Canada Pension Plan, maintains records of ceremony details, and coordinates the visitation, funeral ceremony, burial/cremation, and cemetery details. A funeral director will also assist with an obituary notice, clergy/celebrant, musician, flowers or other tributes, memorial stationery, caterer, transportation needs for family and pallbearers, funeral location, benefits forms, and arranging other unique details or special family requests.

On the day of the ceremony, your director will coordinate the funeral home’s funeral attendants, educate pallbearers about their role, arrange reserved seating, set up entry tables with memorial stationery and other tribute displays, liaise with clergy and musicians, display floral tributes, greet attendees, and support the family as needed. Your director aims to ensure the funeral ceremony provides you with a meaningful experience that will aid you on your grief journey.

In addition to being provincially licensed to arrange funerals at the immediate time of need, a funeral director can also arrange prepaid funeral plans to help alleviate emotional and financial stress at a future date. Directors will also arrange for the provincial, national, and international transfer of a deceased’s body or cremated remains.

So much more than a funeral planner, your funeral director is also a community resource for funeral service information, grief support, public education events, and helpful aftercare programs for grieving individuals.

Consumer Choice and Readers’ Choice for Edmonton Funeral Home

Wed, 08 Dec 2021 22:05:42 GMT

Based on the feedback of our community.

In 2010, The Consumer Choice Award organization in Edmonton began recognizing the category of funeral home excellence in their awards and recognition. Park Memorial was honoured to be selected as the winner in that inaugural year – and because of the trust of the families that we serve, we have continued to earn this award every year since. This status is awarded to businesses using independent research and big data taken from online and social media sources and is awarded on an annual basis.

Winning businesses are given the opportunity to participate in annual Consumers Choice marketing campaigns, which have allowed Park Memorial to share our brand story in our community in such a way that we have seen our audience and our impact grow and flourish.

In 2017, the category of funeral home excellence was also added to the Edmonton Journal Readers’ Choice Awards, and Park Memorial was the Gold winner in that category, and has continued to be recognized as such for seven consecutive years. Last year’s award was especially meaningful, as its launch and announcement coincided with our Park Memorial 80th Anniversary.

For over 82 years, bereaved families across northern Alberta have continued to trust and find comfort in the services that Park Memorial delivers to each family who places their trust in us. We continue to be humbled by this trust and do our utmost to honour it with every piece of care and compassion that our staff family delivers every day.

Editor's Note: This post was originally posted in December 2021 and has been updated for accuracy and comprehensiveness.

Our Edmonton Chapel is Not Your Typical Room

Wed, 08 Dec 2021 22:00:56 GMT

But it is a treasured part of our (funeral) home.

When you think about the rooms in your home – to visualize what each room means to you, and to really sit in the memories that each room holds, likely there is a vast range of emotion that comes along with the process. You recall the many meals prepared beside your mom in your kitchen as she taught you how to make all your favourite dishes. You remember giggling with your siblings as you raced through the hallways playing tag together, and the look on your mom’s face that was somewhere between a smirk and a warning to shut it down. You lovingly recall all the bedtime stories you read to your grandchildren after tucking them lovingly into their beds. Time spent with Dad in the garage learning how to change a tire. The rooms of ‘home’ hold so much meaning.

Park Memorial Funeral HOME … the rooms in our home hold emotion and meaning, as well. The room that holds the most meaning for our community and our families that we have served is our chapel. It is the room where tens of thousands of lives have been honoured. Where a sea of tears has been shed. Where there is no math nor measure to the hugs that have happened within its walls. Where stories and memories have brought welcome giggles. Where sweet music has brought remembrance. And where countless heartbreaking goodbyes have been whispered and wept.

It is also the room in our home that welcomes our families back each December for our Christmas Memorial Service. Where families begin to heal and to find meaning and hope in the togetherness of grief and loss. Where it is safe to sit in the emotions of grief in the company of others who understand firsthand.

Not your typical room. Yet still a treasured part of our home.

Our spacious, naturally lit chapel features seating for more than 300 guests, a separate choir loft, full audio-visual capability, and a quiet family room off to the side which the family can use to gather before and after the service, as well as to take a moment to breathe during the service as needed. It features a closed-circuit television so that if a family member needs to take a moment to collect themselves, they will not miss any of the funeral service. Our chapel is the perfect room in our home in which to honour the life of your loved one.

Why Should I Preplan My Funeral?

Wed, 01 Dec 2021 18:57:39 GMT

When a loved one dies, there are many decisions to be made.

When a loved one dies, there are many decisions to be made, ranging from their final disposition (burial or cremation), to location, officiant, obituary, eulogy, song choices, florals, and many more. It is likened to planning a wedding, as it has as many decisions and moving parts as a wedding does, but unlike a wedding, it is often planned and held in under one week’s time. It is overwhelming. You are often in shock, and the grief of your loss is excruciating. There is often regret that comes to the surface during this process, particularly if there have been no conversations about final wishes. Guilt often follows, as decisions are made from a standpoint of guessing and hoping that you are caring for your loved one in the way that they would have wanted.

“You don’t want to make these decisions when you’re foggy and your heart is broken”. ~Kristie Bennett, Park Memorial family served, 2015

It does not have to be this way - there is another option: you can pre-plan your funeral. In doing so, you spare your loved ones from having to make these big decisions, and from having to guess what you would have wanted.

“If mom would have taken care of this in advance, there would have been no questioning what she wanted. What a relief that would have been.” ~Kristie Bennett

Nobody likes to face their own mortality. It requires us to be at our most vulnerable. We don’t just wake up one morning and think to ourselves “I think I’ll plan my funeral today.” Instead, this is an intentional decision made from a place of love for one’s family and from a desire to express one’s last wishes.

The process for prearranging your funeral varies according to your comfort level and the degree to which you wish to plan. Typically, you will select your method of final disposition, the casket or urn that you would like, transportation for your loved ones as needed, and which stationary package you would like. From there, you can be as detailed as you wish, answering questions like the location of your service, who will officiate, who will read the eulogy, what songs will be played, and what food you would like served at a reception following.

“When you preplan your funeral, you are giving your family a very precious gift.” ~Kristie Bennett

There is also a financial benefit to prearranging one’s funeral: by prepaying for your services, you are protected from inflation costs between the time that you make your pre-arrangement and the time of your passing.

Here is what you need to know:

What products and services can I prepay?

Any products or services that Park Memorial directly provides can be part of a prepaid prearrangement. These include cost of cremation, cost of burial, casket, urn, rental of chapel for the service, rental of our reception centre for post funeral fellowship, limousine transportation for your family, and stationery.
What products and services cannot be included in my prearrangement?

Any product or service supplied by a third party cannot be pre-paid. These include, but are not limited to flowers, catering, burial plot, niche, honorariums for locations, officiants, or musicians, off site location fees, etc.
Do you offer a payment plan?

Park Memorial allows our pre-arrangement families the option to pay for their plan over a three-year term.
What if I want to make more decisions than those that I can pre-pay?

You are free to include other details such as selection of location, officiant, music, speakers, and pallbearers during your prearrangement. This document will help get you started. We recommend filling it out before you come for your prearrangement meeting, and then letting your executor know of its storage location so that it can be found and referred to when needed.
What happens to my prearranged funds?

The Funeral Services Act states that funeral homes must keep a minimum of 85% of pre-arrangement funds in trust and can use the remaining 15% for operating costs if desired. At Park Memorial, we honour the trust of our families by holding the full 100% amount of your pre-arranged funds in trust with Canadian Western Bank.
Can my executor change the decisions that I have made when I die?

Yes, your executor has the power and ability to change everything about your prearranged plans from the major to the minor decisions. And yes – we see it happen. This is why it is vital and critical that you select an executor worthy of your trust, whom you know will fulfill your last wishes as you have laid out. To read more about the role of an executor, please click here .
How much money can I save by preplanning my funeral?

We are able to give actual case scenarios from prearrangements purchased two or more decades ago: In 1985, one of our families chose a casket that cost $1545.00 at the time. The same casket today costs $4495. In 1985, one of our families selected a vault that cost $445.00. The same vault today costs $1595. As you can see, the savings are significant.
What happens if I move? Can I transfer my prearrangement?

If you move and wish to have your death care needs fulfilled outside of the greater Edmonton region or other area that Park Memorial serves, we will look for the closest family-owned funeral home geographically to you, and work with their team to transfer your prearrangement accordingly.
What if the urn or casket that I select and prepay is no longer available when I die?

If at the time of death, it is not reasonably possible to secure the originally selected casket or urn, Park Memorial will work with your executor and / or family to substitute a product that is closest to the same quality of product or better than the original choice, and which aligns with your outlined wishes.
What happens if I change my mind?

Park Memorial Funeral Home has a 30-day full refund policy following the date of contract, with no questions asked. Once the initial 30 days has passed, the refund of deposit is subject to a 15% administration fee.

How Do You Support a Grieving Friend?

Wed, 01 Dec 2021 17:57:40 GMT

There is so much focus on what to say to somebody who is grieving, but the truth is that there is nothing that can be said.

When a friend is in pain, we immediately go into ‘fix it’ mode, looking for the perfect words or the perfect actions to fix their pain. But the pain of loss and grief isn’t something to be fixed. There is no treatment, no medication… the only way through is to actually walk the road of grief. So how can we love and support that person as they walk?

The short answer is to simply show up. To be available to sit in silence with them, to walk beside them, to listen, and to simply care enough to be beside them in the discomfort of their grief and pain. There are also the tangible ways to show your love, such as bringing meals, taking on chores like lawn and yard maintenance, doing their laundry or cleaning their house, spending time with their children, and reaching out in person or via telephone or text with simple reminders that you care.

It is important not to put the onus on your grieving friend to reach out to ask for help; the heaviness and fog of grief blocks much of our ability to know and express what we need. Instead, just show up. Send a text that you are bringing burgers for them, and ask what they'd like on their burger. Grab some grocery staples and basics, and drop them off to them. Call and ask what time is best for you to come and mow the lawn or shovel the snow. If they have children, offer to take their kids out for an adventure for a few hours. Have a meal delivered by one of the many meal delivery services. And offer your ear... no judgement, no fixing, just a willingness to sit with them in their pain and listen.

At our inaugural Finding Grace in Grief event in May of 2019, we opened with this video by Refuge in Grief, Megan Devine that brilliantly teaches that when we are in pain, acknowledgement and being seen are the most helpful things that our loved ones can do to support us. “It makes things better, even when they can’t be made right.” But how can this concept be made practical for us?

This infographic , also from Refuge in Grief, gives some very practical Do’s and Don’ts while showing support for a grieving friend.

One of the points that is made in the above graphic is that your friend’s grief is theirs, not yours. It is not the time for you to share your own grief story, or place judgement on their grieving process with reference to your own grief and loss experiences… you are merely a vessel of acknowledgement and comfort.

So back to the question of what to say? What not to say? Here are some ideas:

Christmas Traditions After the Loss of a Loved One

Wed, 01 Dec 2021 15:32:05 GMT

Incorporating New Traditions to Honour Their Memory

Christmas brings complicated feelings when one is grieving the loss of a loved one. While the absence of that person is palpable in the season’s celebrations, there are several meaningful ways to honour their memory during the holidays. Traditions are a big part of the holidays for most families. When someone is missing from these traditions, they can either be held even more dear, or can also feel cumbersome. It is important to give yourself permission to hold close to those traditions that still feel right and to pass on those that don’t. It is also encouraged to begin some new traditions when it feels right to do so. Here are some ideas to inspire you:

Consider setting a place for your loved one at the dinner table. Place some of your favourite photos of them at their place setting and take comfort that their presence will be felt. Or, if setting a place for them seems like too much, place a candle and photo of them close by.
Put a memory jar somewhere in your home with pens and pieces of paper. As you have visitors throughout the holiday season, encourage family and friends to write down their memories and stories of your love one and place the slips of the paper into the memory jar. Take turns reading these stories aloud either at the Christmas table (the time between the meal and dessert is a perfect time for this) or sitting around the tree. There is comfort in the laughter and tears that these memories are sure to bring. Or simply take the time to share your favourite Christmas memory of your loved one with others who will understand and laugh or cry with you.
Support a charitable organization in honour and memory of your loved one. This can be as simple as making a monetary memorial donation to a charity that they held dear or volunteering your time to bring comfort to others during the holidays.
Create a gratitude journal where you intentionally write 3-5 things every day that you are grateful for; some of these may eventually focus on the loved one that you grieve, and the impact that they had and continue to have on your life. We know you may not feel grateful at all right now, and finding gratitude may feel very difficult, so this may be as simple as stating, “I am grateful for the smell of my coffee in the morning” or ‘I am grateful for the cozy PJs I am wearing that I don’t want to get out of.”

Nothing can take away the sadness and heaviness of grief at Christmas. The reminders of what has been lost are constant in the hustle and bustle of the season. Our hope is that taking time to pause, rest and step back from things when you need to, and finding meaningful ways to honour and remember your loved one will help to lighten the heaviness of your grief this Christmas.

Caring for yourself by engaging with the natural world

Wed, 20 Oct 2021 20:21:25 GMT

A Healing Balm

“The best remedy for those who are afraid, lonely or unhappy is to go outside… I firmly believe nature brings solace in all troubles.” – ANNE FRANK

During this unprecedentedly difficult time for humanity in general and funeral service in particular, good self-care could not be more important. I know you’re busy, and I know you’re probably stressed. Which coping strategies are you using? In your precious spare moments, you might distract yourself with technology and entertainment. You may numb yourself with alcohol and drugs. You might try to keep busy with mindless tasks. With the exception of alcohol and drug overuse, these coping strategies are fine and effective to some degree. It’s okay to include them in your stress survival toolkit. But in this article, I want to suggest a powerful alternative that’s free, readily available and only takes a few minutes a day. I’m talking about nature. Nature eases stress. Nature heals. Not only can engaging with the natural world help you de-stress right now, but it can also become a meaningful habit that deeply improves the quality of the rest of your life. I know that I’m more relaxed and in a better mood when I’ve spent time outdoors. I’m also better able to focus.

Unfortunately, most of us are nature deprived. We now interact with technology more than we do with anything else in our environment, even our fellow human beings. In his bestselling 2005 book Last Child in the Woods, author Richard Louv coined the term “nature deficit disorder” to describe the consequences of humanity’s modern-day alienation from nature. He believes a lack of connection with nature has caused widespread anxiety, depression and attention disorders. These same symptoms – anxiety, depression and inability to concentrate – are also common in people who are stressed. If you’re stressed and nature deprived, then, are some of your stress symptoms exacerbated unnecessarily? I think they often are. THE SCIENCE OF NATURE AS HEALER In recent decades, as we have become increasingly disconnected from nature, scientists have been studying how our bodies and minds respond when we return to nature. Their findings can help us better understand the many ways in which we can use nature to help us cope with stress in the short term and live more balanced lives in the longer term. You might be surprised at the powerful, myriad benefits nature offers us. Physical Health Spending time in nature has been shown to have numerous physical benefits, including lowering blood pressure and heart rate. Crucially, it also lowers levels of the stress chemical cortisol in your body.

When cortisol levels remain high over time due to chronic stress, you’re at risk for a whole host of problems ranging from anxiety to heart disease, weight gain and sleep problems. Speaking of sleep, nature time improves sleep quality because exposure to sunlight during the day helps regulate your sleep cycle. What’s more, 15 to 20 minutes of sunshine each day helps your body better absorb vitamin D, which strengthens bones and reduces risk for certain diseases, including cancer. Researchers have determined that all these physical benefits of spending time in nature are independent of exercise. In other words, you don’t have to be moving around to reap the rewards; simply sitting or resting in a natural setting activates these positive changes. BUT! But when you add exercise, the physical rewards of nature time are even greater. Your blood flow improves, bringing more oxygen to all the cells of your body and further lowering blood pressure and heart rate. Your muscles get stronger and your joints more flexible. And physical activity also releases happy brain chemicals called endorphins.

Cognitive Health If you find you can’t think clearly, go for a short nature walk. People who take a walk in a natural setting perform 20% better on cognitive tests than those who take a stroll in a city environment or indoors. Why? Because in an urban setting, or when interacting with technology, our minds are forced to think about possible dangers, problem-solving and decision-making. Basically, these encounters with people, man-made environments, advertising and media are cognitively fatiguing. When we’re in nature, on the other hand, our minds are free. Our brain can let its guard down and relax. Gazing at a sunset or an ocean view is another good example of this phenomenon. I’m sure you know what this feels like. Most of us enjoy these activities because they’re both beautiful and nontaxing. We’re also less likely to ruminate when we’re in nature, according to scientists. That is, we’re less prone to focusing repetitively on problems or worries. In natural environments, our thoughts are more apt to drift freely and peacefully.

“Spending time in nature is simply an all-around emotional tonic.”

Emotional Health

The green of nature is emotional gold. One study of a million people persuasively arrived at the conclusion that children raised in neighborhoods with the least amount of green space or easy access to nature – independent of affluence and other variables – were 55% more likely to be mentally unwell. It makes sense. When our bodies feel better and our minds are relaxed, our emotions tend to follow. Spending time in nature has been proven to improve our mood, reduce feelings of anger, increase resilience, even boost self-esteem. It eases depression and anxiety. It’s simply an all-around emotional tonic. Something important to keep in mind is that nature offers these emotional benefits regardless of setting or season. Studies show that engaging with any natural environment in any weather improves emotional well-being. Even if you prefer a certain landscape – the beach or the mountains – or a certain season of the year, remember that spending time in whatever natural environments are most convenient to you year-round will be essential to your self-care. Spiritual Health Natural settings are spiritual settings. We tend to feel a connection with the divine when we’re on a mountaintop or looking up at a night sky full of stars. We feel awe. We sense that we are part of something much larger, and our own troubles, no matter how painful, seem less significant in the grand scheme of things.

“Natural settings are spiritual settings.”

What’s more, nature surprises and inspires us.

