Texas Health Denton Completes Refresh of the Healing Garden
Texas Health Presbyterian Hospital Denton has completed a refurbishment project. The renovations are to its healing garden, a space which allows staff and guests to step away for a moment from the stress a hospital can include.
The garden, which anyone can visit, was officially dedicated on March 8, 2012. Reverend Dr. Trish Matthews, Texas Health Denton’s first chaplain known as Chaplain Trish, was hired in 2010 when Stan Morton was President.
“He told me one of my ‘duties as assigned’ was to develop a garden on our campus because all Texas Health hospitals have one.
“I was to utilize only Denton vendors, and the result was many people catching our vision and coming together to make the dream a reality. Our special thanks to Gayle Strange and her family and Meador Nursery for their donations of time and materials.
“The goal really was quite simple – to create a space that touches most of our senses. Studies have shown that ‘having a place to relax and breathe fresh air might be just what is needed to carry on.’ Some are better able to think and make difficult decisions when connected to nature. We therefore wanted the garden to have pockets of space for conversation and privacy.”
The healing garden is centrally located where visitors can grab their lunch or favorite cup of coffee and then weave their way through the garden to find a place to sit. The bridge and fountain are two meaningful features in the garden. An individual can listen and watch as the waters cascade from a fountain into a rock river underneath the bridge.
Chaplain Trish said, “The garden is a place to connect with God, self, and one another.”
The healing garden at Texas Health Denton also houses a memorial arbor that is dedicated to those who have had a pregnancy loss. In the center of this area is a large stone that says, “I carry you in my heart now instead of in my arms.” Services are held in the garden regularly to remember these little ones and their families.
Chaplain Trish gave the lead donation for the current refresh and spoke at the refurbishment ceremony on September 16. “This project is important to me. I feel in so many ways that the healing garden is my legacy of love to Texas Health Denton,” she said with a smile. The renovations made to the garden include a variety of colorful and life-affirming things such as adding new shade of tolerant grass, colorful pots with plants, wind art, a few statues and pavers, and regrouting the flagstone to make it safer.
“We didn’t just stop there with these refurbishments. We trimmed up the trees to let the light in so that what we planted would have a greater chance to grow and thrive. We cleaned out dying trees and shrubs, added in mulch, rock and new plants to fill in blank spaces.
“The hospital will also continue to provide seasonal color twice a year. The wood and stone benches were also replaced with ones that will handle the weather better over time. Finally, the plexiglass covering our stained-glass pieces were replaced so they can be clearly seen once again.”
One of the garden’s new statues is a set of stones that are stacked together. These stacked stones, eloquently known as a “cairn,” represent a spiritual practice to mark the importance of a space, a way to memorialize someone or something, or a step in a journey.
These refurbishments would not have been possible without the help of The Hoe and Hope Garden Club’s commitment to the community of Denton, The Rich Barker Foundation, and President Virginia Williams. These organizations all provided significant donations under the leadership of our Texas Health Resources Foundation Annual Giving Specialist for the North Region, Alicia Barker. Alicia’s vision and tenacity saw this project through.
Chris Merrill from Bare Roots also deserves many thanks for meeting countless times with organizers to make the dreams come to life.
Thank you one and all!
A garden is a living space and will therefore require constant care and upkeep. If you would like to donate towards this ongoing project or check out the recent renovations at the garden, visit
TexasHealth.org/Foundation
