Nevada County, CA | Driving along the freeway between Grass Valley and Nevada City, passengers might notice three large butterfly statues in the nearby distance. The statues mark the annual Butterfly Garden of Remembrance, hosted by Foothills Compassionate Care. This cherished Memorial Day weekend gathering invites residents to pause, reflect, and celebrate the lives of those they have loved and lost.
In a community where neighbors care deeply for one another, few traditions capture that spirit more beautifully. For more than 25 years, the Butterfly Garden has offered a sacred space for grief, healing and remembrance.
Families, friends, colleagues, and neighbors are invited to write messages of love, gratitude, and memories on handcrafted butterflies honoring someone who touched their life. These butterflies are placed throughout the garden, creating a breathtaking display with hundreds of colorful wings gently moving in the breeze, each one carrying a story, a memory, and a life remembered.
The result is both simple and powerful: a living tribute that reminds us that every life leaves a lasting imprint on our community.
“Hospice of the Foothills was there for our family when Verne passed and this event reflects the very best of Nevada County,” notes Kathe Freer of Penn Valley. “In times of loss, our community shows up for one another. The Butterfly Garden is a place where grief, love, gratitude, and memory can all exist together.”
The Butterfly Garden of Remembrance will take place on the lawn at Hooper & Weaver, where hundreds of butterflies will “take flight” across the grass during Memorial Day weekend. Community members are warmly invited to walk through the garden, reflect, and share in this collective tribute.
Visitors are welcome to create a personalized Remembrance Card, a message that can be attached to a decorative butterfly stake. Each card becomes part of the garden display. A suggested donation of $25 per Remembrance Card helps sustain the work of Foothills Compassionate Care.
Funds raised through the Butterfly Garden directly support hospice care, bereavement counseling, and enhanced programs for more than 500 patients and families across Nevada County each year. These services ensure that individuals facing serious illness receive comfort, dignity, and human connection during life’s most vulnerable moments and that no one faces the end of life alone.
There is no cost to visit the garden, and all members of the community are encouraged to attend.
In a county known for its strong sense of community, the Butterfly Garden serves as a quiet but powerful reminder: every life matters, every memory has a place, and together we can carry one another through both joy and loss.
To request a remembrance card or learn more, email butterfly@foothills-cares.org.
For more information about the hospice, grief support, and community programs offered by Foothills Compassionate Care, visit their website or call 530-272-5739.