A NEW memorial garden where mourners can post letters to heaven has opened at Colchester Crematorium.
As well as the special post box, which has already been used to send letters to missed friends and family, the memorial garden includes statues and water features.
Colchester Council says the contents of the post box will be emptied periodically and burned with the ashes scattered in the garden.
The council’s communities boss Natalie Sommers, who has been involved in the project, said: “It’s an absolutely lovely thing to do.
"People can post their letters, birthday cards, and Christmas cards, and people left tags on the tree around Christmas too.
“Expanding the memorial area means people have more space to remember their loved ones who have been cremated and have more space to scatter their ashes.”
'Beautiful and creative'
Lucy Summerscales, who is a bereavement counsellor at St Helena Hospice, which provides support to people facing bereavement across north Essex, says having a place to visit can help the grieving process.
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She said: “The death of a loved one can leave many people feeling adrift and very lost. Often when the funeral is over and time has passed there is a sense that we need to stop talking about our grief, to ‘be strong and move on’.
“But grieving can be a long and slow process. Learning to adapt to life without that person is incredibly hard. The process of accepting the loss while at the same time holding someone in mind, and missing them, can be challenging and lonely.
“Being able to communicate our sadness to the person who is at the heart of it is really important and can be very therapeutic. Writing letters is a beautiful and creative way to express our pain and keep a sense of them still being with us.”
The hospice in Barncroft Close, Colchester, has a similar post box on-site, where anyone is welcome to visit and post letters to their loved ones.
St Helena’s bereavement service supports adults and children facing bereavement in Colchester and north Essex.
To find out more or to make a referral, visit sthelena.org.uk/bereavement.
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