Hundreds of butterflies take over Inglewood coffee shop

Art installation a joint project between Bethell Hospice and Caledon Public Library

By Zachary Roman

Colourful butterflies created by Caledon residents currently line the walls of Coywolf Coffee in Inglewood.

It's the culmination of a project in the works since October, when Bethell Hospice and the Caledon Public Library teamed up to host a series of workshops to create paper butterflies to mark National Grief and Bereavement Day — which was November 15.

The butterflies will be on display until November 21.

Natalie Talma, Bethell Hospice's psychosocial spiritual care team lead, created a butterfly for the art installation in memory of her Oma, who passed away two months ago. She said the initiative came at the right time for her, as creating the butterfly was a truly healing project.

“I really savoured my time thinking about what colors I wanted to represent her with, and I wrote her name on it,” said Talma. “I wrote some of the things that I will remember about her, like the way she makes Dutch coffee and how comforting her touch was with her hugs. It was a really special way of keeping her legacy alive for me.”

Talma explained that while the art installation is a way to honour the people we have loved and lost, it's also a way to remind the general public that those who are grieving need a little extra compassion.

Talma said each butterfly created is special and has its own story.

“The butterfly is used as a symbol for grief and bereavement for many organizations because it's the idea of this beautiful transformation,” said Talma. “A lot of people believe that when they see butterflies, it's a reminder that their loved ones are close… When you sit here and you see all the love that went into each one of these, and that they are each representing somebody that we've loved and lost, it's a very powerful statement.”

Coywolf Coffee was chosen as the location for the exhibit because it's been a great supporter of Bethell Hospice, is close by to the hospice, and has a lot of foot traffic going in and out of it on any given day. Talma said the community support for the project has been incredible, and that as soon as Bethell Hospice asked to use Coywolf Coffee's space, permission was granted.

Talma said she really hopes the art installation will encourage people to talk about grief, as while it is something everyone experiences, it's a tough topic for many to discuss. 

“This is really an opportunity to open up a dialogue about grief and bereavement. It's also an opportunity for us to share with the community that Bethell Hospice does bereavement support,” said Talma. “We have a comprehensive bereavement program where we offer one-to-one counseling; we have support groups, art therapy, music therapy, children's programs, and a lot of people don't know that we do that at Bethell.”

Bethell Hospice's grief and bereavement support is free, and Talma wants people to know they can seek out support in their time of need. She said Bethell Hospice recognizes the significant impact grief and loss can have on one's life, and wants to be there to support the community.