Flowers bloom with life for seniors in a culture of loneliness

My latest story for the B.C. Catholic newspaper

The elderly lady was sitting slumped in a wheelchair parked near a window in the common room of her Maple Ridge retirement home when a volunteer from St. Luke’s parish approached.

“Happy Easter!” the volunteer said, handing the woman a potted African violet and a greeting card reading, “You Matter.”

The senior read the card slowly, covered her face with her hands, silently began to weep, choked up with emotion.

The “You Matter” message “really resonated,” said St. Luke’s parishioner Elizabeth Loch, who organized teams of family members and fellow parishioners to visit two seniors’ residences on Holy Saturday as part of the annual Blooms into Rooms Easter-flowers project.

“Like far too many of our seniors, she was probably feeling that she didn’t matter to anyone anymore,” said Loch. “I’m glad we could do something to bring her some comfort.”

Blooms into Rooms volunteers noted similar responses among many seniors on Holy Saturday as they delivered flowering plants and greeting cards to across the Lower Mainland.

This year’s “You Matter” theme was adopted in part because of the high number of seniors being euthanized out of loneliness and isolation.

“It’s clear that the increasing isolation and loneliness of seniors—even when they are living in group residences or retirement homes—is a real problem,” said Wim Vander Zalm, a founder of Blooms into Rooms, which marked its 32nd anniversary this year with 12 teams from Catholic parishes and schools visiting a record 1,700 seniors in 19 locations from Chilliwack to Coquitlam.

“We don’t want to see our grandmothers and grandfathers turning to euthanasia because of isolation, loneliness, or a feeling that their lives don’t have meaning any more,” he said. “That’s simply not right.”

A 2023 report by Canada’s National Institute of Ageing found that 41 per cent of Canadians 50 years and older are at risk of social isolation and up to 58 per cent have experienced loneliness.

Numbers like these are part of a “culture of loneliness” driving up the number of Canadians seeking Medical Assistance in Dying, Euthanasia Prevention Coalition executive director Alex Schadenberg said last year.

The same conclusion is supported by data collected by Health Canada and published in its annual MAiD report.

In the “nature of suffering” section for 2024, Health Canada reported that in 45 per cent of the 732 Canadians who received Track 2 MAiD—when natural death is not reasonably foreseeable—cited “isolation or loneliness” as a reason for wanting to end their lives. For Track 1—when death is reasonably foreseeable—21.9 per cent of 15,767 patients cited isolation and loneliness.

Even higher rates were reported for feelings of being a burden, emotional distress, and loss of dignity.

LifeCanada, a national pro-life charity, has also responded to these statistics with a program to boost seniors’ sense of self-worth. The program features a 26-page pamphlet entitled “You Are Worth It!” Blooms Into Rooms volunteers took pamphlets to some of the homes and hope to distribute more next year.

“It’s a simple and yet profound resource for seniors and elderly,” said executive director Pat Wiedemer. The goal is “to remind them of the great dignity they possess, inspiring them to know their worth and value.”

Blooms into Rooms, which now operates under the umbrella of Life Compass, a north-of-Fraser life-education non-profit, also distributed 14 of the LifeCanada pamphlets to retirement homes on Holy Saturday. The group plans to distribute more next year with the assistance of the Archdiocese of Vancouver.

Wiedemer hopes the pamphlet’s “charming” comic-style artistry and clear writing about universal lessons of a life well-lived will bring joy and life to the elderly.

“It is a life-abundant antidote to the culture of death as offered in MAiD,” she said.

Vander Zalm said it’s hard to measure Blooms into Rooms’ positive impact, but anecdotal evidence suggests it certainly raised spirits among seniors.

A team of St. Luke’s parishioners visiting the Wesbrooke retirement home in Pitt Meadows reported an overwhelmingly positive response. “It is truly amazing what something as simple as a small pot of flowers can do for an entire home,” said volunteer Martha Bonnett said.

Bonnett heard how meaningful the visit was, especially for those who feel deeply alone. “Many still hold Easter close to their hearts, even when their own families have forgotten not only the significance of this sacred season, but sometimes even their own loved ones.”

At Eagle Ridge Manor in Port Moody, St. Joseph’s volunteers were greeted by an activities coordinator who presented them with a giant thank-you card signed by two dozen staff and residents.

“We could see the gratitude in the sparkle of their [residents’] eyes and the width of their smiles,” said a volunteer. “There was a lot of love in the room.”

At one Maple Ridge home, a woman was nearly brought to tears because the colour of the violets were her favourite, said Loch. Another senior was uplifted by the seniors’ interactions with the many children taking part.

Blooms into Rooms now operates under Life Compass, a north-of-Fraser non-profit, and was funded this year through a grant from the Archdiocese of Vancouver. Burnaby Lakes Nurseries provided the African violets at cost, and Art’s Nursery in Surrey provided logistical support.

B.C. Catholic contributor Terry O’Neill is co-founder and lead organizer of Blooms into Rooms.

Flowers to Eagle Ridge Manor residents

Our volunteers for 2014: (l-r) Dora, Catharina, Jaci, and Irene.

In the late winter of 1994, a small group of parishioners from St. Joseph's Parish in Port Moody gathered around a meeting-room table in the church to brainstorm about what could be done to promote their and their church's life-affirming philosophy--the respect for all human life, from conception to its natural end.
I put forward the idea that it might be nice to show our respect for the sick and aged by visiting them over the Easter weekend (a time of the year in which we celebrate life, of course!), presenting them with flowers and greetings.
Everyone agreed that it would be a good idea, and then one of the group looked at me with arched eyebrows and said, "Well...."  I took that to mean that, since the flowers-project was my idea, I would be responsible for making it come to life. And the rest is history.
For 20 years now, I've been organizing a group of parishioners every Easter to visit the residents of a long-term care facility, Eagle Ridge Manor in Port Moody, bringing them a little Easter cheer of flowers and fellowship. Over the years, we've seen some of the participants grow from little children to young adults. Some others have moved away. A few others have passed away. But every year, we have no difficulty attracting between a half dozen and two dozen volunteers to keep our Easter Flowers project alive.

The Manor's Charlotte Stewart and volunteer Irene Munro, 83.

It was a bit more difficult this year, though, because the Manor asked that all visitors either be vaccinated or don a surgical mask when interacting with the residents. Nevertheless, four volunteers--Irene Munro, Catharina Gani, Jaclyn Dube and Dora Yee--joined me for the 20th-anniversary event this morning.
I've just returned home now from Eagle Ridge Manor and it was another memorable morning, as the flowers, cards (made by children in the parish) and visits really cheered the residents. Family members and staff also expressed their gratitude for our visit.
I'd like to thank Charlotte Stewart, the Manor's recreation therapist, for helping make our visit run smoothly this year, and for taking to a microphone at the end of the morning to give us a special "thank-you." After 20 years, it feels pretty good!
I'd also like to thank Wim Vander Zalm, of Art Knapp's in Port Coquitlam, for faithfully donating the plants each year. The total is now well over 1,500 flowering plants, by my reckoning. Thanks, Wim; we couldn't have done it without your support.