A Garden Planted with Memories by Lisa Shoemaker

A headstone in Ireland reads, “Death leaves a heartache no one can heal; love leaves a memory no one can steal.”

For the past several years, 2BC has set aside a small portion of its grounds on the northeast corner designated as a memorial garden. It’s a place where some of the ashes of thirty-five souls dear to this church have been scattered and buried. It’s a place where Linda and Greg Greason have lovingly planted and tended trees, shrubs, and flowers that offer beauty and shade for anyone wanting to rest among the natural beauty and perhaps recall a precious memory of someone no longer on the earth with us.

To enhance the garden experience for those with loved ones whose ashes grace the soil of that place or for those who merely wish to sit quietly on one of the stone benches and relish the shade and natural beauty of a tended garden, a 2BC committee of Linda Greason, Harold Phillips, Don Brown, and Lisa Shoemaker is working on the placement of a large stone (rock, boulder) in the garden space. This stone will be the backdrop for a plaque containing a short, meaningful inscription that offers comfort and solace for anyone. In addition, the garden will be refreshed with new plantings, a repaired stone bench, and lush ground cover.

The committee has chosen a stone for the designated space in the garden, but we don’t want to commit to an inscription on the plaque until we get some ideas from you, the church body. The plaque is not large, so the inscription cannot be lengthy, but it should be meaningful. 

           Please think about what words would bring you some ease and perhaps a smile if you read it in this place, and then send your suggestions to Don Brown at brownhouse601@att.net. This inscription could be a favorite verse or chorus from a hymn, some lines from a favorite poem, or a favorite scripture passage. Once Don receives ideas from several of you, the committee will choose from among your suggestions the perfect phrase or written thought to place on the plaque. Deadline for submissions: August 15!

Our hope is to have the garden in pristine condition with the boulder in place by All Saints’ Day, November 1. We look forward to reviewing your ideas to give this lovely oasis a renovation of love.