BECKLEY, WV (WOAY) – Hospice of Southern West Virginia held an emotional ceremony at the Crossroads Mall, where family and friends each had their moment to place a memorial angel on the Angel Tree.
It’s part of the healing process to honor a loved one.
“A year ago, I lost my dad in September. And so it is personal to me,” said Director of Public Relations Jeri Knowlton. “I understand the grieving process. I understand the desire to remember and not forget. I understand the need to cling on to his memory and to hold that very dear in my heart.”
According to Knowlton, the moment of placing that angel on the tree means so much — it’s saying ‘I love you dearly.’
“It’s also an opportunity for us to reconnect with those families that we’ve become close to. And so it is very much a part of our process, our grieving,” she said. “We come to love the patients and their families. And so that opportunity to reunite is very important to our staff as well.”
For Beverly Castanon and her husband, being there was special.
“I’ve never been here in person, so I wanted to see and get the feel and just be with other people who I’m sure feel like we do,” said the Coal City resident, who honored her father and her husband’s brother.
In addition to memorializing your loved one at the Angel Tree, there’s also the act of grieving. Knowlton says we know it’s not something that takes place in a three-day bereavement from work — it’s a longer, deeper process that’s physical, spiritual, and emotional. Hospice of SWV can help, with grief counseling.
“If you’re struggling with that, you can call us and talk to one of our bereavement specialists,” the director of public relations said. “Come to a monthly grief event at our facilities, learn what those processes are and how to cope (and) cope through the holidays.”
It is important to honor and remember. That is the reason we see hundreds of people make a point to come to this event yearly to place an angel on the tree.
“You just don’t know until you’re hanging that angel on the tree how much that means to you that you have taken that moment to not forget,” said Knowlton.