The more present we are in nature, the more we notice. And the more we notice, the more awed we become at the miraculous sky, plants, trees, rocks, sand, water and animals. From the majestic to the minuscule, we find wonder upon wonder. Studies show that spending time in nature induces brain waves similar to those generated during meditation. Nature feels sacred and mysterious. And that connection to the sacred helps us get in touch with our divine sparks – that still, small voice inside us that whispers of life’s meaning and purpose. Our spirits and souls are powerfully drawn to nature. In nature, we more readily contemplate our beliefs and values. We are better able to transcend the mundane realities of our lives and consider the boundlessness and timelessness of the universe. We crave nature in large part because we crave these special moments of epiphany and transcendence. ADD MORE NATURE TO YOUR LIFE How much time must you spend engaging with nature to feel its positive effects? A recent large study in England determined that a total of 120 minutes a week spent in nature was sufficient for people to re - port high levels of well-being. The research showed that those two hours could be split up among many brief outings, several half-hour sessions or a single exposure. The study also controlled for physical ac - tivity, so the 120-minute threshold applied whether people were exercising or sitting on a park bench. I definitely don’t think you need to follow a regimented nature schedule to experience stress relief and a better quality of life, but it might help you to know that engaging with nature for just 17 minutes a day, on average, will likely have a significant positive impact. I hope you will find ways to spend more time in nature. The science supports it and so do our experience and intuitive understanding. Even right now, the trees outside my window draw my eye and soothe my soul. I think I will gaze awhile.

“The green of nature is emotional gold”

To access Dr. Wolfelt's original post, please click here .

Tips for managing COVID-19 anxiety and depression

Wed, 20 Oct 2021 19:34:59 GMT

Strength to Cope

As a long-time grief counselor and educator, I talk to lots of people about life losses of all kinds. What I’m hearing in recent months is that COVID-19 has become a daunting challenge for just about everyone. Not only have stay-at-home and work-at-home protocols isolated people physically and socially, but the uncertainty of illness, potential financial jeopardy and an unforeseeable future are making it hard for many to cope. You are probably seeing these stresses in the families you serve, and you and your loved ones may be experiencing them as well. In addition, your community and funeral home may have suffered a wave of coronavirus deaths, compounding your stress, anxiety and depression.

Essentially, everyone is now grieving. Anxiety and depression, which are normal, necessary grief responses, are epidemic. While grief is absolutely natural in the face of these unprecedented circumstances and daily losses, it’s also demands compassionate, proactive care.

If you’ve found yourself struggling with anxiety and/or depression, you’re not alone. Many millions of others – friends, neighbors, colleagues – are, too. In fact, according to the U.S. Census Bureau, fully one-third of Americans are now experiencing clinical depression and anxiety. Because of their role as front-line last responders during this crisis, funeral directors are especially at risk. The good news is that if we work on our mental health both collectively and individually, we can use this difficult time to learn how to nurture our own mental wellness, as well as care for others.

Anxiety

Anxiety is fear and worry that become pervasive and out of proportion. It’s a normal reaction to danger, which is how our minds and bodies may interpret the losses, risks and uncertainties of this pandemic. Common symptoms include:

• Nervousness, restlessness, jumpiness

• Irritability

• Trouble concentrating/being distracted by worry or intrusive thoughts

• Difficulty sleeping

• Physical discomforts such as fast heart rate, rapid breathing, dizziness, gastrointestinal problems or trembling

• Anxiety attacks (also called panic attacks).

If you’ve experienced anxiety in the past, your anxiety may be worse now. And if you’ve never been an anxious person before, you may find yourself tugged at by anxiety now. If your anxiety is preventing you from going about your daily life or is having a significant impact on your quality of life, it’s time to take action.

Depression

Depression is a common mood disorder characterized by feelings of sadness, as well as emptiness, irritability, low self-esteem and pessimism. It affects how a person thinks, feels and lives their life. Clinical depression is a more severe form of depression that persists and makes it hard or virtually impossible to function in daily life. Common symptoms include:

• Feelings of apathy, guilt, hopelessness, sadness, discontent

• Mood swings

• Poor sleep

• Appetite changes (eating too much or too little)

• Difficulty mustering the energy to accomplish routine tasks or take part in activities.

Anxiety and depression often go hand in hand, but the two can be separate. And as with anxiety, you may be finding that any pre-existing depression may be worse now, or due to the unprecedented circumstances, you may be struggling with depression for the first time. Feeling depressed is understandable during the pandemic, but you can take steps to ease your depression and improve your quality of life even in the midst of it.

Managing Anxiety and Depression

There is no one right way to effectively manage anxiety and depression. You’ll find that some measures work for you and some don’t. But I encourage you to try a number of the following tips and share this article with colleagues, family members or friends you believe may be struggling. Finding a way out of anxiety and depression is often like climbing a ladder. If you find something that helps you make it to the first rung, you’ll be in a position to climb to that second rung and so on. Follow a daily schedule The coronavirus life has thrown our schedules into disarray. Part of the reason you may feel at loose ends is because your daily structure or routine has been upended. But you can make one anew! Try getting up at the same time each day, eating scheduled meals, bathing regularly and going for short walks at set intervals. You’ll find that a routine will create a scaffold that helps you feel more in control and well, no matter what happens between those scheduled touchpoints.

Prioritize sleep

If you haven’t been sleeping well for seven to nine hours a night, this should be your first priority. I can hear some of my funeral director friends chuckling already, but the truth is poor sleep exacerbates anxiety and depression, while the right amount of good-quality sleep is practically a miracle cure. Read up on sleep hygiene and follow best practices for creating a good sleeping environment, such as turning off electronics at least an hour before bed and using your bedroom only for sleep. If you’re still having trouble sleeping, see your healthcare provider, who can help assess your particular sleep problems and fix them.

Connect with others Social distancing has been difficult for most of us, and especially for those in a household with someone who is at higher risk for severe illness, as distancing may have to continue for a longer while. Yet connecting with others is still important. Make it a priority to talk to at least one person you care about each day. Video calls are the best substitute for in-person visits.

In fact, because many people now have more free time than they normally would, you might find it easier to catch up with old friends, relatives and neighbors. In some ways, it’s an unusually opportune time to strengthen relationships outside work. It’s also a good time to help others in small ways. Reach out to someone who may need a little help and see what happens. Do something Make a pact with yourself to stand up and do something. Whenever you find yourself ruminating on depressing or fearful thoughts, simply stand and move your body for five minutes. You can do whatever you want for those five minutes as long as you are physically in motion – get a drink of water, take a walk around the funeral home, run an errand or do a few lunges or stretches.

Breathe deeply Simply focusing on your breath and breathing in to the count of five, then out to the count of five has the power to instantly banish bad thoughts and relax your body. It’s such a simple technique, but it works. Kick the habit Did you know that nicotine, alcohol and caffeine can all make anxiety worse? These habits may feel comforting during a time of anxiety or depression, but the truth is they are likely contributing to it. Try gradually cutting back, and if you need help to quit, get it.

Clear the clutter

You’ve probably been spending more time at home, and a cluttered home can be a stressful environment. Ask an organized friend or family member to help you clean up and declutter. Your home can be an oasis of calm and clarity. The same goes for your desk and workplace. Foster hope and joy What makes you feel hopeful and joyful? Whatever it is, schedule at least a bit of it into each day. And if you’re having a hard time mustering up hope and joy, you can borrow it from someone else. Call a bubbly friend, watch a silly movie or read an inspiring memoir. See a therapist COVID-19 has expedited the transition to telemedicine. Counselors are now caring for clients over the phone or via Zoom. Many people have told me they’ve found it less daunting and more convenient and confidential to “meet with” a therapist online and expressed surprise at how much it’s helping. Create a Wellness Jar Use small slips of paper to write down things that make you feel calm, loved or happy, one per slip. Examples might be take a soothing bath, shoot baskets at the park, bake cookies or cuddle with a pet. Fold up these pieces of paper and place them in a jar. Then, whenever you’re feeling anxious or depressed, randomly select a slip of paper and follow the idea you unfold.

To access Dr. Wolfelt's original post, please click here .

And now what? And now we learn from the geese

Wed, 20 Oct 2021 19:34:58 GMT

Strength to Cope

As we emerge from the COVID-19 pandemic, we’re feeling anxious. A recent survey from the American Psychological Association found that 49 percent of adults reported feeling uncomfortable about the prospect of life returning to normal. That’s because we’re different now. That pesky word “normal” implies that we can get back to the way things were, that we can pick up right where we left off before the pandemic hit. But nothing could be further from the truth. There’s no going back to the old normal. There’s only creating a new normal. Whenever we’re impacted by significant loss of any kind, we’re changed by it. After someone we dearly love dies, for example, we’re never quite the same. The hard work that is grief, in fact, is the very process of coming to terms with our new normal, which includes developing changed self-identities and revising our understanding of what gives our lives meaning and purpose.

Like any great loss, the COVID-19 experience, too, has changed us. Grief caregivers, especially, have been affected in a myriad of challenging ways by the pandemic. You have been at the frontlines of so many losses suffered. And so you yourself are now in a period of constructing a new normal. You are in a time in which you must acknowledge everything that happened, feel and express your many continuing feelings about it, and work to reconstruct meaning in your vocations and your lives. Post-pandemic, all of this hard work of grieving, mourning, and finding a new normal requires human empathy and kindness. If there has ever been a time when we needed to support and nurture one another, it is now. In reflecting on this need to support each other during this post COVID period of reconstruction, we would be well-served to look to the skies. Wild geese have much to teach us about community and lifting one another up. Let’s observe the five natural instincts for support and companionship demonstrated by wild geese.

