Service to help families cope with ‘Empty Chair’

WAYNESBURG – The Christmas season can be a time of great joy for many people, a time for loved ones to gather and celebrate a warm and special celebration.
But the season can also be a time of heartbreak for those who have lost loved ones, a time of sadness for people who are struggling to cope with the loss of someone they love because of homicide, domestic violence, illness or natural causes.
This holiday season, a special memorial service will once again be held to help local residents honor the memories of departed loved ones who are missed so dearly, especially around Christmas.
The 10th annual service, titled “The Empty Chair: A Time of Remembrance,” will be held Monday, Dec. 14 at the First Christian Church, which is located on Morris Street in Waynesburg.
The service, which will begin at 7 p.m., will again be organized by GriefSHARE, a victim support group coordinated through the Greene County District Attorney’s office.
The non-denominational memorial service will be officiated by Rev. Dr. Donald P. Wilson and the First Christian Church pastor. Also contributing to the service will be Sandy Seybold, whose son was killed in a vehicular crash in 2004; Carol and Kim Furmanek, whose daughter and mother, respectively, was murdered as a result of domestic violence; Cherie Rumskey, Greene County Victim Witness Coordinator; and Greene County District Attorney Marjorie Fox.
Music will be provided by Lisa Pazzynski, Leah Bell, the Waynesburg University Lamplighters and Nelson Fox.
Seybold will once again be making hand-crafted ornaments for those who attend to take home for their own tree as a reminder of their respective loved ones. To commemorate the event’s 10th anniversary, she will be doing something special: she will be making and handing out angel ornaments made of stained glass.
Refreshments will be served immediately following the service, which will serve as a time of fellowship for those attending to share stories and memories of their loved ones.
This will mark the 10th consecutive year that the service is being held in Greene County. Rumskey said in a previous interview that the idea for the unique service came in the mid-2000’s during brainstorming sessions with the victim support group.
“Everyone in the group agreed that there are many challenges for people to celebrate the holidays when a loved one has passed away,” she said. “Many of them said that the most difficult thing to deal with during the holidays was looking at an empty chair and realizing that someone they loved was no longer with them. This service has been – and continues to be – an effective and appropriate way to help people remember their loved ones.”
The annual service features inspirational messages and songs, the lighting of memorial candles and the decorating of a Christmas tree with Memory Stars, which featured names of loved ones who passed away as a result of violent deaths, illness, accidental death and natural causes.
Attendees are also able to post pictures of their departed loved ones on a “Remembrance Board” that were displayed in the sanctuary.
To emphasize the theme of “The Empty Chair,” a chair and table is placed near the tree.
Rumskey said she is pleased with the overall turnout for the service each year, and she calls the service “beautiful and touching.”
“It is such an uplifting and healing experience, and the fellowship afterward has a very emotional atmosphere,” she said. “Watching them share their stories, their laughter and tears, their memories and pictures, and connecting with other people who have also experienced loss, it is obvious that they know they are not alone in their loss. That is really what makes this service so special.”
The annual ‘Empty Chair’ services are especially meaningful for many of those who participate in the service or attend on a regular basis.
Seybold said she understands that people handle grief in different ways, and that one of the goals of the service is to let those grieving know that they are not alone.
“Grief is unique and can be very personal, and the process of grieving is an ongoing thing,” she said. “But healing is an important part of grieving, and this service is something that can truly help with the healing process. The ‘Empty Chair’ is a beautiful service that lets those who are grieving know that they are not alone during their time of loss, especially during the holidays.”
She said she finds the service and reception to be rewarding for those who attend, especially during the holidays.
“It gives different people who are dealing with various stages of grief the opportunity to talk, share and fellowship with others who are grieving,” she said. “Sometimes those who are grieving feel so alone in their grief, but when they meet others who are also grieving and they fellowship with them, then they are helping each other…and they know that they are not alone.”
Rev. Wilson said he is honored that he has been asked to be involved with the service for the past decade.
“The service is comforting and encouraging, and it gives people hope,” he said.
“It helps connect people with others who are grieving, and it helps them draw strength from one another and also from the Heavenly Father. What amazes me and pleases me year after year is to see people at the service leave with a sense of renewed hope, with the knowledge that they are not alone in their grief. That is what the ‘Empty Chair’ is truly about.”
For more information about the “Empty Chair” service, call Rumskey at 724-852-5229 or Seybold at 724-627-7204.