About 150 people gathered in Mancos’s Boyle Park on Saturday where hundreds of butterflies were released, each intended to honor a loved one who has died.
Once let go, it took a moment for the butterflies, previously frozen and encased in cardboard, to fly.
They uncharacteristically stayed still in the grass a moment before spreading their orange and white-spotted forewings wide toward the sky.
The unexpected pause at the start of the butterfly’s journey gave each participant another raw moment to ponder whom they were honoring Saturday in the park and why, as the butterfly release was internal and personal as much as it was collective.
The butterfly release memorial, hosted by Personal Assistance Services of Colorado/Southwest Health Care staff members, allowed gatherers that afternoon to mourn the dead and honor their memories. The event was open both to the hospice clientele and families as well as the public.
“It is actually very cheerful even though people are sad they have lost their loved ones,” said Megan Hess, a Cortez social worker with PASCO, who oversees bereavement programs.
She said the memorial is a celebration of life.
“Of course, there are tears and things, but people have enjoyed getting together, and the butterflies are a unique piece of it,” she said.
Now in its third year, and held in Mancos for the first time, the event has grown from the release of 250 butterflies at Montezuma Park to around 480. The gathering also provided music and free food through Mona Makes, Yia Yia’s Concessions and Philly Cristos.
Attendees have been drawn from out-of-state, as far as Salt Lake City, to participate in the healing-type ritual. Where the butterfly symbolizes hope, its release is meant to show another journey endures in death.
“Our loved ones leave with us a part of who they are, and that part doesn’t leave us,” said Breezy Beckler, the hospice chaplain. “As (the butterflies) take flight, may they carry our memories and our love. My prayer for you today is that you may be comforted by this release.”
Scott Hollingshead, executive director, expressed gratitude to PASCO staff members for putting together the event and for everyone in attendance Saturday.
During a keynote speech, he said there are three themes he feels are the most significant: honor, memory and gratitude.
“As we walk away from this event, there will be times where, in your mind’s eye, you have captured in memory the uncontrollable laughter of a loved one you have lost,” Hollingshead said. “I would urge you to be present in those memories, fill it all, let it course through your body. Let yourself be in that moment.”
awatson@the-journal.com
