Excela remembrance tree event to be virtual

Excela Health Hospice’s annual remembrance tree event will look a little different this year because of the coronavirus pandemic.

The event, typically held at the now-shuttered Ramada by Wyndham Greensburg Hotel and Conference Center in Hempfield, will be a virtual ceremony featuring ornaments that memorialize a loved one previously under the care of Excela Hospice. The Ring in Remembrance event is scheduled for New Year’s Day.

“It is truly meant to honor the lives of the loved ones who are memorialized in the ornament,” Excela spokeswoman Robin Jennings said.

More than 1,000 paper bells were mailed to patient families for them to decorate with a picture, quote or loved one’s name. The ornaments, which will be returned to Excela officials, will be featured in the Jan. 1 presentation that will include reflections from counselors along with other remarks.

Decorating an ornament has been part of the annual event in which families would place the ornament on the remembrance tree at the Ramada. Members of Excela Hospice would host a private event only for families at the hotel that would feature music and readings.

“The whole purpose of the event, in the past as well, has been to allow families to have something that is uniquely for them and uniquely for people who are, perhaps, in the same position that they were because they share that in common,” Jennings said.

The event coincided with the hotel’s annual Parade of Trees, in which local businesses would decorate a Christmas tree. Attendees would vote on their favorite tree, and proceeds would go to charity. It is not clear whether the event will continue at a different location in the coming years.

Jennings noted the Ring in Remembrance event will be similar to a virtual Lights of Love event earlier this month, which honored family and friends who hold a special place in someone’s heart. The loved ones are remembered through lights wrapped around a tree outside Excela Latrobe Hospital.

The only difference, Jennings said, is that the Lights of Love event was open to the public. Those wanting to attend the Ring in Remembrance event must contact the Excela Health call center at 877-771-1234. Hospice families were provided a link via email to access the event.

Excela bereavement counselors will be available to families grieving the loss of a loved one served by Excela Health Hospice. Counselors will be available virtually through January.