WVU Medicine Home Health and Hospice holds butterfly release memorial

MORGANTOWN, W.Va. – WVU Medicine Hospice held a butterfly release celebration service at its Memorial Garden in Clarksburg on June 12.

“This celebration service was intended to provide a nurturing, renewing experience for people grieving the loss of a loved one,” Michelle Sylva, WVU Medicine Hospice director, said. “At the end of the ceremony, the participants honored their loved ones by releasing a butterfly as a symbol of love, transformation, and hope.”

The program featured a public reading of the names of individuals whose lives were memorialized or honored by the release and a reading by Pastor Rebecca Ashcraft, which was followed by a release of butterflies to conclude the service.

“We feel that every person should be remembered or honored for how they have made a difference and the impact they made,” Sylva said. “The butterfly release was a way to thank them for touching our lives.”

Gifts to the release and donations to WVU Medicine Home Health and Hospice benefit individuals diagnosed with a life-limiting illness so their days can be as comfortable as possible. It also enables Hospice staff to provide family members much-needed assistance as they navigate the complex journey of caring for a loved one and to serve more people with the care and information they need, regardless of their financial situation.

WVU Medicine Hospice provides care when a person’s life is measured in months and not years. Hospice staff neither hasten nor postpone death, but affirm life, emphasizing quality and comfort. The team of professionals include the person’s physician; hospice medical director; specialty-trained nurses; home health aides; social workers; physical, occupational, and speech therapists; as well as volunteers, clergy, and bereavement counselors.

WVU Medicine Hospice is available 24 hours a day, seven days a week and serves Barbour, Doddridge, Harrison, Lewis, Marion, Monongalia, Taylor, Upshur, and Wetzel counties.

For more information about WVU Medicine Hospice and the WVU Medicine Hospice Memorial Garden, call 800-339-9896.