Penn Highlands Healthcare at Home Hospice to Host Annual Butterfly Releases to Honor Loved Ones
Flocks of butterflies soon will be gracing area skies as a symbolic representation of loved ones who we remember and honor.
Penn Highlands Healthcare at Home Hospice is gearing up to host its annual butterfly releases in DuBois, Clearfield and St. Marys.
“Butterflies have long been viewed as a beautiful symbol of the transition between life and death,” Kim Kranz, service line director of home care services for Penn Highlands Healthcare, said. “We release butterflies into the air to honor and remember those who are no longer with us.”
Penn Highlands Healthcare at Home has been holding the butterfly releases for years, Kranz said. Each of the three ceremonies will feature inspirational readings, music, the reading of the names of individuals being remembered and the release of butterflies.
Kranz, who has been a home health and hospice leader for more than 27 years, joined Penn Highlands Healthcare at Home in the spring. This will be her first year experiencing a Penn Highlands Healthcare at Home butterfly release.
“I have heard some really heartwarming stories about our butterfly releases,” she said. “To those who attend, the butterflies truly represent their loved ones. When the butterfly box is opened, some fly away, while others stay, even landing on folks watching. Some people have even seen butterflies by chance afterwards, such as outside their own homes, and it brings them feelings of peace and comfort.”
The butterfly releases will be held:
- At the DuBois City Park, DuBois, at 11 a.m., Saturday, July 28. Please bring a lawn chair if you would like seating;
- At the Clearfield Fairgrounds & Park, Clearfield, at 2 p.m., Sunday, July 29;
- At Serenity Garden, Penn Highlands Healthcare at Home, St. Marys, at 4 p.m., Sunday, Aug. 5.
The event is open to the public and there is no cost to attend.
Anyone can donate toward the purchase of individual butterflies, and the person being remembered with a butterfly doesn’t need to be a past hospice patient. The money raised is used to support hospice patients’ needs that are not always covered by insurances at each Penn Highlands Healthcare at Home branch.
The deadlines to reserve a butterfly are July 20 for Clearfield and DuBois and July 27 for St. Marys. The cost of the butterfly donation is $15 each.
Butterfly donations may be made to Penn Highlands Healthcare at Home, 757 Johnsonburg Road, Suite 200, St. Marys, PA 15857. Forms are available online or you can mail your check along with your name, address, phone number and the name of the person being remembered or honored. Please be sure to indicate if you will be attending the ceremony and at which location – DuBois, Clearfield or St. Marys.
A limited number of butterflies and remembrance registrations will be available on the day of the event prior to the start of the ceremony for a donation of $15 each.