3 minute read
Remembering Our Loved Ones
Remembering Our Loved Ones
Rosanne Fortier - News Correspondent
Akasu Palliative Care Society presented a tranquil and lovely 25th Year Christmas Candlelight Service of Remembrance at Vegreville Social Centre on December 1.
This event was in honour of a person’s loss of any kind and was meant to provide comfort to people who may be feeling grief and loss during the holiday season.
Initially, everyone was invited to light a candle in memory of their loved one.
This service included heartfelt Christmas music performed by Viola Braun-Fox on piano, St. John’s Lutheran Choir and Friends with Director Colleen Albert, Darby Murphy with his son Joshua, and two solos by Ashley Ziprick.
Chair Charlene Melenka said music is good because it gives people a space where they can sit quietly and reminisce.
Carol Rudyk introduced the Guest Speaker Deanna McDonald Tonery who is also a life coach, and author.
Rudyk stated that Tonery was a teacher who did sub-teaching in Vegreville, Mundare and Andrew. Now she works in the insurance industry.
Tonery began by stating that she lived in Sherwood Park most of her life and has two sons ages 20 and 17.
She was married for 12 years and unfortunately, this marriage ended in divorce where she explained that divorce is a form of loss and it took a few years for her to heal from that one.
Moving forward to 2014, she met Don. He was loud and confident and swept her off my feet bringing joy to her whole family.
But on March 28, 2020, Don passed away suddenly from a heart attack.
Tonery expressed, “He graduated into heaven, met Jesus face to face, and probably didn’t want to come back.
Everyone’s grief is different, it is different as to the way you experience it. It is unique to you. There is no set way to go through grief, some people say there are stages and I know there are but there is not order to those stages.
The four things I learned about grief are run to God in your pain. He knows even the things you can’t articulate into words. His understanding is inexhaustible.
Join a group. Grief sharing helped me so much. I am still close to those in the group today. Grief is lonely and it helps us feel not so alone. Also, there is healing in helping others.
Give people grace.
Give yourself grace. Some days you have to just survive, this season this year, and next year. Sometimes you feel like your head is just above water, but know this, you are on the right track. Keep going and know that moving forward is not leaving them behind.”
Tonery went on to say that in 2022, she met Jon. God heard her prayers and he brought Jon into her life. She knew him from years ago and they met again and became friends first and they were married this year.
