Christmas might have come and gone, but it’s not too late to memorialize someone you love.
WV Caring is still holding its annual Light up a Life event, which will run to the end of the year. Participants can purchase an angel ornament to memorialize a loved one and hang it on one of several trees at various locations. Manager of Development, Outreach and Volunteer Services Kim Riley said, being a nonprofit, WV Caring relies on donations from the community.
“During the holidays is a hard time. My son passed away 11 years ago from leukemia and this campaign is very special to me,” she said.
Riley purchases an ornament for Aaron every year and hangs it on her Christmas tree.
“I can’t buy him a present, I can’t send him a card but I can buy a special ornament and I can also donate to a nonprofit to help the community,” she said.
WV Caring accepts Medicare and Medicaid but never turns away someone in need. Money from campaigns like Light up a Life allows WV Caring to take care of people who might not have insurance.
There are trees at the Morgantown Mall and First Exchange, where a second tree is on display at the bank’s University Avenue branch. There are numerous locations around the state where ornaments can be hung. It’s not too late to get an ornament for a loved one who has passed away, said Riley.
“This year our angels are different. They’re porcelain clay. They’re beautiful. They have a hole in the back of them to where you can put a light in there,” she said.
The trees will come down at the end of the year and the ornaments can be picked up then. If someone wants an ornament even after the trees are taken down they can contact Riley at 304-864-0884. The cost of a clay angel is $35 dollars.
“We have plenty of ornaments left if people would still like to order an ornament. We have till the end of the year and even we’ll have some the first of the year,” she said.
Riley said WV Caring had a Christmas party in Bridgeport and gave the staff angels. One of the members mentioned they had just lost their brother-in-law and someone else in the family and purchased two ornaments.
“Every year this is what I do to memorialize my son. My tree is decorated with 11 years of hospice angels,” she said.
Riley has worked for WV Caring for 25 years. She takes the campaign to heart because every person’s name in the compiled memorial books means something to someone — and to her.
“This is something people will have. It’s an ornament and it’s some way that I can say ‘Merry Christmas, Aaron, this is what I did for you for Christmas’ and I helped out a nonprofit that is there taking care of our community,” she said.
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