Park Memorial Christmas Memorial Service 2022
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:
