County residents can now send ‘letters to Heaven’

[Hereford Voice]

Herefordshire Crematorium has joined the growing list of crematorium and cemeteries nationwide to join the ‘Letters to Heaven’ initiative, which gives grieving people a chance to send messages to their departed loved ones.

The idea first came about when a young girl in Nottinghamshire expressed a wish to send letters to her grandparents, and the concept has been adopted in Local Authority areas across the country.

In 2023, Hereford Crematorium was contacted by two local ladies who had been impressed by the story and wanted to see if something similar could be done in Hereford. The Crematorium then purchased a white post box and Ursells of Ross, local memorial masons, kindly donated the memorial book which explains the purpose of the post box.

The boxes are free for anyone to post a letter to their loved ones, or, if it is a special occasion, they can post birthday cards, anniversary cards, Mother's Day and Father's Day cards, Christmas cards and holiday postcards.

Letters, messages, or cards posted in the boxes will be treated respectfully, and will never be opened or read.

John Gibbon, Direct Services Manager at Hereford Crematorium said: “We are pleased to be a part of the ‘Letters to Heaven’ initiative. Losing a loved one is the most difficult experience any of us will go through in life, and writing these letters, which are treated sensitively and confidentially, will hopefully be a help to people working through the grieving process.”