“Wild geese have much to teach us about community and lifting one another up.”

OBSERVATION 1: When the flock is on a journey, by Alan D. Wolfelt, Ph.D. And Now What?... AND NOW WE LEARN GEESE FROM THE Wild geese have much to teach us about community and lifting one another up. the flapping of the wings of each individual goose results in an uplift for the bird that follows. By flying in a “V” formation, the entire flock achieves 71 percent greater flying range than if each bird flew alone. Implication: As we are finding our new normal post-pandemic, we, too, are on a journey. Your fellow grief care providers are on a similar journey, and you can all be uplifted by journeying together. No, you need not travel alone, nor should you try!

OBSERVATION 2: Whenever a goose falls out of formation, it experiences the drag and resistance of trying to fly alone. The goose then realizes it needs to get back into formation to take advantage of the collective lifting power of the flock. Implication: Just as geese benefit from staying in formation with those on a similar journey, we as humans are better off if we accept the lifting power of those who journey alongside us. We are grace filled when we open ourselves to the support of our fellow travelers.

OBSERVATION 3: If any one goose has a problem, two other geese will always drop out of formation and follow the wayward goose to help support and protect it. They stay present to the goose that has special needs until it is able to continue the journey with them. Implication: If we humans can learn from the wisdom of geese, we will always companion each other in difficult times. Receiving help from others strengthens the bonds of compassion and love that help us survive when we are devastated by loss and difficult change.

OBSERVATION 4: When the goose leading the flock gets tired and overwhelmed, it rotates back into the formation, and another goose flies at the point position. Implication: No one person on a caregiving team can lead the way all the time. Especially during difficult times, it is wise for leaders to acknowledge when they are tired and need others to care for them and protect them from the headwinds.

OBSERVATION 5: While flying in formation, the geese honk to each other as a form of encouragement and mutual support. Implication: Now is a time that we all need encouragement from those around us to remind us of our interconnectedness. We must allow ourselves to rely on each other, otherwise in our struggle to find a new normal post-pandemic, we will likely end up feeling totally alone and completely isolated.

“If we humans can learn from the wisdom of geese, we will always companion each other in difficult times.”

Where To Turn for Help

“There is strength in numbers,” one saying goes. Another echoes, “United we stand, divided we fall.” As you work to grieve the many losses you have experienced in the past months, it’s essential to let other people in. Both inside and outside of your work and volunteer community, I encourage you to make room for those you trust the most. Carefully chosen friends and family members whom you feel safe with can often be at the center of your support system. Seek out people who encourage you to be yourself If we humans can learn from the wisdom of geese, we will always companion each other in difficult times and who acknowledge your many thoughts and feelings.

Open your broken heart a little at a time to those people in your life who are compassionate and loving listeners. In an ideal world, this is your family and friends. If this is not true for you, my hope is that you will seek out other sources of support. The darkness that COVID may have brought into your life is a place from which you might be temped to judge others, particularly their motivations. True, not all will be able to feel your profound losses the way you do, so don’t expect them to be able to. Except in cases in which there is evidence that you can’t trust someone’s intentions, try to be open to letting others be of support to you.

Remember— you are doing the best you can, from moment to moment, from day to day. You may also find comfort in talking to a minister or other spiritual leader. As you work to find your new normal, it may be natural for you to feel ambivalent about questions of faith and the meaning of life. A clergy member or spiritual mentor who responds with nonjudgment and empathy to all your feelings can be a valuable resource. A professional counselor may also be a very helpful addition to your support system. In fact, a good counselor can be something friends, family members, and colleagues can’t be right now: an objective listener. A counselor’s office can be a place of sanctuary where you can give voice to those feelings you may be afraid to express elsewhere.

As with everything else in this overwhelming time, counseling is an intensely personal choice. However, when you find the right counselor, you may well have found a safe haven in which to experience and explore the jumble of feelings impacting you. Not all but many people discover that support groups are one of the best helping resources—even for caregivers! In a group, you can connect with others who have experienced similar thoughts and feelings. You will be allowed and gently encouraged to talk about your struggles as much as you would like. In these groups, each person can share their unique loss experiences in a nonthreatening, safe atmosphere. While I’m sure you’re looking forward to face-to-face gatherings with colleagues, in the meantime perhaps you have access to a study group that allows you to stay in contact with other grief caregivers online. Such groups could be a lifeline during this time of transition to a new normal.

As a grief counselor, I have been privileged to have thousands of people challenged by loss reach out to me for help. Among the lessons they have taught me is that sharing their grief with others is an integral part of the healing process. Perhaps it is helpful to remember that by definition, mourning means “the shared response to loss.” Remember, help during this post-pandemic period will come in different forms for different people. The trick is to find the combination that works best for you and then make use of it. I hope this article has helped you understand the importance of reaching out to one another during this difficult time. Please don’t try to confront your pandemic grief and loss experience alone and solely inside yourself. You need and deserve companions—friends, relatives, colleagues, counselors, and others who have also experienced challenges during the pandemic— who will walk with you as you make the difficult journey to a new and meaningful normal.

To access Dr. Wolfelt's original post, please click here .

Thoughts on leaning on ceremony after a death during the pandemic

Wed, 20 Oct 2021 19:34:56 GMT

“Tell Me How to Grieve”

This pandemic is replete with tragedy, but one Colorado story not far from my home has been weighing on my heart.

In the Huffington Post on May 7, 2020, Mary Hagen Roberts published an essay about the death of her precious daughter, Laura, who had just turned 33. Laura died not of COVID-19 but of cancer. Her death came much faster than they expected. In early April, the stomach cancer had spread to Laura’s lungs, but because her symptoms mimicked those of the novel coronavirus, she was given a presumptive COVID-19 diagnosis and hospitalized. For a time, she was alone, isolated from her fiancé, Brett, her mother, and even the hospital staff.

Laura was discharged from the hospital on Easter Sunday. But she didn’t want Mary, who is in her 60s and has Addison’s disease, to leave the shelter of her home and risk contracting coronavirus. The “damn virus,” as Mary calls it, kept them apart. And then a bronchoscopy revealed that Laura had perhaps just a month left to live. Despite the threat of the virus, Mary packed a bag and on April 23rd got in the car to drive the four hours to Laura’s home. Tragically, Laura died that day, minutes before Mary arrived.

“I have no idea how to carry on now that she is gone or what to do with my unbearable sorrow,” Mary writes. “Tell me how to grieve when we are not permitted to have a funeral or memorial service, when the precious body of my child disappears into the back of a repurposed funeral home minivan, never to be seen again. I want the rituals of mourning that our society— that I—have learned to rely on to process grief.”

What a tragic, tragic situation. Grief is always difficult and complicated, but Mary is suffering heightened grief complications because of the pandemic restrictions. My heart aches for her. Not only did her child die, which as a long-time grief counselor and parent I know to be among the most excruciating of life experiences, but she and Laura’s other loved ones have been unable to hold a funeral. They have been prevented from adequately honoring Laura, and they have been unable to gather. They remain separated from each other, isolated silos of grief, without the comfort of mutual support.

Mary is wise. Her comments convey her understanding that funerals are essential because they help us meet our mourning needs. Funerals help us acknowledge and accept the reality of a death, share memories, convert our relationship with the person who died from one of presence to one of memory, give and receive social support, express our grief out loud, consider the meaning of life and death, and help us start to think about how eventually to live life forward with meaning and purpose.

Despite the common misconception, funerals are not rites of closure, because grief is lifelong. Rather, they are rites of initiation. They set us on a good grief path. And, as hundreds of grieving families in myriad complicated loss situations have taught me over the decades, it often feels impossible to embark on the grief journey in situations in which the mourners couldn’t be by the dying person’s side, spend adequate time with the body after the death, or hold the funeral they needed.

I often say that when words are inadequate, especially after a traumatic loss, it’s time to lean on ceremony. Ceremony provides a structure that holds us up. So without a funeral, what are Mary and the hundreds of thousands of families who have lost or will lose a loved one during the pandemic, regardless of cause of death, supposed to do? First, I would suggest that if you find yourself in this heartbreaking circumstance, bear in mind that any ritual is better than no ritual. Spending even a little private time with the body helps mourners acknowledge the reality of the death and begin to make the arduous transition from having a relationship of presence with the person who died to one of memory. And holding any kind of immediate ceremony is helpful, even if it’s online or an intimate graveside committal. But after the immediate ceremony options, which I agree are woefully limited and inadequate right now, ceremony can still be called upon to provide that necessary support. I don’t know Mary or Brett. I didn’t know Laura. I would never presume to tell Mary—or anyone—how to grieve and mourn. Each person’s grief is always unique, and each person is always the only expert of their own grief. But I do understand, as Mary does, that grief rituals help us survive what would otherwise be unsurvivable. And I also know that it’s never too late to have a ceremony—and that especially in challenging loss situations, it’s often helpful to have multiple ceremonies.

Three Ceremonies to Foster Healing

I often recommend that families affected by traumatic death hold three additional ceremonies in the months after the death, spaced out over a period of about two years. In this pandemic situation, I recommend a simple candle-lighting ceremony in your home as the first ceremony. Simply gather together with the members of your household and invite a few other primary mourners who have been sheltering in place if it’s safe to do so. Gather around a table on which you’ve placed photos and memorabilia of the person who died. You might begin your ceremony with a piece of music and read one or two short prayers or poems. Each guest can hold a small candle and light it as they share a memory or thought. A prayer, song, or piece of music makes a good close.

