Trent’s Tree in Sanford Partners Bank Helps People Cope with Loss of Loved Ones to Suicide- Partners Bank (original) (raw)

A fact of life is we will all eventually experience the loss of a loved one. However, for Angela Whitten, she experienced a loss she wasn’t expecting when her 18-year-old son Trent took his own life in 2022. The first holiday without her son was tough. For anyone who’s ever experienced this type of loss, the holidays no longer feel like the most wonderful time of the year. It’s painful to look over at the dinner table and see that their seat, once occupied by a beautiful soul, now sits vacant.

To help process these feelings, Whitten, Co-Founder and President of Stay; For Life, created Trent’s Tree so her family could cope with the sadness of Trent’s absence. Trent’s Tree helped her family, and now, the idea is helping others in the community who are also grieving their own similar losses.

Fifteen organizations and businesses along the Maine and New Hampshire border have erected a Trent’s Tree at their location, which includes Partners Bank in Sanford, ME. Trent’s Tree locations are open to the public from December 1st through January 5th. Guests are welcome to hang an ornament in memory of Trent, in memory of a loved one lost to suicide, or to show support for and in honor of those who face mental health challenges. Anyone visiting a Trent’s Tree location can expect to have privacy during their visit.

The address of the participating Partners Bank location is 900 Main Street, Sanford, ME 04073. For more information about Trent’s Tree and to see other locations, visit their website at https://www.stayforlife.org/trent-s-tree.