COVID Gardens Remember Lives Lost During the Pandemic
October 3, 2023
They give Saint Alphonsus staff the gift of hope and a place for reflection
Saint Alphonsus Health System created COVID-19 Memorial Gardens at its hospitals in Boise and Nampa, Idaho and Ontario and Baker City, Oregon. The gardens memorialize lives lost to the pandemic and reflect upon the efforts of healthcare workers caring for COVID-19 patients. Saint Alphonsus colleagues initiated the establishment of the memorials, and the Saint Alphonsus Regional Medical Center Foundation funded the projects.
“The pandemic had such a profound impact on our communities and on healthcare that we felt it important to create lasting memorials at each of our hospital campuses to honor lives saved and lost and dedicated Saint Alphonsus colleagues who cared for them and the families that were affected by this tragic time in our lifetime,” said Odette Bolano, President and CEO of Saint Alphonsus Health System.
The memorials, titled “Is Where the Angels Are-” and inspired by the Emily Dickinson poem The Gentian Weaves Her Fringes, are designed to give Saint Alphonsus staff the gift of hope and a place for reflection. They recognize sacrifice, loss, and resilience. Each of the memorials feature poetic language, garden features and collaborative words. Dickinson’s poem is displayed in English, Spanish and Braille.
They also include sculptural signage with dedications to Native Americans and hospital founding Sisters – The Holy Cross Sisters in Boise in 1894; the Sisters of St. Francis of Philadelphia in Baker City in 1897; the Dominican Sisters of St. Catherine of Siena in Ontario in 1911; and the Sisters of Mercy in Nampa in 1917. Saint Alphonsus colleagues were asked to suggest words that exemplified the pandemic experience for them, and they will be permanently displayed near each hospital entrance. Those words include “Faith,” Hope, “Bravery,” “Unity,” and “Compassion.”
View our photo gallery below, featuring photos from Boise, Nampa, Ontario, and Baker City.