There are no set rules. Your ceremony can be religious or secular, in keeping with your beliefs. As long as the ceremony helps you explore all of the healing functions of the funeral, it will help you embark on your journey. Second, I invite you to have a simple gathering as soon as it is safe to do so. Sometimes a significant date makes sense, such as the birthday of your loved one or the anniversary of the death. You might think of this as a memorial service, and even if you had some type of small funeral or online ceremony shortly after the death, you still have the right to plan and hold this type of in-person gathering. The third ceremony is often best held somewhere between 18 and 24 months after the death, or about a year after the second ceremony. I often recommend a gathering at the cemetery, cremation garden, or final resting place. Again, readings, music, and memory-sharing turn an informal gathering into a meaningful ritual. Redosing yourself at this point with the purposes of the funeral—reality, recall, support, expression, meaning, and transcendence—is a powerful healing elixir.

When grief becomes mourning

Humans have held funeral ceremonies since the beginning of time because only ritual feels up to the task. The death of a loved one is a life-transforming event, and ritual sacredly acknowledges that significance. What’s more, ceremony gives us something to do with our grief. It puts our inner thoughts and feelings—in other words, our grief—into motion. It helps us express ourselves in the company of others who care about us. It helps us mourn, which is the necessary outward expression of our inner grief. “I have no idea how to carry on. . . or what to do with my unbearable sorrow,” writes Mary. Denied the structure of ritual, she understandably does not know what to do with her grief. In addition to the repeated use of ceremony (which can even be turned to informally, on a regular basis, in the form of personal daily grief rituals at home or in nearby locations), I humbly suggest that any form of outward mourning helps, over time, to reconcile grief. Talking to good listeners, participating in a support group, journaling, crying, seeing a counselor, putting together memory books or boxes, visiting the final resting place, and other mourning activities help us make the painful but necessary transition to life before a death to life after a death.

Our grief is our love in a new context, and like our love, sharing it and expressing it in ways we find comforting or meaningful—as much as and as often as it tugs at us—one day at a time— makes all the difference. I realize that being unable to physically gather and cry with others hampers some facets of this expression at the moment, so for now, Zoom gatherings and phone calls are the best alternatives we have.

I offer my sincere condolences to Mary and her family as they navigate this terrible time, as well as all other grieving families struggling with similar limitations during the pandemic. I hope you find ways to mourn openly, deeply, authentically as well as lean on ceremony now and in the months to come. Godspeed.

To access Dr. Wolfelt's original post, please click here .

The Art of Ceremony Personalization

Tue, 12 Oct 2021 21:05:54 GMT

For many, art is an expression of the heart and the soul: an expression of those things for which words do not do justice.

“Art washes away from the soul the dust of everyday life"

- Pablo Picasso

So, too, after a loved one passes, art can become a medium to express grief and the feelings of the heart that have no words.

When planning a funeral at Park Memorial, our funeral directors ask to hear stories about your loved one. What did they love to do? What made them laugh? What lessons did they teach you? What brought them joy? These questions, and the stories shared will help our team suggest ways to personalize your loved one’s funeral. Was your loved one passionate about art? Then you might consider incorporating an art class into the reception following the funeral service. Our Reception Centre is perfectly equipped to host a variety of art media classes to pay tribute to your loved one.

If you are grieving the loss of a loved one and are looking for a unique avenue to express and explore your grief among others who are also walking their own grief journey. Consider joining our monthly Art for the Grieving Heart events where guests are led through a facilitated craft with roots in grief, and then gather for an informal grief discussion, led by a grief professional. Here is what one of our past guests had to say about these events:

“A moment of peace to grieve in your own comfort with those around you who feel the (same) pain for different reasons but (are) still there. The event helps to unlock emotions you may hide day in and day out”. ~Guest of Art for the Grieving Heart

Art speaks when words can’t.

When safe gatherings can be held once again, you will find dates and times for Art for the Grieving Heart and all other Park Memorial Grief Support Events on our Coming Events page.

Talking to Kids About Death and Loss

Tue, 12 Oct 2021 15:52:45 GMT

When a loss happens in a family, parents often struggle with what to share and how to share the news with their children.

Whether the loss of a family pet, a loved one, or a family member, the struggle of sharing the news of the loss is the first in a series of difficult conversations for parents.

"What do I say? What words do I use? How do I know what my child is ready to hear? I am grieving, too… how do I share this news and comfort my child while also holding space for my own feelings and grief?”

Just like other aspects of parenting, this parental role does not come with a handbook, however there are some solid resources available to help:

Talking About Death and Dying , an online workshop series for parents and caregivers, via KidsGrief.ca . Overview: "Most parents dread telling their children that someone important to them has a life-limiting illness or is dying. They may hesitate to provide the details about how someone has died. This reluctance comes from a good place. It's a natural instinct to protect children and keep them emotionally safe. Research and experience strongly suggest we talk with our children early on in these situations. The best way to protect children is in fact to given them clear, honest information and support that is right for their personality and maturity."
The BriarPatch Centre for Grieving Families (A Program of Pilgrims Hospice Society) provides a comprehensive array of workshops, art therapy, and individual, group, and family counselling support for families with grieving children, 5 years old and older, in Edmonton, Alberta
Helping Children Cope with Grief , a comprehensive guide from Dr. Alan Wolfelt , Center for Loss & Life Transition. Overview: "Adults grieve. So do children. As an adult or child, experiencing grief means to “feel,” not just to “understand.” Anyone old enough to love is old enough to grieve. Even before children are able to talk, they grieve when someone loved dies. And these feelings about the death become a part of their lives forever."

Please also visit our list of local community resources to help you find local therapists and programs that focus on children’s grief.

Coping With the Death of a Parent

Tue, 12 Oct 2021 15:26:38 GMT

Though we develop awareness in our adult lives that our parents will likely predecease us, the death of our parent(s) is something that we can never prepare for.

“ Going through a dead parent's memorabilia is a hazardous undertaking; there is a fine line between pleasure and pain. ”

― Anne Fadiman, The Wine Lover's Daughter: A Memoir

No matter their age, their health, nor their lifestyle that may affect their life span, the loss of a parent forces us to grieve the loss of a relationship that was the first we knew. For some, it is the loss of hugs, their wisdom, and their unconditional love. For others, it’s a loss of time to try to heal a fractured or estranged relationship. When our relationship with that parent – or our siblings - has been complicated or estranged, that also brings a more layered complexity to that grief. Here are some suggestions to help you on your grief journey:

If you have siblings, this is the time to keep communication flowing. They are likely the people best able to understand your loss and your grief. You will find comfort in mourning together, and sharing the stories and memories that your parents brought to your family life. Should there be sibling dynamics that do not favour healthy communication, meeting with a counselling or psychological professional who can help bridge that communication gap can be a valuable option.
If you have a friend who has walked through the loss of a parent, reach out to them to ask for support. Their experience will enable them to truly empathize with yours.
Recognize the special days in whatever way feels comfortable: birthdays, anniversaries, holidays and occasions. It might be as simple as setting an extra place at the table, lighting a candle, or releasing a balloon.
Find your ‘thing’, that special way of honouring your parent in a way that is meaningful to you both.
Talk to your parent; death doesn’t end a relationship. Spending time in nature is a great time to do this.
Recognize that grief doesn’t end. There is no finish line where one can say, “I’m done grieving now.”
Consider attending a grief support event. In non-pandemic times, Park Memorial offers a variety of events designed to support the grief journey. These are available to the community at large, not just families we’ve served.

Whether you shared a close relationship with your parent, or your relationship was more complicated, their loss causes everything to shift and change. Be gentle with yourself as you grieve their death and show your aching heart some grace.

How To Talk About Final Wishes?

Tue, 12 Oct 2021 15:08:51 GMT

How do you talk to someone about death who still holds hope that they will not die?

In 2015, Park Memorial was trusted with the care of the late Carol Stevens and her family. Carol had died after a very short, courageous and hope-filled journey with cancer. She was so determined that she would beat her terminal diagnosis, she became unwilling to talk about her final wishes with her family. Her daughter, Kristie, tried to broach the subject with her mom, but she was flatly denied. “I’m not talking about this. I can’t. Because I want to live.”

Kristie asks: “How do you talk to someone about death who still holds hope that they will not die.”

When Carol passed away, her family arrived at Park Memorial to look after her funeral arrangements… with no idea of what her personal wishes had been. In their state of shock, sadness and grief, they had to guess and agree together on how best to honour their wife and mother.

“If Mom had taken care of her arrangements, there would have been no question what Mom wanted. You don’t want to make these decisions when you’re foggy and your heart is broken.”

