Aubrey Brookes lights a candle during Care Funeral Home’s candle-lighting ceremony on Friday at the Calcutta chapel. The event invited community members to light a candle in memory of their lost loved ones and offered a moment to pause and reflect. (Photo by Stephanie Elverd)

CALCUTTA — For those who have lost ones, the holidays are often the toughest terrain to navigate. Most people equate that difficult time with Christmas but there are other special days when the weight of grief is especially heavy — like Valentine’s Day.

Calcutta’s Care Funeral Home recognized that on Friday by opening its doors to the community to light candles for lost loves in its chapel. Those who lit candles were able to place photos of their loved ones next to the candles and pause to remember and reflect.

“We at Care think of the families we serve often and know how hard it is to get through certain holidays,” said Care Community Outreach Director Fawn Householder. “When a spouse or family member is left alone on Valentine’s Day, we want them to know we understand and want to give them a chance to let their loved one who has passed know they are thought of and loved.”

The community was welcomed all day. Photos and the names of those whose end-of-life services were handled by Care in 2024 were displayed on screens inside the chapel. However, anyone — no matter when they passed or where their services were held — could be honored and remembered. Aside from lighting candles, people were encouraged to write a note to their loved one on biodegradable paper embedded with wildflower seeds. The sheets of paper will be planted in the spring — the seeds in the paper will germinate and grow into wildflowers around the chapel.

Those grieving four-legged family members were not left out. Candles were also lit in remembrance of passed pets.

“We included our pets that have passed in this memorial ceremony because they are part of our families and are also missed and loved,” Householder said.

The ceremony was well received and much appreciated.

“I needed this,” the daughter of a veteran said, after lighting a candle for her father.

A widower expressed hope that Care would make the ceremony a yearly-tradition and was grateful his wife was remembered on a day dedicated to sweethearts.

“I miss her,” he said. “This hurts but it is beautiful.”

A pet owner also expressed gratitude for the opportunity to light a candle.

“I really appreciate [Care] doing this for Sadie,” he said. “I miss her so much.”

Householder, too, hopes the Valentine’s Day candle ceremony continues. She sees it as an extension of the services Care provides to families and the community. Householder said it is also recognition that grief is a difficult, never-ending road. Anything that helps make that walk less unbearable and the weight of grief less heavy is a humble accomplishment at the end of the day — whether that day is ordinary or a special one.

“Now that we have seen the positive reaction, it is a tradition we hope to continue,” she said. “These loved ones may be gone, but will never be forgotten.

selverd@mojonews.com