Bluebonnet Palliative Care holds butterfly memorial service for family members

Wimberley hospice workers and staff at Blue Bonnet Palliative Care held a memorial service last week to say goodbye to patients who had been in their care for the past 18 months. As part of the service, butterflies were released into the open air of Blue Hole park.

Family members met with nursing staff and Blue Bonnet owners, Scott and Colleen Ritter. Following a few remarks and the reading of the names of those who had died, families were invited to share memories of their loved ones. Eight people stood and offered heartfelt gratitude for the care their mothers, husbands, children and other relatives received, and for the support given to them, they said, “at one of the most difficult times in my life.”

One speaker thanked Blue Bonnet staff “for the tenderness you showed when bathing my Mom.” Another thanked Blue Bonnet for being an “outstanding and unique business” and for the “wonderful hearts you have.”

As a keepsake of the event, participants were invited to fill and take home a pot filled with succulents. After a poem was read, Kayleigh Ritter, Coordinator of the Bereavement Group, carried a box of Painted Lady butterflies to a site under a tree and released them, lightening the mood for many who attended.

Blue Bonnet’s Director of Nursing, Colleen Ritter told guests that the memorial will be held annually.