Initiative to remember those who have died in 2020

The initiative, ‘Those Loved and Lost 2020’, was organised by the local group Brighter Days.

It will involve the creation of a personalised bauble with details of the lost loved one to be placed on the Christmas tree. The family will also receive a small version of the bauble, designed and produced by the North West Regional College, to keep.

Mayor Brian Tierney has donated Christmas trees to the initiative in the Peace Garden in Foyle Street and the Alley Theatre in Strabane.

“Christmas is never an easy time for anyone who has recently lost a loved one, but this year I know it will be incredibly difficult given everything that has happened over the course of 2020.

“Nothing can take the pain or the grief away, but I think this is a really special and thoughtful initiative set up by Brighter Days to show that there is a brighter future ahead, and also to show that those who have passed on haven’t been, and will never be, forgotten.”

Mayor Tierney said he hopes the initiative will “provide some comfort for the weeks and months ahead.”

Chairperson of Brighter Days, Francine Moran, commented: “This is a particularly poignant project of me personally after suffering the sudden loss of my own mother during lockdown and I and Brighter Days want to reach out to every family that has had to endure similar experiences to let them know that they are not alone and that there is support available to them.”

For more information email [email protected] or visit https://www.facebook.com/Brighter-Days-101119734928551