Butterfly Release brings solace after loss

Butterflies carry many meanings and their symbolism of both transformation and hope is something that Nathan Adelson Hospice draws inspiration from each year as it hosts its annual Celebration of Life – Live Butterfly Release.

A chance for community members to come together in honor of the husbands, wives, mothers, fathers, siblings and friends who are no longer in this world, the 2026 Pahrump Live Butterfly Release took place on Sunday, April 19 at the Calvada Eye. With breezes blowing through the trees and a backdrop of blue sky puffed with clouds, Nathan Adelson Hospice executives, staff and volunteers welcomed a small crowd of individuals and families for the 2 p.m. ceremony, with hospice vice president of quality and compliance Anne Patriche providing the opening remarks.

“Today, we’re gathering to honor, remember and celebrate the lives of people we’ve loved and lost. We might have lost them but we still love them and this event is one of the most heartfelt events and tributes to their memory that we can do,” Patriche told the audience. “It honors the lasting impact that people have had on our lives. Your being here is a testament to the love and connection that continues beyond that loss that we’ve all felt at some point.”

In addition to their patients who have passed, Nathan Adelson officials were also honoring three of their own, Dr. William Craig, Stan Cuaresma and Vivian McCuneo.

“Dr. William Craig was a very beloved physician here in town. He served many, many people, not only as a private physician with his own practice but he also worked with us at NAH and he was working with us as our hospice physician at the time of his death,” Patriche said. “We remember his absolute love and compassion. Bedside manner is not enough to encompass what Dr. Craig brought to his practice and the way that he showed love in the art and practice of medicine… His dedication and love left a very lasting impression on all of us who knew him.”

As to Cuaresma, Patriche touched on his Hawaiian heritage and his deep devotion to the concept of “Aloha”.

“Aloha, we learned from Stan, is more than just a word – it’s a way of life. ‘A’ stands for kindness expressed with tenderness. ‘L’ is for unity expressed with harmony. ‘O’ is agreeability expressed with pleasantness. ‘H’ is humility expressed with modesty. And the last ‘A’ is for patience, expressed with perseverance… When we all think of Stan, we know that it was more than a greeting to him. It was how he lived,” Patriche detailed.

McCuneo is Nathan Adelson’s most recent staff loss, with Patriche explaining that she had often been at the helm of events such as the Live Butterfly Release.

“Vivian died last fall and we were so incredibly honored and fortunate to have Vivian be a part of our Nathan Adelson team… She was so dedicated to making sure that people who needed hospice, got hospice… She was a part of everything in the community, she knew everybody,” Patriche said. “And her commitment extended far beyond her role… Her generosity, heart and dedication has left a huge, lasting impact on our community and all of us who had the privilege of knowing her.”

Nathan Adelson Chaplain Richard Martin, who worked closely with McCuneo for six years, offered his own remarks on her passing as well.

“Her desk was still there. Nothing had changed. And yet everything had changed,” Martin stated. “It’s a strange thing when your entire world has stopped and yet, your entire world is the same. The mailman keeps coming, the traffic keeps moving and yet the entire world has come to a screeching halt.”

As people who have experienced loss themselves, Martin said he knew every person there understood what that feels like – the surreal sense of life having changed irrevocably and yet remaining the same.

“When we host our bereavement groups at the office, so often what people share is, when the day is busy and there is something to do, you can put your mind on something else. But when the house is quiet and the absence of their presence is felt, that’s when it really comes home to roost,” Martin remarked.

“And that’s one of the reasons that events like this are so important. They are opportunities to share. I think more than anything, I think that’s what a public event like this can provide for us. To meet a stranger at the park and to share a story about their loved one, to stand up, to release these beautiful butterflies together and to make sure the community knows that none of these people who have impacted our lives have been forgotten.”

Martin then read the Butterfly Story, which tells about the transformation between caterpillar and butterfly, echoing the transformation from this life to the next as well as the changes that happen in the lives of those left behind. He followed with a poem from Christy Ann Martine, titled “She’s in the Sun, the Wind, the Rain”, before everyone readied their butterfly boxes for the release.

As the boxes were carefully opened, two butterflies were revealed in each, still somewhat sleepy from the dormant state in which they were transported. But as the warmth of the day reached their bodies, they were able to launch into the air in a flutter of colorful wings.

Contact reporter Robin Hebrock at rhebrock@pvtimes.com