But HOW do you broach the subject of final wishes with a loved one? Here are some tips to help:

Whenever possible, have the conversation when all participants are in good health, of sound mind, and able to give words to their wishes.
Have the conversation at an informal and non-pressured time.
When there is a terminal diagnosis or palliative situation, consider taking small breaks throughout the conversation. If the conversation takes place in a medical setting, consider asking for the support of a social worker or clinician to help ease the questions and answers that are needed.
Write down your questions in advance of your conversation. Consider things like: where are your necessary documents located and who is your executor? Do you wish to be buried or cremated? What kind of funeral or life celebration would you like?
Consider having someone present to mediate and support the conversation. Whether a therapist, clergy, or trusted friend, sometimes the presence and insights of somebody not tied to the outcomes of the conversation can really help.
Contact your funeral director and talk things through together. They will be able to guide you through answering all of the questions that are important at the time of need, as well as to educate you about the many choices available to you, and the laws and policies that govern them.

“Knowing what I know now… if my mom had pre-planned her funeral, I would have burst out in tears with relief."

Society holds such fear and ‘taboo’ around talking about death and dying. Park Memorial is committed to normalizing the conversation around death and dying in our community so that families like Carol’s can have peace that they are honouring their loved one’s wishes, while being free from having to guess at making so many critical decisions.

Can we assist with your conversation with a loved one? We have many ideas to help and can be reached seven days a week at 780-426-0050 or by email at info@parkmemorial.com .

What to expect when making funeral arrangements?

Wed, 16 Oct 2019 15:08:55 GMT

This is what your Park Memorial funeral planner will cover in your arrangements meeting:

You can expect your appointment to last 2-3 hours or more. A selection of hot and cold beverages will be offered during our time together. During the funeral arrangements meeting, your funeral director will help you:

• Register your loved one's passing with Vital Statistics

• Select either burial or cremation

• Choose service dates

• Book a venue for the service and/or reception

• Contact a priest, minister, celebrant or other clergy to conduct a service

• Choose a casket or cremation container and urn

• Order Flowers (or you may wish to order flowers yourself)

• Finalize an obituary to appear on our website or in the newspaper

• Contact a cemetery if interment is taking place

• Design a custom memorial card to be handed out at the service, choose a guest book, and discuss other personalization options

• Families requiring financial assistance may qualify for Alberta Human Services Funeral Benefit

Should you require social assistance with this, you must notify the funeral director at the initial arrangements meeting. Application for social assistance at a later date will not be considered by human services.

Who should come to make the arrangements?

Tue, 15 Oct 2019 15:29:02 GMT

By law there is an order of who has control of making funeral arrangements, as outlined below.

* Subject to an order of the Court, the right to control the disposition of human remains or cremated remains vests in and devolves on persons in the following order of priority:

(a) the personal representative designated in the Will of the deceased;

(b) the spouse or adult interdependent partner of the deceased if the spouse or adult interdependent partner was living with the deceased at the time of death;

(d) a parent of the deceased;

(e) a guardian of the deceased under the Adult Guardianship and Trusteeship Act or, if the deceased is a minor, under the Child, Youth and Family Enhancement Act or the Family Law Act;

(f) an adult grandchild of the deceased; (g) an adult brother or sister of the deceased;

(h) an adult nephew or niece of the deceased;

(i) an adult next of kin of the deceased determined on the basis provided by sections 67 and 68 of the Wills and Succession Act;

(j) the Public Trustee;

(k) an adult person having some relationship with the deceased not based on blood ties or affinity;

(l) the Minister of Human Services.

In addition to the person who is legally obligated to make the funeral arrangements, it may be helpful for a couple of other family members to come in order to assist with the decision making process.

*From the Alberta Funeral Services Act - General Regulation (Section 36)

What do you need to bring to the arrangements meeting?

Mon, 14 Oct 2019 16:09:21 GMT

A helpful checklist to prepare for your funeral arrangements meeting.

To register the passing of your loved one with Vital Statistics we will request the following:

• Full legal name of deceased, usual resident address (physical address, not box number) and his/her place of death

• Date of death

• Date of birth

• Provincial Health Care number

• Provincial drivers licence number, if applicable

• Social Insurance Number

• Occupation of the deceased

• Place of birth of the deceased

• Marital status/living arrangements at time of death

• Spouse's name if applicable, including maiden name

• Mother and father's full legal names and birthplaces

• Full legal name, resident address, phone number of informant (Executor, Administrator, or next of kin)

In addition, the following may or may not be required.

A photograph to a appear in the obituary, website and on the memorial cards.

A recent photograph for hairstyling and make-up purposes.

Details for an obituary.

Clothing for your loved one to be dressed in prior to burial or cremation.

Clothing should have long sleeves and a high neckline. Please include undergarments. Shoes are optional.

A list of pallbearers and honorary pallbearers.

Name and contact information of clergy or official; your funeral planner can assist if you do not have this selected.

If the deceased had a prearranged contract with Park Memorial, please bring it with you. If you do not have all of this information when you come for your appointment, please do not be concerned. You can always supply us with the information in the day or two following the arrangements meeting.

What might you need to do following the arrangements meeting?

Sun, 13 Oct 2019 16:50:04 GMT

The arrangements meeting will be the starting place for all decisions that will need to be made.

Your funeral director will help you create a list of tasks that you will need to complete after the arrangements meeting and prior to the funeral that may include:

Visit the cemetery where the interment will take place to sign paperwork or purchase a plot

Visit a florist

Meet with clergy

Arrange for reception and/or catering if you have not already done so

Choose musical selections for the service if desired

Assemble a video presentation if desired:

If it is going to be played in our facilities please have it to us at least 24 hours prior to the service on a DVD or USB flash drive. Please note that we are unable to play PowerPoint files. Preferred file formats are MP4 or M4V. Park Memorial offers a tribute packages that includes a memorial video and photo book.

Proof of Death Documents

Sat, 12 Oct 2019 17:08:23 GMT

When someone dies, it is not very long before the executor or administrator of the estate becomes inundated with requests for “death certificates”.

In Alberta, there are a few documents which service this purpose. We have outlined below what those documents are, how to obtain them, and in which situations you may require them:

Funeral Director’s Statement of Death:

This is a document, marked with a seal, provided by the funeral home to certify that a death has occurred. Your funeral director at Park Memorial will provide you with a number of these to help you meet the requests of the many institutions requiring proof of passing. This document is accepted by the Canadian government (for purposes such as Canada Pension Plan notifications/applications and Canada Revenue Agency), many banks, utility companies, and many other institutions.

Bereavement Certificate:

Provided by the funeral home, this document will certify that a death has occurred for purposes such as getting bereavement discounts through airlines and providing to the employers of bereaved family members to confirm a reason for absence.

Alberta Government Official Death Certificate:

Obtained through Alberta Vital Statistics via any registry office, this certificate is sometimes required if property is owned by the deceased outside of Alberta, for some life insurance policies, or if the deceased (or their cremated remains) are being transported out of Canada.

Certified Copy of Medical Certificate of Death:

Obtained through Alberta Vital Statistics via any registry office by the next of kin, this certificate is sometimes required by life insurance companies or any other agency that requires the divulgence of cause of death.

Certified Copy of Registration of Death:

Obtained through Alberta Vital Statistics via any registry office.

Survivor Benefits, Income Support and Assistance Programs

Fri, 11 Oct 2019 18:54:41 GMT

Here are some basic supports available on a per-case basis following the death of a family member, in addition to death benefits, bereavement support and counseling services.

Important Legal Disclaimer: this webpage contains a collection of information applicable to the Province of Alberta and links to appropriate office locations in Edmonton. The purpose of this handout is to provide you with information about basic procedures to be attended to following the death of a family member, in addition to death benefits, bereavement support and counseling services. The information described and/or contained herein is not intended to cover all possible situations and should not be relied on as legal advice.

Survivor Benefits

Canada Pension Plan

There are three benefits available through the Canada Pension Plan for deceased individuals who have contributed to it:

The Death Benefit

A lump sum amount of a maximum of $2500 which is payable to the estate of the deceased. Application can be made to Service Canada ( click here to access the death benefit online form).

The Survivors’ Pension

A benefit paid monthly to the spouse or common-law partner of the deceased. Monthly payment amounts depend on a variety of factors. Application for the benefit can be made to Service Canada ( click here to access the survivor's pension online form).

The Children’s Benefit

A monthly benefit paid to the guardian of a child, under the age of 18, with a deceased parent, or to a child between the ages of 18 and 25 enrolled in an accredited post secondary program. Application for the benefit can be made to Service Canada ( click here to access the children's benefit online form).

Alberta Works Income Support

Ensures deceased persons are given a proper burial or cremation where the estate or responsible survivors are unable to pay for funeral expenses. The Income Support (IS) Program provides basic funeral services for indigent persons who die or are transported to Alberta for a burial. Basic funeral services are provided for under an Agreement with funeral homes in Alberta.

Alberta Human Services and Assured Income for The Severely Handicapped (AISH)

Human Services will pay a basic service fee for disposition, embalming (optional), one primary service, visitation, graveside service, interment, casket, cremation, and the Alberta Funeral Services Regulatory Board fee. They will also cover the grave liner, cemetery plot, opening and closing of the grave for either a casket or an urn. Families may upgrade at their discretion as long as the cost of the upgrade is not paid for by the responsible survivor. Upgrades cannot be made and paid for by the responsible survivors. They must be looked after by a different relative or friend.

A responsible survivor is expected to financially contribute toward the cost of basic funeral services. AISH does not pay funeral expenses if the responsible survivor has assets over $5,000 and refuses to pay, or refuses to provide the information required showing their inability to pay.

