Inclement weather forecast postpones Tidewell celebration of life event in Bradenton
Tidewell Hospice and the Tidewell Foundation have postponed a community celebration of life planned for 6 p.m. Thursday, June 17, in downtown Bradenton due to a forecast of inclement weather.
An announcement will be made once a new date and time have been selected. Additionally, members of the community can call 941-552-7546 for more information, Tidewell said in an email Thursday morning.
The event was designed to allow members of the community to process grief and the challenges of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Funerals, celebrations of life, weddings and more fell victim to the pandemic, as did countless jobs, while pressure mounted on food banks to feed the hungry.
While the Tidewell event has been canceled, Cathy Tobias of Anna Maria has brought her COVID ribbon memorial to Creative Pinellas, 12211 Walsingham Road, Largo.
n February, Tobias and volunteers unfurled her COVID ribbon memorial along a stretch of beach on Anna Maria Island. The memorial contained a ribbon for each Floridian who had died in the pandemic.
At the time, the chain stretched about 2 1/2 football fields long, and had about 27,000 ribbons, including more than 500 for deaths in Manatee County.
“It’s been a really tough year, and we have added 10,000 more ribbons. It’s important to know that you’re not alone. The ceremony is a shared experience,” Tobias said.
This story was originally published June 16, 2021 at 3:30 PM.
