Memorial Garden

A garden is a place of refreshment and peace, a place where we are especially aware of the marvels of God’s creation. A garden invites us to stop and rest a while. The Memorial Garden at St.
Bartholomew’s was created to be a place of natural beauty for the respectful burial of the ashes of loved ones. The garden’s natural cycles of seasons, of death and life, recall to us the Christian mystery, that our coming more fully alive in God is comprised of many deaths to the old so that new life may break forth. It is also intended that the Memorial Garden serve as a place to celebrate life with joyful services such as baptisms and weddings.
 
So may this Memorial Garden be for all who come to it a place of refreshment, of renewal, of peace, and a sign of the hope that God is always holding out to us:
                                                                   “See, I am making all things new.” (Revelation 21:5-6)

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History of the Memorial Garden at St. Bartholomew’s

​The Memorial Garden at St. Bartholomew’s Episcopal Church was established in 1996 with a generous bequest from Marian and Victor Haughton. The land west of the church building belongs to neighboring Royall Point Neighborhood Association, which granted an easement to St. Bartholomew’s for the purpose of establishing a garden for the interment of ashes. In June 1996 the Vestry adopted a set of Regulations for the Memorial Garden, and site construction began in the fall. A drainage ditch at the far side of the Garden was dug, the site was professionally landscaped, plantings were established, and granite boulders were brought in from a quarry on Granite Street in North Yarmouth.

Initially designed as a shade garden, the beds underwent significant transformation beginning in 2024 after three large trees needed to be removed. The beds are designed to be restful, with a muted palette comprised primarily of native shrubs (blueberry, rhododendron, clethra and dogwood) and native perennials which provide color throughout the seasons.

Memorial Garden Consecration by Bishop Thomas Brown 
We had beautiful weather on May 7, 2023 for  the Bishop of Maine Thomas Brown's consecration ceremony of the Garden.  

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To date there have been 33 interments of ashes in the garden.  Reservations have been received for approximately 16 spaces in the Garden. As the need arises, St. Bartholomew’s is fortunate to have adequate space for expansion of the Garden along the western facing side of the church building.
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​Memorial Garden Regulations
The Garden is under the oversight of the parish Vestry and the Episcopal Diocese of Maine.  Click here for information regarding space reservations,  interment, flowers, and engraving.
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Procedures
A reservation form for space in the Memorial Garden may be obtained by emailing the office or calling the office at (207) 846-9244. It should be returned to the office, together with a nonrefundable fee.

A form for specifying the engraving of the name and date(s) can also be obtained on request from the parish office. Engraving is generally done once a year, in the fall, when the ground is dry and the weather is reliable.
 
To schedule a visit to the Memorial Garden or for general information, please contact Margaret Betts  or Pam Waite.

To use the Memorial Garden as a site for events other than the interment of ashes, please contact the parish office to consult with the Rector.

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From Psalm 62:

1 For God alone my soul in silence waits; from God comes my salvation.
2 God alone is my rock and my salvation 
    my stronghold, so that I shall not be greatly shaken.
​   (The St. Helena Breviary)

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Maintaining the memorial garden