Memorialize your loved ones this holiday season

By JoAnn R. Walter —

The Friends of Hospice of Tioga County, N.Y., invites you to help light the Memorial Tree of Lights. The non-profit provides financial support to charitable organizations that enhance the quality of life for people and their families navigating critical and terminal illnesses and promotes greater awareness of hospice care in the community. 

For more than 25 years, the annual tradition has included lighting memorial trees located in Apalachin, Barton, Berkshire, Campville, Candor, Lockwood, Newark Valley, Nichols, Owego, Richford, Spencer, Tioga Center, Waverly, and Willseyville.

Ruthanne Orth, President of the Tioga Friends of Hospice, noted, “In a season when many families feel the loss of someone they love, the Memorial Tree of Lights offers a meaningful way to remember them. Each light represents a life that mattered, and it’s a reminder that we’re not alone in our grief,” adding, “We are very grateful for the financial support of our community, and that allows us to continue our mission.”

For a $10 donation, a light can be purchased to honor a loved one who has passed away. Approximately 1,500 names are memorialized through the Tree of Lights each year. The names of loved ones are printed in the Owego Pennysaver Press throughout the month of December and for each donation received.

The Friends of Hospice of Tioga County supports several organizations, such as Lourdes Hospice, Mercy House of the Southern Tier, Traci’s Hope, Make-A-Wish of Central New York, and Right Beside You End-of-Life Doulas. 

To participate in lighting your community’s Memorial Tree of Lights in memory of loved one(s), make a check out to “Memorial Tree of Lights,” and mail it to: Memorial Tree of Lights, c/o Friends of Hospice, P.O. Box 638, Owego, N.Y. 13827.

The requested donation is $10 per memorial. Please include with your donation the names of the individuals you are memorializing and the community in which they lived.  Proceeds support the mission of the Friends of Hospice of Tioga County.

You can also request that a form be mailed to you to complete the donation by calling (607) 687-2496.

The Friends of Hospice of Tioga County was formed as a non-profit in 1993.  To learn more, visit their website: https://www.tiogafriendsofhospice.org/.