Good Neighbors
Meet a woman who brings hospice patients tidings of comfort and joy with personalized Christmas trees.
She delivers joy to hospice patients.
An enthusiasm for plants runs in Jennifer Slaughter’s family. Her father, Reese, was a master gardener who instilled in her a passion for horticulture. But it was a chance comment from her husband, Terry, that planted the seed for her flower ministry. As they strolled through their garden one Sunday afternoon enjoying the flowers, Terry said, “All of this could go beyond us.” That was the inspiration to start Perenity, a weekly, free flower delivery for hospice patients in the Birmingham, Alabama, area.
That was 20 years ago, and for two decades, Jennifer carried on her mission. From January to October, she and her partner, Margaret McColl, repurposed flowers from weddings and other events, making and delivering bouquets to 75—and sometimes as many as 250—hospice patients each week. Then each October, Jennifer began creating about 350 personalized and themed Christmas trees for residents of four hospice facilities.
Jennifer announced last summer she was retiring from the flower ministry to focus on other callings, but she and Margaret will continue their
largely self-funded tree project. Throughout the year Jennifer shops for decorations, buying items here and there to complete a theme. She says the trees bring comfort to patients who might otherwise feel alone or forgotten during the season.
Several years ago, a local TV station asked Jennifer to choose a tree to give a patient during a short segment it was going to air about Perenity. Without any additional information, Jennifer selected a hummingbird-themed evergreen she’d thought was so special she had considered keeping it. When she walked into the woman’s home, she saw hummingbird decor everywhere. The woman reacted to her tree with tears of joy. Jennifer says those reactions keep her going.
Jennifer does much of the work herself, but she has delivery and prep help from Margaret and occasional volunteers. The work kept Jennifer’s days full, but
“this ministry has been a true blessing,” she says, not only for the patients but also for herself. “It has been a joy to meet a lot of wonderful people who touch my life and make me humble and thankful.”
`All of this could go beyond us.❞
—TERRY SLAUGHTER