Hospice trees give voice to loved ones

MAT-SU — Two trees are offering a way to remember those who have passed while supporting those not yet gone.

For more than 10 years, The Hospice Foundation of Mat-Su Inc. has set up its annual displays of 7-foot Christmas trees for the “Light Up for Life” program.

The group offers angel and star ornaments to people who have lost loved ones. Names are written on the ornaments, then the ornaments are placed on the trees.

“It started as a way of honoring people who have passed away and as a fundraiser,” foundation board president Pat Karella said. “We probably average around $8,000 a year.”

The angels require a donation of $50, and the stars are $15 for the first one and $10 for each additional star. But, Helen Munoz, a foundation board member, said she understands if someone is a few pennies short.

“You do what you can do,” Munoz said. “I had a lady from Outside come up and buy seven stars. People who have experience with hospice buy a lot, but I also have teenagers who come by and don’t know anything about it.”

In addition to publicly displaying the names, each tree is staffed for about six hours every day by volunteers trained in good listening skills, Karella said. Sometimes just telling the story of a person recently lost is therapeutic.

The foundation sets up its trees the weekend after Thanksgiving and keeps them up until Christmas Eve. The tree in Meta Rose Square in Wasilla was the original location, with the Palmer tree at the Koslosky Center coming on later.

Munoz was responsible for getting the tree set up in Palmer after seeing her son benefit from hospice care before he died of AIDS. With another son recently passed away from colon cancer, she remains more committed to the cause than ever.

“You can go two ways: up or down,” Munoz said. “I don’t quit. If you can turn a tragedy into something positive that can help people, that’s not so bad.”

Munoz hand-cuts the 125 angels for the tree in Palmer. She staffs the volunteer booth at the tree in the Koslosky Center on Thanksgiving weekend and Christmas Eve. This year’s first two angels were placed by her surviving son, one for each of the other two who have passed.

The money raised goes to helping the foundation provide for those already in hospice care but with needs above and beyond what their insurance covers. The money also pays for an artist who helps those in hospice care leave behind a piece of art, something tangible to be remembered by.

After the tree is taken down, the foundation holds a ceremony called the Gathering of Remembrance at the Palmer Depot. On Jan. 10 at 2 p.m., volunteers will read out loud all the names written on the ornaments taken from both trees.

“People are almost afraid to say the names of those gone in front of the person who has lost someone,” Karella said. “But this is wrong. People want to hear their names. They want to know the person they lost made an impression on the world.”

Contact Todd L. Disher at todd.disher@frontiersman.com or 352-2252.