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inclusivity • hospitality • worship • discipleship • mission • stewardship

Memorial Garden

I am the resurrection and the life. Those who believe in me, even though they die, will live, and everyone who lives and believes in me will never die... John 11:25-26 (NRSV)

Orchard’s Memorial Garden is a sacred space for contemplation and prayer where individuals can come for quiet communion with God, drawing comfort in its peaceful surroundings. The Memorial Garden helps the church provide a lifetime of ministry and is a visible symbol of the love and care of God in our lives — from birth through death. This designated site is intended to provide a tranquil setting for the celebration of life through funerals, baptisms, weddings, devotionals, private and collective moments of reflection, and a place to receive ashes of loved ones.

 

The Memorial Garden was the generous gift of Frank Stevens and his family in loving remembrance of Catharine Stevens. It was dedicated to the Glory of God in September 2009. Care and maintenance are administered by the Memorial Garden Committee. The Memorial Garden is supported and sustained through donations and personalized brick purchases. No funds are used from the budget of Orchard United Methodist Church to maintain the Garden.

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It is our hope that this Garden adds beauty to a world that is too often stark and unwelcoming. The Garden says “Come” to those who find their way here. May this be a place where the gift of laughter will rise above our troubles, where treasured stories will be shared to make us wiser, where the pain of loss will be embraced with arms of hope and trust.

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