Why not create a special memorial to a loved one that can be enjoyed by others? Memorial trees and memorial benches are great ways to remember loved ones for generations to come.
In our Canadian Ultimate Guide on Honouring a Legacy, we cover memorial benches, memorial trees, and more! (For example: picnic tables, fountains, and even sponsoring a zoo animal!)
No matter where in Canada your loved one lived or died, we’ve got you covered:
- Alberta
- British Columbia
- Manitoba
- New Brunswick
- Nova Scotia
- Ontario
- Prince Edward Island
- Quebec
- Saskatchewan
Memorial Benches and Remembrance Trees in Alberta
Calgary
- Commemorate your loved ones in one of Calgary’s many parks by planting memorial trees or dedicating memorial benches.
- Have your loved ones made significant contributions to the community in Calgary? If so, consider honouring them with a commemoration piece within a city park. Commemoration pieces can be in a variety of forms including: memorial benches, memorial trees, fountains, planting beds, memorial plaques, and other park amenities.
- Honour your loved ones by dedicating memorial benches in their names in Friends of Fish Creek Park.
- Create a cemetery memorial for your loved one. Options include memorial trees, memorial vases, memorial benches, memorial walls, and memorial plaques.
Edmonton
- Honour your loved ones with a commemoration piece in one of Edmonton’s many beautiful city parks. Commemoration pieces can be in a variety of forms including: memorial benches, memorial trees, fountains, planting beds, memorial plaques, and other park amenities.
- Commemorate your loved ones in one of Calgary’s many parks by planting memorial trees or dedicating memorial park benches in one of the city’s amazing parks.
- Pay tribute to loved ones by taking part in Edmonton’s Legacy Program. Options include: donating a memorial bench at one of Edmonton’s golf courses; planting a remembrance tree; adopting an animal at the Valley Zoo; and sponsoring a carousel horse at Fort Edmonton Park’s midway.
Grande Prairie
- Plant a tree in memory of a loved one in a city park.
- Dedicate or install a memorial bench with a commemorative plaque in honour of a loved one.
Strathcona County
- Commemorate your loved ones by installing new memorial benches in their honour.
- Dedicate an existing memorial bench with a commemorative plaque in honour of a loved one that has passed away.
- Plant memorial trees in honour of someone that has died in one of Strathcona County’s gorgeous parks.
- Dedicate a remembrance tree in memory of someone that was important to you.
Leduc
- Create a lasting tribute for your loved one with a memorial bench in one of Leduc’s unique natural spaces.
Red Deer
- Plant memorial trees to honour loved ones that have passed away in Red Deer’s beautiful parks.
Wainwright
- Plant a tree in memory of a loved one in a city park.
- Dedicate memorial benches to remember loved ones by.
Wood Buffalo
- Plant memorial trees or commission a bench to commemorate loved ones in Wood Buffalo’s parks.
Memorial Benches and Memorial Trees in British Columbia
Vancouver
- Dedicate a memorial bench or picnic table in honour of a loved one’s legacy through a program run by the City of Vancouver.
- Establish an endowment in your loved one’s name that creates an ongoing source of funding for your loved one’s favourite park or recreational activity in Vancouver. This endowment program is overseen by the City of Vancouver.
- Commemorate the life of a loved one through North Vancouver’s Parks Dedication Program by purchasing a memorial bench, picnic table, remembrance tree, fountain, playground equipment, bicycle rack, or sign.
- Honour loved ones who are no longer with us with memorial benches by taking part in West Vancouver’s Tribute Bench Program.
- Let people, now and in the future, enjoy memorial benches and picnic tables in Metro Vancouver regional parks with the help of Pacific Parklands Foundation.
- Contribute to the beautification of Richmond City parks in a loved one’s name and memory. Options include: donation of memorial benches, playground equipment, or remembrance trees; construction of boardwalks, trails, and trail signage.
- Donate a memorial bench or a picnic table as a lasting tribute to your loved one in one of Surrey’s gorgeous city parks.
Vancouver Island and Gulf Islands
- Commemorate your loved ones with a memorial plaque on a bench situated at a scenic viewpoint or resting place in southern Vancouver Island or the nearby Gulf Islands. The Commission will consider other forms of memorials on a case by case basis.
Prince George
- Plant a tree in memory of a loved one in Prince George’s cemetery. A grove of memorial trees becomes a beautiful sanctuary for those visiting the graves of their loved ones.
Okanagan Valley
- Donate memorial benches or picnic tables in Osoyoos, the southern-most town in Okanagan Valley. The memorial bench or picnic table will be place on municipal sidewalks, parks, or trails, and will feature a raised bronze memorial plaque with your loved one’s name and your message about him or her.
