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The Child’s Remembrance Garden in Luverne is taking shape with the efforts of local volunteers, generous donations and help from city leaders.
The garden will provide a place for people who have lost a child to grieve, remember and heal.
Several local families who have lost children formed a non-profit and have been raising money to design and build the garden on a parcel of land owned by the city.
Last summer they approached the City Council about leasing the 140-foot by 60-foot parcel in the northwest corner of Tonto Park off James Street near the Catholic cemetery.
At that July meeting, the city verbally agreed to provide the space free of charge with the understanding that long-term maintenance would be a shared responsibility.
At their Jan. 25 meeting council members and the non-profit group signed a “Contract for Management and Operation of Child's Remembrance Garden.”
The contract states that the city will own the garden and its accessories, and the non-profit will be responsible for costs associated with operating, maintaining and managing the property, including utilities for a water feature and lighting.
City public works crews have already helped by clearing some old, dying evergreens and preparing the site for development.
The garden will be professionally planned and installed by a landscape architect/designer hired by the non-profit group, and the city will review the plans before implementation.
Lucas Stoffel from Oak Haven Landscape and Design out of Sherburn, Minnesota, will be working to build the garden in Spring 2022.
Among other specifications, the contract states that the group will not allow “the internment of human remains or scattering of ashes of human remains in the garden.”
It also states that the non-profit will raise funds to establish a reserve for repair and replacement and improvement of the garden.
The initial timeline for the lease is for five years; then the parties will negotiate in good faith for further extensions.
“The garden will be an asset to the city park as it will be in close proximity to the Luverne Loop and provide a nice visual appeal to that corner of the park area.
In addition to city support, local donors have already given thousands toward the garden through the Luverne Area Community Foundation.
“We’re so excited about it, and it’s coming together so quickly,” said Pat Saum, one of the group’s founding members. “It’s a beautiful spot. It’s like it was meant to be.”
To donate, contact the Luverne Area Community Foundation at 507-227-2424. To help, contact maggie.siebenahler@gmail.com or pat.saum@gmail.com.
Learn more at www.childsremembrancegarden.org or on Facebook, Childs-Remembrance-Garden.