Nathan Adelson Hospice, Southern Nevada’s largest non-profit hospice, today announced the 14th Annual John Anderson ‘Celebration of Life’ Live Butterfly Release will take place on The Lawn at Downtown Summerlin® at 2 p.m. Sunday, April 30.
Southern Nevada community members are invited to celebrate and honor the memory of lost loved ones during this annual event, which takes place this year on the large lawn area at the shopping center, 1980 Festival Plaza Drive. The butterfly release will commence at approximately 2:30 p.m. Butterflies can be reserved in advance for $50 a box, with each box containing two butterflies, by contacting Stephanie Forbes at 702.938.3910 or via email at sforbes@nah.org. Sponsorship opportunities are available.
The event – named after a beloved 23-year Nathan Adelson Hospice employee who passed away in April 2007 – is open to the public. The premise of the butterfly release is based on an American Indian legend for carrying wishes to the heavens. The legend claims that if anyone desired a wish to come true, they had to capture a butterfly and whisper that wish to it. The butterfly, which makes no sound, could not reveal the wish to anyone but the Great Spirit, who hears and sees all. The butterfly carried the wish to the heavens to be granted.
The annual event brings together hundreds of friends and families to release more than 500 butterflies in memory of loved ones who have died.
“Our annual ‘Celebration of Life’ butterfly release is a beautiful event that gives everyone the opportunity to honor the lives of loved ones who have completed the journey of life,” said Carole Fisher, president and chief executive officer of Nathan Adelson Hospice. “Butterflies represent the delicate but beautiful transition of life, and the gesture of letting them go provides comfort to those who have experienced a difficult loss of a spouse, parent, child, or anyone close. A critical part of our philosophy at Nathan Adelson Hospice is providing emotional and spiritual support to the patients and families left behind.”
About Nathan Adelson Hospice
Nathan Adelson Hospice, the trusted partner in hospice care and palliative medicine for almost 40 years, is the largest non-profit hospice in Southern Nevada, caring for an average of 400 hospice and palliative care patients daily. In 1978, Nathan Adelson Hospice began providing home care hospice service in Southern Nevada with the mission to offer patients and their loved ones with comprehensive end-of-life care and influence better care for all in the community. In 1983, Nathan Adelson Hospice opened an in-patient hospice in Las Vegas, and today the hospice is recognized as a national model for superior hospice care. The mission of the hospice is to be the Hospice of Choice, the Employer of Preference and a Training Center of Excellence for comprehensive end of life care. Its vision is simple: no one should end the journey of life alone, afraid or in pain.
The hospice also is home to The Center for Compassionate Care, a non-profit counseling agency providing individual, group and family counseling services to address grief, loss and issues related to surviving life-threatening illnesses. For more information, visit www.nah.org.