Whistler
- Make a donation for a commemorative plaque to be placed on a memorial bench or a bike rack in a park, on a trail or in the Village in Whistler in memory of a loved one.
British Columbia National Parks
- Commemorate a loved one by sponsoring a memorial bench, picnic table, or other facility in one of BC’s beautiful national parks.
Memorial Benches and Remembrance Trees in Manitoba
Winnipeg
- Commemorate your loved ones by donating memorial benches in their name in one of Winnipeg’s city parks.
- Plant a tree in memory of a loved one in one of Winnipeg’s city parks and greenspaces.
Brandon
- Plant a memorial tree or grouping of commemorative shrubs in the City of Brandon through Brandon Riverbank Inc.
Portage la Prairie
- Remember a loved one with a memorial bench in Evergreen Memorial Gardens that is cared for and maintained by McKenzies Portage Funeral Chapel year round.
Memorial Benches and Memorial Trees in New Brunswick
Fredericton
- Did your loved one have a green thumb? Dedicate a memorial bench or a large granite boulder with a memorial inscription in the Memorial Grove of Fredericton Botanic Gardens.
Saint John
- Plant a tree in memory of a loved one, or dedicate a memorial bench to his or her name, through Saint John’s Commemorative Programs.
Moncton
- Dedicate a memorial bench or plant a tree in memory of a loved one in the Memorial Garden that is cared for by Fair Haven Funeral Home and Cemetery.
Memorial Benches and Remembrance Trees in Nova Scotia
Halifax
- Plant memorial trees or dedicate memorial benches through Halifax’s Parks Civic Support Program.
- Remember your loved ones’ legacies with memorial benches and memorial trees in St. John’s Cemetery.
- Dartmouth Memorial Gardens by Arbor Memorial offers remembrance trees and memorial benches.
- If your loved one was an avid gardener, or a proud native of Halifax, support the preservation of the Halifax Public Gardens with a tribute gift to their Memorial Program.
Antigonish
- With prior approval, dedications can be placed in any park, playground or walkway in The Town of Antigonish through their Dedications Program. Options include: memorial benches, bike racks, and memorial trees.
Memorial Benches and Memorial Trees in Ontario
Toronto
- Celebrate the lives of loved ones with tribute gifts to Toronto Botanical Garden. Options include: memorial benches, engraved bricks in a pathway to a garden popular with children, books to a botanical library with an engraved plate inside the cover, memorial trees and commemorative plants.
- Was your loved one an environmentalist? Support the environment and plant a tree in memory of your loved one with Trees For Life, a nonprofit organization. You can also grow a memorial tree with your child’s classroom. They will love planting and caring for this special living tribute.
- The City of Toronto offers wonderful ways to pay lasting tribute to loved ones through its memorial bench, tree and bale programs in city parks.
- Was your loved one an animal lover? Why not support the Toronto Zoo through a commemorative plaque in your loved one’s name on a bench or tree on zoo grounds?
- If education was important to your loved one, consider donating a memorial tree or memorial bench to the University of Toronto.
Related Articles
Greater Toronto Area (GTA)
- Adopt a park bench in memory of a loved one to serve as a lasting tribute in one of Oakville’s beautiful parks and open spaces.
- Add to the beauty of nature in Oakville and purchase or adopt memorial trees in memory of your loved ones in locations of your choice.
- Plant memorial trees in in the Aurora Community Arboretum.
- Donate to Burlington’s Living Memorial Tree Park in your loved one’s memory. A plaque with his or her name will be published in the Living Memorial Tribute Book and erected on a plaque in front of the Tree Park. A smaller recognition plaque will be fastened to your memorial tree.
Windsor
- Honour loved ones who have passed on—as well as help the environment—by donating memorial trees in Windsor’s beautiful parks through the city’s Commemorative Tree Program. You can choose from a variety of trees that have been specially chosen for their growth potential in Windsor and as complements to the existing urban forest.
- Did your loved one serve in the military? Honour his or her service to our country by donating a tree to line the Veteran’s Memorial Parkway.
Grand River
- Plant a memorial tree to commemorate a loved one and help grow a forest of lasting legacies in Grand River.
Cambridge
- Plant a remembrance tree in your loved one’s memory to create a lasting tribute for your loved one while adding to the natural beauty of the city of Cambridge.
Niagara Falls
- Was he or she a lover of the great outdoors? If your loved one was a hiker, camper, or interested in preserving our natural environment, consider planting a memorial tree or contributing a memorial bench to Niagara Parks, which has over 10,000 trees and is an Ontario treasure.
