Matthew's Bench
Matthew is always with us...in our hearts, minds, memories. He was a special, delightful, loved child who is dearly missed. His family and friends have created a number of ways to remember him. One way is by adopting a park bench through the Minneapolis Park Foundation in Matthew's memory.
The Bench
A plaque is located at the left base of the bench:
The Dedication Party
On Friday June 5th, 2009 (which would have been our beloved boy's 10th birthday) we had a picnic near the park bench.
The menu included ribs, hot dogs, Cheetos and chips, watermelon and a keg of 1919 root beer (which are some of Matthew’s favorites) to snack on. We also had some of the library books that have been bought with Matthew’s book fund to look through and there was some whiffle ball action in the open space near the bench…the trees by it actually make a great 1st, 2nd, and 3rd base.
Balloon Release
Some of our dear friends thought to bring balloons and sharpies so that kids could write messages to Matthew on the balloons and then release the balloons. It was very moving and exciting at the same time:
Here are some more pictures from the balloon release:
Getting Ready:
Off They Go:
Floating Up to Heaven:
Bench Location
The bench is located across the street from 322 E. Minnehaha Parkway.
It is on East Minnehaha Parkway off of East 50th Street near 3rd Avenue S, east of 35W on the north side of the creek.
To get highly technical, I believe it is at:
Latitude: 44.910817 degrees North
Longitude: 93.271499 degrees West
