In recent weeks the Creston Valley has suffered multiple losses in the community.
Most recently, a young man who died at a forestry worksite on Nov. 14 in an area between Salmo and Creston.
“We have experienced several losses in our tight-knit community that seems to be hitting us really, really hard,” said Trish Drinkle, Creston resident.
Beth Swalwell, along with a group of women, has started an art project to aid with the community grieving process.
“When we were talking about doing an art project, I thought of prayer flags,” said Beth Swalwell, owner of The Art Barn. “The flag itself represents the person that we have loved and lost; the string that will hang these flags is representative of our community. The thread used to stitch the flags onto the string represents the threads of our community. Each prayer flag will have a button sewn on symbolizing community unity.”
The group is currently looking for a location to hang the prayer flags in the community.
“We have little pockets of people in the community grieving,” said Drinkle. “A lot of people will suffer in silence and bottle everything in. We want people to see the prayer flags and remind them we all belong in this community and can heal together.”
The Art Barn is sponsoring the community grieving art project.
“Everyone is invited to come out and create a flag over the weekend and after 3 p.m. next week,” said Swalwell.
For more information contact the Art Barn on Facebook or call 250-428-1814