Britons who have lost loved ones are invited to give them a “living legacy” by planting trees in a dedicated woodland to mark Celebration Day.
The National Trust has partnered with The Times to promote the new day of remembrance on May 28, backed by celebrities including Dame Judi Dench, Stephen Fry and Arlene Phillips.
Five-thousand trees are available exclusively to Times readers, who can sign up from today to grow a tree in memory of a friend or family member at a site near Dunham Massey in Greater Manchester. The campaign closes at midnight on Sunday.
Native broadleaves such as oak, beech, hornbeam and lime, as well as wildlife-rich shrub species such as hawthorn, blackthorn and hazel, will be planted by the trust’s rangers and experts. In some places, ornamental varieties will be introduced to “reflect the history” of the area.
Dench said: “It’s no secret that I adore trees and I personally plant a tree every time a close friend or relative dies.
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“I have a whole wood of friends and family. I love to see the tree grow in celebration of their lives and it provides a living legacy that brings back fond memories, as well as helping the environment.” She added: “Trees are part of my extended family and I implore people to get involved on the May 28.”
A survey for Celebration Day found that 72 per cent of the nation would want to plant a tree to remember a loved one. Each tree, to be planted from the autumn, has the potential to remove a tonne of carbon dioxide from the air over its lifetime. The habitat created will be a haven for wildlife including barn owls hunting voles and mice. Blackcaps and willow warblers may use the thickets, and countless invertebrates will move into the canopy and soil.
Alex Locker, 33, from Hackney Wick in east London, is among the thousands involved. She will plant a tree in memory of her parents, Pauline and Jeremy. “My father passed away in an accident in 2008 and my mother from cancer in 2015,” she said. “They were simply magical people. Planting a tree in tribute to their memory as kind, funny, loving and generous people gives comfort to my siblings and me.”
Joanna Sedley-Burke, 55, is dedicating a tree to her wife Paula, who died aged 45 of pneumonia. “At Paula’s funeral I gifted everyone a little pouch of forget-me-nots,” she said. “Since then I have planted roses every year. The progression to planting a tree reflects my life and the roots in this new chapter.”
Fry told The Times that Celebration Day was an “inspired movement that encourages people to take a moment to renew connections to the wonderful people who may have left our lives but can still live in our memories”.
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Phillips will dedicate a tree to her friend Len Goodman, the ballroom dancer and judge, who died in April.
Hilary McGrady, director-general of the National Trust, said: “I think the fact that in planting a tree we are creating a better world for future generations, as well as marking a special life, is very powerful for people.”
Behind the story
Celebration Day is a new national day that encourages the British public to remember the people who are no longer with us.
Whether they are loved ones, friends, heroes, or those whose lives have helped to shape ours, it marks a moment to pause and cherish fond memories.
Annual acts of remembrance can be as simple as taking five minutes out of our hectic schedules to think about a person who has died. Others may plan family trips to meaningful locations or dig out an old family recipe that was passed down through the years.
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The idea for the day was developed by an eclectic group of friends who were united in grief and did not want to “lose connections to our pasts”. The first Celebration Day in 2022 enjoyed endorsements from famous faces across the country. This year, as well as tree planting, memorial benches are being built for “all corners of the UK”. The Celebration Day website says the day helps to preserve “the stories of people who have come before us, by passing them from generation to generation”.
