Children’s graves get some Christmas joy

Children’s graves all over Nelson were coloured with posies and flowers as Project Butterfly got into the Christmas spirit.

Project Butterfly is an organisation set up to support families through the loss of a child.

Project founder Rebekah Joy said the placing of flowers on the little graves was in its second year and was gathering momentum.

Volunteers got together at Simplicity Funerals on Thursday night for a posy making workshop where drinks, food and flowers were supplied.

‘‘The workshop is new for this year,’’ Joy said. ‘‘They said they had so much fun last year that they thought other people might like to do it as well.

‘‘So they put it on their Facebook page expecting six to 12 people and they got 30.’’

The team made 100 posies which were added to the growing collection from other keen contributors, including 60 posies from one woman, flowers from a volunteer who ‘‘raided her neighbourhood’’, 30 posies from a friend of Joy’s, woven flax flowers from a family and 160 folded origami butterflies from one crafter.

‘‘It’s really really nice that people want to be involved.’’

Joy said around 300 sites had flowers laid on them around Wakapuaka, Marsden Valley, Ngawhatu and the Project Butterfly pathway in Fairfield Park.

If anyone wanted their child included next year who wasn’t in those cemeteries they could get in touch, Joy said.

Children joined their parents at the initiative.

She said it was good for children to ‘‘do something worthy at Christmas time’’.

‘‘It brings up some really good conversations and good things for kids to talk about.’’

Nelson volunteer Joy Chambers was at Marsden Valley Cemetery yesterday morning with 20 other volunteers placing flowers.

Chambers attended with her daughter and granddaughter.

She said it was a great thing for chil- dren to be involved in ‘‘to experience and understand that life isn’t forever’’.

‘‘My grandson said, ‘I’ve got to find the grave I did last year, it’s got the wee footprints on it.’ And he talked about it for ages afterwards.

‘‘To think that someone’s lost someone so little. Doing this, it’s quite emotional to see that people care.’’

Prue Fothergill got her three children together to weave flax flowers.

She said she had lost a child herself and a niece, so the cause was close to her heart.

‘‘If you’re not here, how lovely it is that someone else is going to do it for you.’’

Nikola Fothergill, 7, said she knew what the harakeke (flax) flowers were for.

‘‘To celebrate Christmas.’’ babies having