Butterfly release honors memories of loved ones
CRANBERRY TWP — Dozens of butterflies were released into the sky in memory of departed loved ones at an event held at North Boundary Park in the township on Sunday, Aug. 17.
The event was organized by Good Samaritan Hospice, a unit of Concordia Lutheran Ministries which provides in-home hospice care and bereavement programs, as well as a separate hospice house in Wexford.
“It’s been said that butterflies go all the way to heaven,” said Erin Boyles, volunteer coordinator for the Good Samaritan Hospice. “They can whisper any kind of message you want to your family member or loved one. Butterflies are just a beautiful thing to release in honor of your loved one.”
So many signed up to release a butterfly Sunday the closest parking lot to the shelter was filled, and shuttles were required to take some attendees to the shelter from more distant parking lots.
“We have a bigger crowd this year than we’ve had in the past,” Boyles said.
The event held special meaning for Lydia Mansur, who released two butterflies to honor two family members who died over the past decade — her mother, Erna, in 2018 and her sister, Karin, in 2023. Mansur said Karin was under the care of Good Samaritan Hospice in her last days.
“Good Samaritan was wonderful,” Mansur said. “They were so good to her and so wonderful to her, and this is just a really sweet remembrance.”
Also releasing a butterfly on Sunday was Valerie Wojtkiewicz, doing so on behalf of her departed friend, Jeanie Kincaid, who died in June 2023. Wojtkiewicz has released a butterfly for Kincaid since 2023.
“Jeanie was a good friend of mine, and she loved butterflies, so it is pretty significant for us to release these butterflies for her,” Wojtkiewicz said.
The butterfly release was preceded by a brief service in the Dave Baker Shelter, which opened with Ashley Trott singing the “Somewhere Over the Rainbow” from the movie “The Wizard of Oz.” Hospice spiritual coordinator Claire Gray recited the poem “Final Flight” during the service.
“It’s just a very beautiful poem that touches people’s hearts,” Gray said. “It’s about how, when we lose someone, there’s grief and sadness and there’s also a process of letting go.”
Although Good Samaritan Hospice organized the butterfly release, Boyles stressed the event is not a fundraiser for them or any other organization.
“We order the butterflies, and the families will purchase a butterfly, but that’s it,” Boyles said. “That money doesn’t go toward anything. It just goes to butterflies.”
