Vigil to be held honoring children who passed away

The holiday season can be difficult for those who have lost loved ones, especially those who lost a child.

“When you have lost a child and can’t do for that child, it’s just a really hard time,” said Linda Hale.

Linda and her husband Terry wanted to do something after they lost their granddaughter 22 years ago. Linda came up with the idea to bring The Christmas Box Angel to Idaho Falls. It is from the book, “The Christmas Box,” by Richard Paul Evans that tells the story of a mother grieving her child and does so at the base of an angel in a cemetery. An angel statue now resides in the fielding memorial cemetery in Idaho Falls.

“So we come here to remember her, but then this is a bigger, open thing for everybody that everyone can come here and remember their children,” Linda said.

The Christmas Box Angel isn’t just in Idaho Falls. There are 120 angels worldwide. Every year on Dec. 6, those who have lost children gather at the angels for a vigil, remembering those they lost and supporting each other.

“Of course those who come who have lost children, we all have something in common,” Terry said. “We wish we weren’t here, but we are. And so we understand each other, we know what that person next to me is going through because we’ve been there.”

There will be a vigil at the angel in Idaho Falls Thursday at 6 p.m. at the Fielding Memorial Cemetery. Bring a candle as well as a flower to place at the base of the statue. Everyone is invited.