A responsible survivor is defined as:

the cohabiting partner of the deceased (providing that the cohabiting partner is not formally separated or in divorce proceedings);
the legal parents of a deceased child less than 18 years old; or
the legal sponsor of a sponsored immigrant.

Veterans Assistance

Ensures that no Veteran is denied a dignified funeral and burial due to insufficient funds at time of death.

Last Post Fund National Office Veterans’ Benefits

If the deceased was a veteran, you may be eligible to receive funding towards funeral, burial, and grave marking expenses. For application, information and general inquiries, please click here to visit Last Post Fund National Office website. Click here to access an online form to supply preliminary information and initiate an application. Once submitted, a Last Post Fund representative will contact you.

Canadian Forces Members

The Department of National Defence funding for the actual and reasonable funeral/burial expenditures for the deceased Canadian Forces members. This may include casket or urn, professional service fees, facility rental, interment, scattering of cremated remains, a niche, an obituary, an organist or musician, flowers, reception and photographic mementos. The Department of National Defence also covers the cost of cemetery plots and military headstones, which will be accounted for outside of the allotted benefit.

A tax-free, lump sum payment of a death benefit may be paid to a spouse or common-law partner and dependent children of a Canadian Forces member who is killed while in service or injured while in service and dies within 30 days of injury. Enquire with the Department of National Defense for information.

For more information and general inquiries, please click here or contact the Veterans Affairs Canada on 1-866-522-2122 (English) / 1-866-522-2022 (French) or information@vac-acc.gc.ca .

Regarding the Service Income Security Insurance Plan (SISIP), contact 1-800-267-6681.

Regarding the Canadian Forces Pension Office, contact 1-800-267-0325.

Work-related Death

If the death was work-related, you may be entitled to benefit to be used towards funeral expenses (burial or cremation).

Worker’s Compensation Board (WCB)

WCB may provide additional funds to cover transportation to funeral or burial location. Additional benefits may also be available for a survivor. To learn more about this benefit, please click here to access WCB website or call 1-866-922-9221 .

Motor Vehicle Accident

In the event of a death due to a motor vehicle accident, the deceased’s family may have available to them policies of insurance to assist with expenses.

Contact the deceased’s automobile insurer to determine what benefits will be available.

Victims of Crime

Recognizes or acknowledges victims who were injured as a direct result of a violent crime in Alberta.

Victims of Crime Financial Benefits Program

It provides direct assistance with a one-time financial benefit based on the severity of the victim's injuries. To be eligible, a person must suffer some direct personal injury as a result of a violent crime such as assault, murder, criminal negligence, manslaughter, arson, rape and others. The dependents of anyone killed in the above circumstances may apply for a lump sum payment. A lump sum is paid directly to the family as a death benefit to use as they see fit. Click here to learn more about Alberta Solicitor General and Public Security and to access and fill the online forms.

Life Insurance

If the deceased had a life insurance policy, the insurer should be contacted to find out how to receive any funds available under the policy.

Credit Cards

Balance protection insurance or other insurance may be present on a credit card, ask about these things before closing the card. Airmiles, Aeroplan and other loyalty programs may have avenues for transferring points from a deceased member to a beneficiary.

Other items to go through:

Canada Revenue Agency Notification and Taxes, Cancel CPP/OAS, Cancel Work/Union Pensions, Change Land Titles, Change Vehicle Registration, Cancel Alberta Health, Cancel Driver’s Licence, Cancel Passport, Notify Utility Companies, Notify deceased’s workplace, Redirecting mail.

While we strive to keep the information timely and accurate, we do not make any claims, promises, or guarantees about the accuracy, completeness, or adequacy of any information contained herein or through the resources you will find. Nothing contained in this handout should be construed to constitute a recommendation or endorsement of any products or services. Finally, Park Memorial is not responsible for any damages of any nature, arising out of the use of this webpage or the reliance of the information provided herein.

Choose an Executor – And Choose Wisely!

Wed, 11 Sep 2019 15:35:19 GMT

Some of our most critical life decisions to be made affect outcomes after we die.

One of those is naming an executor in our will. Almost as important as the will itself, choosing one’s executor can mean the difference between your final wishes being honoured and carried out as per your instruction, or being changed and completely disregarded.

Your executor , sometimes called personal representative, has full responsibility with regards to your funeral arrangements. If so desired, your executor can change anything with reference to those arrangements, whether it was planned at need or preplanned. This is the person all funeral homes take direction from. Even if there is a surviving spouse, the executor, by law, supersedes the spouse.

Since your executor is given access to all property in the probate of the estate, the selection of a competent and trustworthy person is very important. It is wise to nominate someone who has business experience, intelligence, and the utmost integrity and honesty to serve as your executor. Your nomination of executor, (along with alternatives who are asked to serve if the prior nominee is unwilling or unable to act), should appear in your will. This is your chance to tell the court whom you think is best to do this job for you (since you can't speak to the court in person).

“But what if I die without a will and without naming an executor? Who is responsible for making and paying for my funeral arrangements in this case?"

According to Alberta law, if there is no executor, the authority for making funeral arrangements falls in the following order of priority:

Spouse or common law partner
Adult child of the deceased
Parent of the deceased
Guardian as named under the Dependent Adults Act, Child Welfare Act, or the Domestic Relations Act
Adult grandchild of the deceased
Adult sibling of the deceased
Adult niece or nephew
Other adult next of kin
The Public Trustee
An adult person having some kind of relationship with the deceased
And finally… the Ministry of Alberta Human Services.

In today’s world, family dynamics can really complicate things. Let’s say you are a lawyer, with a client named Jack who’s married to Jill, but it’s Jack’s 3rd marriage. Jack has kids from his 1st and 2nd marriages. Jack and Jill have also been living in separate homes for the last three years and Jack has been cohabiting with Jane for the last year or two. Well, yesterday Jack got hit by a bus and died, and he had no will, and everyone wants a say or thinks they’re in charge, and they all want their inheritance. So, now what??? What would you tell his family?

We see this type of situation all too often! Yes, there are Alberta regulations around the order of priority, but it’s important to know and understand who is legally responsible for making decisions regarding a loved one’s funeral arrangements and, therefore, also paying for them.

The best way to protect yourself, your estate, and your loved ones is to have an up-to-date will that names an executor... somebody worthy of your trust from all angles: making decisions, dealing with monetary implications, and honouring your wishes. It is also wise to have conversations with this person beforehand to detail your expectations in order to ensure they are willing and able to take on this important role.

Do you need help to write a will or pre-planning? Contact us today via email - info@parkmemorial.com or by phone - 1-877-426-0050 and our team will promptly assist you.

How to Write an Obituary

Wed, 11 Sep 2019 15:09:11 GMT

Obituary: The Story of a Lifetime.

How do you tell the story of a life in a few short lines? Whether the story is about a life lived only in utero, or an earthly life lived for 89 years, how do you honour that life in an obituary? Much more than just an announcement of death and a place to share the date, time, and location of the funeral service, if there is one being held, an obituary pays tribute to the life of the person who has died.

Our team of funeral directors are here to help with the writing of the obituary for your loved one, although you may choose to completely write it on your own. With this in mind, here are a few things to consider:

1 - Length of obituary

Most newspapers charge by the line for an obituary, which can get expensive if a longer story is desired. As a result, cost has traditionally dictated the length of the obituary. To offer families a choice to write a longer obituary, a family might consider placing an obituary that fits their budget in the newspaper and then building further within our online memorial space. Park Memorial is proud to offer every family a digital memorial area for their loved one, called a Book of Memories. This Book of Memories allows your family and friends to upload photos of your loved one, leave memorial tributes, share memories and stories, and to have a place to go to see photos and read messages of love when they are missing your loved one.

2 - Style of obituary

There is no right or wrong when writing an obituary. Traditionally the flow begins with a death announcement, and a line or two about why your loved one will be missed. Then the relatives that are left to mourn your loved one are named, followed by those who predeceased them. Then a few lines of chronological life history, ending with the dates and details of the funeral service, if one is being held, or if the service is private, as well as a call to action for floral arrangements and /or memorial donations.

This being said, the obituary can be anything you would like it to be. It can include poetry, meaningful quotes, song lyrics, and more. You can detail why your family has chosen a certain charitable organization for memorial donations, or ask the guests who will attend the funeral service to wear your loved one’s favourite colour, or to bring a book in for a book exchange, because your loved one loved to read. With the ability to share any length of obituary in the Park Memorial Book of Memories, there really is no limit to the creativity that you can exercise in writing it.

3 - Photo or no photo

This is an area where your creativity can shine. Some families choose to put a baby photo next to an adult photo of their loved one. Other families choose a photo of their loved one taking part in their favourite activity or pastime. If you do choose to submit a photo to appear in the newspaper, please note that Facebook / social media photos will not have high enough resolution nor size to be seen clearly.

As well, you are able to submit a variety of photos of your loved one to be part of their Book of Memories – and you can invite friends and family to upload their favourite photos, as well.

4 - Service Details

If you are holding a service to commemorate the life of your loved one, you will want to include the service details (date, time, place) in the obituary, so that people have an opportunity to attend and show their love and support for your family.

5 - Flowers? Donations? Or both?

