BRIDGEPORT, Connecticut - St. Vincent's SWIM Across the Sound is hosting the 20th Annual Interfaith Memorial Service on Sunday, August 6, at 8:30am at Captain's Cove Seaport in Bridgeport. Registration begins at 8 a.m. The event is free of charge, open to all members of the community and will celebrate the lives of family members and friends lost to cancer, regardless of where they received treatment. It will take place rain or shine.
The Memorial Service seeks to remember and carry on the spirit of those who have died from cancer. The service provides an opportunity for families and friends to heal after the loss of loved ones, and reflects St. Vincent's mission as it acknowledges the importance and contribution of every life. It is another way that St. Vincent's SWIM Across the Sound supports area residents in the fight against cancer.
Prayer, musical tributes, inspirational readings by St. Vincent's leadership and oncology staff, and refreshments will be included. P. Thomas Landry, Pipe Major, in the Fairfield Gaelic Pipe Band, will be escorted by the Knights of Columbus, Fourth Degree, Connecticut District, who will form an honor guard for the procession of participants. The event will also feature soloist Tyler Cervini of Trumbull, the "Just Voices" Chorus and a symbolic candle-lighting ceremony by two Daughters of Charity, the order that founded St. Vincent's.
Highlighting the service will be the reading of the names of the deceased, followed by participants scattering sunflowers from a boat into Long Island Sound. The sunflower, representing the glory of life, has become the symbol of the memorial service over the years.
The service is sponsored by Miriam Raubvogel of Shelton in memory of her sister Linda Waterman and the Waterman family, and by St. Vincent's Foundation.
Refreshments will be served after the service.
Every participant will receive a commemorative "pocket" shawl and sunflower pin.
Captain's Cove is handicapped accessible.
Anyone unable to attend may visit www.stvincents.org/SwimMemorial to submit the name of a loved one to be remembered at the service.
For more information, please contact Lucinda I. Ames of St. Vincent's Mission Services at 475-210-5550 or lames@stvincents.org.
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