Monarch Hospice to host bereavement walk

A Lower Burrell hospice care provider will hold its traditional walk and celebration of life this fall for those who have lost loved ones within the past year.

The fourth annual Memorial Walk and Celebration of Life, sponsored by Monarch Hospice, is scheduled for 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Sept. 23 at K-9 Officer Derek Kotecki Memorial Park in Lower Burrell.

The walk is open to the public but geared toward families of Monarch patients who have died.

Previously, the annual memorial service was at a church. When the pandemic hit, the service moved outside and was held as a walk.

“It’s not just a memorial walk. It’s a celebration of life in honor of their loved ones,” said Leonard Segal, social worker and bereavement coordinator at Monarch Hospice.

In addition to the walk, there will be a brief service, a reading of the names of those deceased and a taco lunch from Monarch’s taco truck.

The walk will feature stations where people can share who they are walking in memory of, receive grief support and learn about the healing process. About 80 to 90 people participated last year, and Segal said the walk provides a sense of community and togetherness.

“This way, everybody together can share the experience, even though everyone’s grief is different,” he said.

Lori Hank, co-owner of Monarch Hospice, said family members also have the ability to interact with their loved ones’ care team, which can be powerful and therapeutic in the grieving process. She said hospice is an emotional time for families, and staff members become a part of their family during that time.

“Nobody wants to go to a memorial service, because no one wants to lose anybody,” she said. “But it’s a good way to grieve in a positive way.”

Hank’s counterpart, Monarch Hospice co-owner Rich Seifert, said the event is another way the company fits its motto: “Adding life to days, when days cannot be added to lives.”