ROYAL PALM BEACH | Continuing its commitment to give a dignified burial to those who would otherwise be forgotten, the No One Buried Alone program honored the lives of 150 souls on Dec. 21 at Our Lady Queen of Peace Cemetery in Royal Palm Beach.
Father Gabriel Ghanoum, who heads the program, presided at the memorial service after which the cremated remains were interred in a special crypt, thanks to a partnership between the cemetery, the Diocese of Palm Beach and the Palm Beach County Division of Human Services.
“Today, friends and supporters attended to what I called my ‘Christmas party’ — a gathering of love, remembrance and dignity for those who have no one,” he said afterward on social media.
Since 2011 and regardless of religion or no particular faith at all, those who are served by No One Buried Alone were either abandoned at death or died with no family or friends to take care of funeral arrangements. Father Ghanoum accepts responsibility for the body when no one else comes forward. At that point, signing the papers and accepting the remains, he becomes their adopted family.
Besides directing No One Buried Alone, Father Ghanoum is director of palliative and spiritual care at HCA Florida JFK Hospital in Atlantis, an affiliated associate professor for the University of Miami Miller School of Medicine and pastor of St. Nicholas Melkite Greek Catholic Parish in Delray Beach.
For the first time, multicolored roses donated by Bernie and Eric Schultz decorated the boxes containing the cremains. They were “a poignant symbol of hope and beauty amidst loss, offered in tribute to the departed,” he said.
“I humbly reminded all in attendance of our enduring mission to honor every life, and that trauma blocks love and only love can heal trauma,” Father Ghanoum said. “To each as their names were mentioned, I kissed the urn, saying, ‘I love you!’”
For more information about supporting the cemetery and the No One Buried Alone ministry, visit https://ourqueen.org/no-one-buried-alone/.