Ottawa
- Take part in Ottawa’s Commemorative Tree Program where you can plant a memorial tree one of Ottawa’s beautiful parks in remembrance of a family member or friend who has passed away.
Rideau Valley
- Dedicate memorial benches as lasting tributes to family and friends who have enjoyed Rideau Valley’s beautiful nature trails through the Rideau Valley Conservation Foundation. You have the option to include a memorial plaque as well. The Foundation also runs a Memorial Tree Planting Program.
London
- Help reforest London while creating a lasting tribute to your loved one by planting a remembrance tree, giving the gift of a tree, or sponsoring a tree, through the city’s Reforest London program.
Kingston
- Plant a memorial tree in one of Kingston’s city parks to memorialize a loved one while helping build up Kingston’s urban forest.
Guelph
- Contribute to the University of Guelph’s Wall-Custance Memorial Forest Program and plant a memorial tree or shrub in their memorial forest. An annual service of dedication is held in September in the dedication grove located near the entrance to The Arboretum.
Cobourg
- Dedicate or plant a memorial tree in memory of someone you love in Coburg Union Cemetery.
Barrie
- Install memorial benches and plaques, and plant memorial trees through the City of Barrie’s Commemorative Program. The Program offers a large variety of tree species to choose from.
Sudbury
- Donate a memorial bench, bike rack, picnic table, sun shelter, sports equipment, or playground structure to Sudbury’s Parks Services Donation and Memorial Program in memory of someone who was important to you. This program also helps you plant a memorial tree, if you prefer a living memorial.
Ontario-Wide
- Make a donation to Forests Ontario in memory of a loved one. Forests Ontario is a not-for-profit organization that has re-greening programs across the Province. Your donation will mean a tree seedling is planted in a Memorial Forest.
Memorial Benches and Remembrance Trees in Prince Edward Island
Charlottetown
- Take part in Charlottetown’s Memorial Tree & Shrub Planting Program and celebrate a loved one’s life and legacy.
- Commemorates a loved one’s life by dedicating a memorial bench to him or her through the City’s Street Bench Dedication Program.
Summerside
- The International Children’s Memorial Place in Scales Pond near Freetown and Summerside, provides a 12-acre location where memorial trees can be planted as living tributes to children who have passed away. This not-for-profit organization is run on a volunteer basis.
Memorial Benches and Memorial Trees in Quebec
Montreal
- Celebrate a loved one’s life and legacy with a memorial bench in one of Montreal’s gorgeous parks through the city’s Memorial Park Benches Acquisition Program.
- Plant memorial trees to commemorate a legacy through a program run by the The Royal Montreal Regiment Foundation. The memorial tree is a cultivated six-foot high Canadian Sugar Maple tree with root ball. The memorial tree comes with a personalized plaque, which will be installed in a park—either in Montreal or in one of the RMR’s affiliated cities. For over 300 years, the maple leaf has served as Canada’s national symbol, and forms the central part of The Royal Montreal Regiment’s badge, symbolizing commitment and dedication to Country and community.
Quebec-Wide
- Plant a tree in memory of your loved one through the Heritage Project. The goal of this organization is to help reduce our carbon footprint by planting forests across Quebec and across Guatemala, a South America country that is a partner in this important mission.
‘Plant a Tree in Memory’ and Memorial Benches in Saskatchewan
Saskatoon
- Commemorate a loved one’s life by planting memorial trees along Saskatoon’s gorgeous riverbank.
- Create a lasting legacy for your loved one in Saskatoon with an engraved brick in one of Saskatoon’s popular areas.
- If your loved one is buried in Woodlawn Cemetery, that accommodate all religious traditions, you may purchase a memorial tree with an inscribed plaque.
- The City of Saskatoon has a Memorial Program that facilitates the installation of memorials around the city. Contributions may include, but are not limited to memorial trees, memorial benches, picnic tables, barbecues, garbage receptacles, play structures, works of art, equipment, funding for programming, or a combination of these items.
Regina
- The City of Regina asks you to “Consider a Lasting Gift” by donating a remembrance tree, memorial bench or memorial plaque in a cemetery of your choice. Your gift is a perfect way to provide a quiet place for reflection and beautify and enhance Regina’s cemeteries. Memorial benches and commemorative trees also provide a place for family and friends to commemorate a birthday, anniversary or special event involving your loved one.
Wascana
- Pay tribute to a loved one’s legacy in Wascana Centre with a memorial bench or remembrance tree. Memorial benches benefit all age groups in providing a resting place along a walking trail or allowing for a place to sit while enjoying Wascana Centre’s natural areas. If you prefer planting a memorial tree, you may be present when the tree is being planted. You will also receive a certificate, along with a map with the memorial tree’s location.
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