Receiving Solace

Honoring the memory of children whose lives have been cut short is the core mission of the annual Christmas Box Angel Memorial Service. 

As is tradition, residents here will join individuals and families across America, and in Canada and Japan too, in remembering their loved ones on December 6th, with a solemn ceremony held at the Marco Island Cemetery. 

Christmas Box Angel Memorial Services, and their accompanying statues, were created by Richard Paul Evans, author of “The Christmas Box,” a worldwide bestseller and also a television movie. An inspirational blend of fiction and fact, the book tells the story of a woman mourning the death of her little girl in 1994. December 6 is the date cited for both the child’s passing and for when her mother would place a white flower, annually, at the base of the angel monument marking her grave.

December 6 is also the traditional day of the Feast of St. Nicholas, an early Christian bishop during the time of the Roman Empire and the patron saint of children. It’s also celebrated as Children’s Day in many countries.

This year marks the 24th year that mourners have gathered off W. Elkcam Circle at the Marco Island Cemetery’s Christmas Box Angel monument at 6:00 PM on December 6. The evening ceremony includes an opening prayer by New Life Community Church Pastor Thomas McCulley, a reading of names of the deceased, a commemorative candle lighting by attendees as those names are read and several musical selections. 

The local ceremony is organized by a dedicated group of residents that still includes two of its long-time participants, Nanette Moll and Mary Ellen Evans. 

“It's just a little, kind of once-a-year family that we get together and do our thing and hopefully help some people because the holidays are a very, very difficult time for people going through grief and loss, especially the loss of a child,” observed Moll. 

She and her husband Roger lost their daughter, Kendall, in 1996, while Evans and her husband’s son Brian passed away in the mid-1990s.

Moll credited Evans, Les Bone, an elder from the Marco Island Church of God, former owner of the cemetery, now owned by New Life Community Church, and former Marco resident Beth Beck with establishing the Marco ceremony. Beck and her husband Ed have moved to the Carolinas, but return to Marco each year to participate in the Christmas Box Angel Memorial ceremony. 

Marco Island Cemetery is located at 489 W. Elkcam Circle. For more information about Marco Island’s Christmas Box Angel Memorial Service or to become an organizing committee volunteer, contact Nanette Moll at 394-7242, ext. 93. She can also be contacted regarding Marco’s Coffee and Comfort Group, which offers grief support for those who’ve lost a child. In addition, anyone on the Marco Christmas Box Angel mailing list who hasn’t received a notification post card for this year’s ceremony should contact Tika Barrett at 239-394-3469.