Earlier this summer, our incredible Green Team decided to find Paris Coral Bells for the Columbarium garden outside the Combs Chapel. Volunteers, Mary and Brian, envisioned these beautiful variegated plants with delicate pink blooms flourishing in the raised beds by the gate.
One early September morning, Mary decided it was time to call local nurseries about their fall shipments, hoping especially to secure the Coral Bells. That precise afternoon, something extraordinary happened. Beckie, a fellow Green Team member, emailed Mary with an offering.
Four years earlier, during a church construction project, the Green Team had unearthed plants needing relocation. Beckie and her spouse Steve had generously taken them in, becoming devoted caretakers throughout the seasons. In her afternoon email, Beckie inquired about returning these plants to the church community. The plants she offered were the precise Coral Bells with pink blooms Mary and Brian had hoped to plant.
A full circle of love. For over four years, Beckie and Steve nurtured these plants with care and intention. Now they’ve returned home to the beautiful gardens at our church, ready to bloom again.
As John Muir wrote, “Everybody needs beauty as well as bread, places to play in and pray in, where Nature may heal and cheer and give strength to body and soul alike.” Our gardens, especially surrounding the Columbarium, are such a place.
Two weeks ago, the Green Team re-planted the Coral Bells in the Columbarium garden. The beds are no longer empty. Instead, they’re filled with gratitude for Brian and Mary’s vision, for Beckie and Steve’s faithful care, for the Green Team’s steadfast service, for your generosity that equips these tremendous volunteers, and for a garden being restored with profound love.
Grace and Peace,
Ashley
