GREENVILLE – The Brethren Retirement Community (BRC) held its Second Annual Memorial Butterfly Release Saturday morning. The event provides an opportunity to honor a loved one by releasing a live butterfly in their memory.
“This is an annual event at the Brethren Retirement Community where we honor those of the BRC family who have passed,’ said John Warner, BRC President & CEO. “It’s a wonderful day to gather together as family and friends to celebrate the life and legacy of Brethren Retirement Community residents. It’s great to see families come out and support the event.”
“People enjoy this memorial celebration for their loved ones,” Holly Hill, BRC Vice President and CMO stated. “We plan to continue this event and hope it will grow each year. We were happy to see the big crowd today.”
BRC Chaplain Suzi Fischer led a service in the BRC Chapel remembering loved ones, followed by the butterfly release.
“This is a special time for people to remember their loved ones in a special way, to release a butterfly, and get together with their family and friends,” said Ryan Gathard, BRC Regional Director of Mission Advancement. “People appreciate remembering their loved one in this unique way by releasing a butterfly and think of what their loved one means to them as they see the butterfly take off, see their wings open, and see the different colors and beauty of that process. It’s an event we look forward to having every year.”
Warner noted the butterflies are shipped from California and follow a wake-up process before being released.
“They are shipped here via UPS on dry ice, which keeps them in that state,” he said. “When they get here, they warm up a bit, they take off, and it’s a beautiful event watching those butterflies come to new life.”
Following the release of the butterflies, everyone was treated to lemonade and cupcakes.
“While it was a hot day, it turned out beautiful,” Hill noted. “We had a good turnout, the butterflies were released, and everybody seemed to enjoy the event.”
“I want to thank Ryan, Suzi, Holly, and others who put this on because it is very meaningful and very impactful, and for the life of BRC, and for those who are here,” Warner concluded.
