West Central Minnesota Chapter
Upcoming 2009 Meeting Dates
Tuesday, November 17, 2009 (7:00 p.m.)
Tuesday, December 15, 2009 (7:30 p.m.)
Upcoming 2010 Meeting Dates
Tuesday, January 19, 2010 (7:30 p.m.)
Tuesday, February 16, 2010 (7:30 p.m.)
Tuesday, March 16, 2010 (7:30 p.m.)
Tuesday, April 20, 2010 (7:30 p.m.)
Tuesday, May 18, 2010 (7:30 p.m.)
Tuesday, June 15, 2010 (7:30 p.m.)
Tuesday, July 20, 2010 (7:30 p.m.)
Tuesday, August 17, 2010 (7:30 p.m.)
Tuesday, September 21, 2010 (7:30 p.m.)
Tuesday, October 19, 2010 (7:30 p.m.)
Tuesday, November 16, 2010 (7:30 p.m.)
Tuesday, December 21, 2010 (7:30 p.m.)
CHAPTER UPDATES
Angel of Hope Memorial
The new walls at the Angel of Hope Memorial are ready for the carving of the bricks that have been ordered! Weather permitting; they will be carved yet this year. We still plan to add a stone sign on top of the middle wall with 'Angel of Hope' on it, but this may need to wait till spring. We completed two fundraisers for the Angel fund this summer, working at the Brat Stands at Cashwise and Cub Foods in Willmar. Several very special Compassionate Friends donated their time and energy to this project in memory of their children. We have found that this has also become a way to inform the public of the mission of The Compassionate Friends, to reach out and support grieving families. We also received a donation from the Catholic Aid Association, St. Mary's Council 379, Willmar.
If you are interested in a brick in memory of your child, please call Paulette at 320-366-3421 and she will send you the order information. The cost of a brick is $125. If you would like to make a donation to the Angel project, you may send it to Kay McLane, 613 Lakeland Ave SE, Willmar, MN 56201.
NOVEMBER 17, 2009 MEETING at 7:00 PM
In November our group meets at the Kandiyohi Historical Museum on North Highway 71, Willmar. We make ornaments in memory of our children to decorate a tree for the annual Festival of Trees at the Museum. If you are unable to attend, but would like an ornament made for your child, send a photograph and information about your child to Betty Hermann, 66608 MN Hwy 24, Litchfield, MN 55355. Betty will make a copy of your photograph and return the original photo to you. The theme for our tree this year is "Postcards From Heaven." We are always thankful for Lois Flaig and her creative ideas!
DECEMBER 15, 2009 MEETING at 7:30 PM
Our December meeting is a Holiday Memorial Service in memory of our children. Everyone is welcome to attend. We share photos of our children, memories, poems, readings and songs. We light candles as a remembrance so bring a candle. We have a potluck lunch and time for fellowship after the service.
MONTHLY MEETINGS - TIME CHANGE - 7:30 PM
The time for our monthly meetings will be changing to 7:30 PM starting in December. We meet at the Lakeland Health Center on the lower level, 502 SW Second Street, Willmar, MN, the 3rd Tuesday of each month.
Website & Email Newsletter Information
Contact our webmaster at ddblackwell@hotmail.com if you have information you would like to see on the site or if you want to receive the newsletter via email. For more information about Compassionate Friends, visit TCF’s national site at www.compassionatefriends.org.
YEARLY EVENTS
The Compassionate Friends Fall Picnic
We will meet again for the fall picnic at the home of Bob and Betty Hermann. The picnic will be on Saturday,
Bob and Betty’s address is as follows:
66608 Mn Hwy 24
Phone 320-693-6782
When you come into Litchfield on Hwy 12 from the west, turn east onto Hwy 24, which is across from the Dairy Queen. The farm is 8 miles on Hwy 24, on the left (or north) side of the road. Watch for the green “8 mile” marker.
If you cannot attend and would like a balloon released in your child’s name during the balloon release, send a note/postcard with a message to your child on a 3 x 5 card with your child’s name to Bob and Betty Hermann at the address listed above. We will release a balloon with their name with the others. This is a beautiful and special experience. It is a nice way to remember our children.
World Wide Candle Lighting
Held annually the 2nd Sunday in December. This unites families and friends around the globe as they light candles for one hour to honor and remember children who have died at any age form any cause. As candles are lit at 7:00 p.m. local time, hundreds of thousands of people commemorate and honor children in a way that transcends all ethnic, cultural, religious, and political boundaries. This years date is December 14, 2008.
Believed to be the largest mass candle lightning on the globe, the Worldwide Candle Lighting creates a virtual 24-hour wave of light as it moves from time zone to time zone. Hundreds of formal candle lighting events are held and thousands of informal candle lightings are conducted in homes as families gather in quiet remembrance of children who are no longer with them.
The Worldwide Candle Lighting started in the United States in 1997 as a small Internet observance but has since swelled in the numbers as word has spread throughout the world of the remembrance.
The Worldwide Candle Lighting gives bereaved families everywhere the opportunity to remember their child/children....that their light may always shine.