Again, there is no right or wrong answer here. Some families opt to give floral delivery options for the funeral service, and others prefer that memorial donations be made in memory of their loved one. This is entirely at the discretion of either your loved one, if they had preplanned their funeral, or the executor and/or persons making decisions. If your loved one was not attached to a particular charity, visit our LINK HERE list of local charities that are doing great work in our community for some inspiration.

6 - What if my loved one died a traumatic death?

When a person dies due to tragic or stigmatized circumstances, we grapple with what to share and how to share it. Again, there is no right or wrong here; these factor most on the values and choices of your family and what your loved one would have wanted. In the past, societal norms dictated that should the death have been death by suicide, by overdose, by murder, etc., no mention was to be made of this in the obituary. If a family chose to, they could ‘hint’ at the cause of death by the type of charity chosen for memorial donations.

In today’s culture of heightened awareness, and in some families’ desire to place meaning on the life and the loss of their loved one, more families are choosing to disclose the circumstances of their loss. They do so out of love and respect for their loved one’s truth, and to bravely be a light for other families and individuals who are at risk of the same type of loss.

How to write the hardest possible phrases and sentences you will ever have to write? Your funeral director is here to help. They can suggest phrases and word selections that are in keeping with your family’s wishes, and they can also assist with all aspects of the creation of your loved one’s obituary.

The Canadian Mental Health Association has developed a guideline for writing an obituary that is specific to death by suicide that you might find helpful. You can access this information here .

7 - How Do We Write an Obituary for Our Child?

An obituary is intended to share the story of a life fully lived, but writing an obituary for a child, depending on their age, doesn’t always fit within that intention. At a time of such heartbreak and sorrow, some families find comfort in sharing funny stories of their child and their hobbies and interests. Some find it helpful to write how their child impacted them or made them feel, or what their hopes and dreams were for their child. If their child died following a medical journey, some families give thanks to the medical teams that cared for them during that time. There are no rules, no ‘must-haves’ while writing a child’s obituary. Instead, each family decides the tone and emotion that their child’s obituary will take on. Your funeral director will be able to assist you with this.

As an example, click here to access an obituary that was written in honest and humorous tribute to a little boy named Garrett.

The choice to write or not write an obituary is completely yours, as is the choice to place the obituary in the newspaper or not. An obituary is not required by law. That said, an obituary is a lovely way to pay tribute to your loved one, and to let those who had connections with them know of their passing. It is also a reliable way to communicate service details (if any), and to invite their support when it is needed most.

If you would like to learn more about how to write an obituary,

please click the button below and download our guide.

Do you still need help to write an obituary? Contact us today via email - info@parkmemorial.com or by phone - 1-877-426-0050 and our team will promptly assist you.

A Different Kind of Honeymoon

Tue, 10 Sep 2019 20:29:12 GMT

If you are sensing an unusual and beautiful love story… you are correct.

On November 29, 1941 Tod & Lucy Smolyk were wed at three o'clock in the afternoon. Their honeymoon began at six o'clock… when they opened their new business, Park Memorial Funeral Home in Edmonton, Alberta.

Tod & Lucy Smolyk on their Wedding Day

In early 1941, Tod was a Funeral Director and Embalmer who desired to open his own funeral home. Lacking funding but full of drive and confidence, Tod went door-to-door on the 97th street corridor, seeking 12 investors to contribute $100 each for a share in his venture. At one of the doors he knocked on, Tod was met by a young woman named Lucy Kostynuk. Her father had passed, and she had a small inheritance from his estate that she chose to invest into Tod’s venture. In the days that followed, she would become his biggest investor, his bride, and the mother of their children.

It’s Official! Edmonton Journal, November 1941

Tod ran the funeral home with very high — nearing perfection expectations. As the Smolyk family expanded to include son Jerry and daughter Connie, so did their Park Memorial family of funeral homes. After buying out all of his original shareholders…except his bride…Tod expanded Park Memorial into locations in Vegreville, Lamont, Vilna, Mayerthorpe, Smoky Lake, and Wildwood between 1943 and 1956. In 1963 the present Edmonton chapel and offices replaced the original.

Park Memorial Funeral Home, Circa 1980's

Tod & Lucy’s unique love story added many more pages and memories in years to follow until Tod’s untimely passing in 1976. Since then, two generations of the Smolyk family have led the Park Memorial family of funeral homes that still include Edmonton’s flagship as well as branches in Mayerthorpe, Vegreville, Lamont, and Smoky Lake. Tod & Lucy’s son Jerry was at the helm following Tod’s passing, and has since passed the torch to daughter Kirstie over a decade ago.

Jerry and Kirstie Smolyk, 2005

In tribute of this National Mom and Pop Business Owners’ Day, we are honoured to share our unique and humble beginnings. Though the love story that started Park Memorial is unlike most, the drive, commitment, and hard work that have sustained our business is the same as has built and sustained most successful small businesses. We tip our hats to all of the other ‘Moms & Pops’ who contribute to Canada’s economy being made up of over 90% small business ventures.

1956 Park Memorial Fleet of Vehicles

Park Memorial Blog

Comfort, Warmth & Care: Inside Our Recent Park Memorial Renovations

At Park Memorial, we believe the spaces where families gather to remember and honour a loved one should feel welcoming, comfortable, and cared for — in every season.

Giving a Little. Helping A Lot.

Why our team donated blood — and why you might consider it too.

When We Skip the Goodbye: Why Grief Needs a Place to Land

There is a phrase we hear more and more often, spoken with the best of intentions: "Grandma didn’t want a service — so we’re not having one."

Wills, Estates & Final Wishes

The conversations that protect the people you love most.

When Sound Becomes Memory

A Christmas Remembrance Service

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What to Expect at Our Monthly Grief Support Programs

Your Questions, Answered.

Honouring, Healing, and Carrying Forward: Reflections on Truth and Reconciliation

On September 30, Canadians pause for the National Day for Truth and Reconciliation.

World Suicide Prevention Day

Standing Together in Hope & Care

National Grief Awareness Day

It is Love... Remembered Daily

Leaves, Laughter, and Letting Go - Our Grief Walks Begin

Gentle Steps Toward Healing

Step-by-Step Guide: What to Do with a Loved One’s Facebook Account After They Pass Away

If Your Loved One is Still Alive and Wants You to Manage Their Account Later:

If Your Loved One Has Already Passed Away:

What Happens After the Account is Memorialized

A Season of Connection

A Season of Connection: Wrapping Up Men’s Grief Support with Warmth and Community

Remembering Our Losses: 2025 Baby Memorial

On a warm spring afternoon, families, healthcare professionals, and community members gathered at Park Memorial Funeral Home for the 2025 Baby Memorial Service

I Wish I Would Have…

A Heartfelt Letter From a Father to His Daughter

Navigating the Stress of Being an Executor

A Compassionate Guide

Park Memorial: A Proudly Canadian Family-Owned Business

At the heart of our daily operations lies a deep-rooted pride in being a Canadian family-owned and operated business.

Healing Through Art: A Journey with Park Memorial's Grief Support Events

Embracing Grief, Finding Connection

Guest Blog: Men and Grief

Navigating Expectations and Authentic Expression

Men and Grief: Am I doing it right?

Men and Grief: How did we get here?

Cultural representations in media

Religious and Moral Teachings

Workplace and Productivity

Men and Grief: Where are we now?

Men and Grief: Those around us

Men and Grief: The Bottom Line

Youth Suicide Grief Support

Canadian Mental Health Edmonton Region

Healing After the Shattering of Reality

A Virtual Grief Support Event for Medical Families

A New Addition to Our Team

How Park Memorial Supports You After the Funeral

Don't Leave Your Estate to Chance

The Importance of Having a Will

Reflections on The Strength Within: Balancing Life, Loss & Chaos

Unleashing Inner Greatness

Community Spotlight: Aspen Service Dogs

Providing Furry Comfort and Care in Times of Need

Community Spotlight: Edmonton Food Bank

Serving 34,000 Edmonton Families in Need Every Month

Community Spotlight: Pilgrims Hospice

Family-Centred End-of-Life Care at Roozen Family Hospice Centre

Navigating Grief: Unique Challenges and Considerations for Women in Leadership Roles

Navigating grief is a deeply personal journey, one that touches individuals from all walks of life. ﻿

Happy International Women’s Day 2024

International Women's Day presents the opportunity for reflection and discussion: about women's victories and celebrations, our trials and sorrows, and our collective responsibility to thoughtfully shape the world our children will inherit.

Connection Through Shared Experiences

The positive side of social media

George's Final Ride

A Funeral Professional's Perspective

Donations and Reflections At Pilgrims Hospice

Dear Guests of Moments with Dr. Wolfelt Grief Support Seminars 2023,

National Indigenous Peoples Day 2023

One of the many traditions of Indigenous culture that we as funeral professionals respect and appreciate is the tradition of drumming.

Art for the Grieving Heart - May 2023

Feel The Warmth

Three Years… Three Looong Years

This week was pretty epic in our Park Memorial world. After THREE LONG YEARS (including a pandemic you might recall)… we brought our beloved monthly Art for the Grieving Heart (AFTGH) event series back to our community.

Navigating grief is a deeply personal journey, one that touches individuals from all walks of life.