THE memorial garden at Royal Bournemouth Hospital opened by Prince Charles is a “special” space for NHS workers to relax and remember their colleagues.
HRH The Prince of Wales cut the ribbon to mark the opening of the Lavender Garden, which was a “passion-driven” commitment by theatres surgical first assistant Donna Bailey.
She set about the project following the death of friend and colleague Anna Gryga, who was a theatre administrator at the hospital. The garden vision was also in memory of operations department practitioner Tom Cameron.
Both Tom and Anna passed away from cancer in 2020.
Donna told the Daily Echo it was “amazing” to meet Prince Charles. She said: “He was absolutely charming and to have him open it is more than we could ever have imagined.
“I met up with Anna’s children two days after Anna passed and they said it was so nice to be in the hospital and to speak to members of staff who knew Anna and for them to share their experiences.
“When we came out of the chapel we were just above the garden.
“As we looked down at the garden I said ‘you see this ugly space, we are going to make this nice and special for your mum, so you have still got somewhere to come and visit.”
When Anna very ill was being treated in hospital, Donna took some lavender from her garden in a muslin bag without the nurses knowing as flowers were not allowed at the time.
Anna had them when she passed away and they were put in her coffin when she was cremated.
“It started with this really small idea of planting something and all the staff being involved in doing that,” Donna said.
“A year on I’d raised a small amount of money of the £35,000 that we needed to do it because of the site and how much work there was to do. Then the charities became involved and people realised this space wasn’t needed just for Anna and Anna’s children, it was for everybody, everybody has got a story.
“The lavender is Anna. When I see that and smell that I think of Anna and everything else here all has meaning to individuals.
“Also it is really important for staff to have somewhere to go and just be part of nature because that is healing, that is the essence of Tom.
“Tom went off to the Himalayas and really discovered nature and what nature means to your wellbeing and your own health.
““We are stuck in a theatre with artificial light, white walls, which is awful. Just being able to come down here for 10 minutes and soak up some sun and see the greenery is going to be amazing for everyone’s mental health.”
Anna’s son Parys, 16, who spoke with Prince Charles, said: “It was quite nice to meet His Royal Highness, but it was just really nice to see all the staff from the hospital come together and celebrate these two beautiful people who sadly died from cancer – Anna and Tom.
“I know my mum was an amazing person and I have heard a lot about Tom who was an equally amazing person."
He added: “It was such an amazing occasion and it is such a nice space for hospital staff to come and relax from their awfully stressful jobs.
“It was really nice to see all the people who knew my mum and knew what an absolute wealth of joy she was to everyone around her.”
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