Submitted by: Radiant Heart After-Care For Pets
Bobbie Ruth Langley knows what it’s like to lose a pet.
“For many people, their pet is their child, their best friend or the reason they get out of bed in the morning,” Langley says. “When the pet dies, the loss can be devastating. It can also feel incredibly lonely and isolating. No one should have to grieve alone.”
Not only has she experienced the loss of her own animals but also shared in the loss of hundreds of “pet parents” whom she works with in her business, Radiant Heart After-Care For Pets. Radiant Heart is a pet-only funeral home offering both traditional cremation and water cremation.
Through these experiences, Langley has come to appreciate the need to communally recognize and celebrate the lives of our pets as an important step in the grieving process.
That’s why she created the Floating Lantern Pet Memorial five years ago. This year’s event takes place Sunday, September 8, 6:30 p.m. at Bloedel Donovan Park on Lake Whatcom. The date coincides with National Pet Memorial Day.
Jean Barnett and her husband Gary attended the event for the first time last year. Jean says that even though they had lost their two canine companions, lab Winne and lhasa apso Ping, in the preceding year, she didn’t think she still needed to grieve.
But once they got there, the emotions began to bubble up.
When the Barnetts arrived, they were given a paper sheath to decorate the LED lantern that would memorialize their pets as it floated on the lake. The tables in the Bloedel Donovan multipuropse room were stocked with paper, markers and facial tissues. Last year, flowers left over from the weekend’s dahlia show were also available to adorn the lanterns.
“All of a sudden I got so emotional” as they began to create their tribute, admits Barnett.
From the multipurpose room, the Barnetts and the other participants walked to the lake, guided by lumenarias, then rang a bell as they released their lantern into the water.
“It was just a beautiful, emotional and magical tribute,” Jean Barnett says. “From my observation I could see it was such closure for people.”
Barnett adds that she knows some people may feel awkward or uncomfortable, but she assures newcomers that the event is comfortable, well-organized and welcoming.
“This event has struck a chord with pet owners in the community,” Langley says. “It’s a tangible, meaningful way for grieving pet parents to express their love for a deceased pet and be with other people who are feeling the same way.”
All the lanterns for the 2019 event have been reserved, but the event is open to anyone who would like to observe. Langley asks that people leave their pets at home, so the focus stays on those animals being remembered.
