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Friends-the sudden loss of our friend Barry Connolly has been a shock and filled so many of us with such sadness. With so many of us scattered around the world, it can be difficult to feel connected. When reflecting on my own friendship with Barry, and discussing “Uncle Baza” with my children Charlotte, Jamie, and Ryan, I find that we come back again and again to sharing stories of Barry doing the things he loved most: spending time in nature, expressing strongly worded opinions about most things, and demonstrating his fierce loyalty and love for the people around him.
He had a big grumpy heart and was always looking to protect the people and places he loved most.
And so when I asked my kids what they felt the best way was to remember Uncle Baza, Charlotte immediately had the idea to, “buy a bench at the Botanical Gardens, maybe near the bamboo, so people can sit and watch the plants and read Uncle Baza's name.”
It was the perfect idea and one I felt certain Barry would approve of-a place to sit and enjoy the Gardens with the funds raised used by the Gardens to maintain the space and support education for future gardens lovers and the children of San Francisco, as well as a way to honor and remember our friend each time we visit.
So I looked into it, and created this campaign to collect funds to sponsor a bench in Barry’s honor at the SF Botanical Gardens, to remember our friend and support something he loved. https://www.sfbg.org/
Sponsorship of a bench starts at $15,000 (which was more than I anticipated but then-it all goes back to the Gardens…)
Once we reach our goal to sponsor the bench, any remaining funds will be donated to the SF Park Alliance https://sanfranciscoparksalliance.org/.
If we don’t reach our goal, then paving stones at the Botanical Gardens are also a less expensive sponsorship option, with Barry’s name engraved and placed near the fountain, again with any remaining funds donated to the SF Park Alliance.
Since so many of us are located outside of the US, I have set up this page to help collect donations, as it is best suited to accept donations from multiple countries. Benches can be sponsored at any time, so there's really no time limit to this, and my hope is that we can reach as many people as possible who may like to take part in this tribute for Barry, so please send along the link to those who you feel would like to take part.
Should you have any questions or concerns please of course reach out.
We love Barry, and we miss him so much, and would like a way to honor him. If this seems like a worthwhile way to remember our friend, I hope you will take part.
-And of course, once the bench is in place I’ll be sure to send out pictures and specific location info.
San Francisco Botanical Gardens
San Francisco Parks Alliance
He had a big grumpy heart and was always looking to protect the people and places he loved most.
And so when I asked my kids what they felt the best way was to remember Uncle Baza, Charlotte immediately had the idea to, “buy a bench at the Botanical Gardens, maybe near the bamboo, so people can sit and watch the plants and read Uncle Baza's name.”
It was the perfect idea and one I felt certain Barry would approve of-a place to sit and enjoy the Gardens with the funds raised used by the Gardens to maintain the space and support education for future gardens lovers and the children of San Francisco, as well as a way to honor and remember our friend each time we visit.
So I looked into it, and created this campaign to collect funds to sponsor a bench in Barry’s honor at the SF Botanical Gardens, to remember our friend and support something he loved. https://www.sfbg.org/
Sponsorship of a bench starts at $15,000 (which was more than I anticipated but then-it all goes back to the Gardens…)
Once we reach our goal to sponsor the bench, any remaining funds will be donated to the SF Park Alliance https://sanfranciscoparksalliance.org/.
If we don’t reach our goal, then paving stones at the Botanical Gardens are also a less expensive sponsorship option, with Barry’s name engraved and placed near the fountain, again with any remaining funds donated to the SF Park Alliance.
Since so many of us are located outside of the US, I have set up this page to help collect donations, as it is best suited to accept donations from multiple countries. Benches can be sponsored at any time, so there's really no time limit to this, and my hope is that we can reach as many people as possible who may like to take part in this tribute for Barry, so please send along the link to those who you feel would like to take part.
Should you have any questions or concerns please of course reach out.
We love Barry, and we miss him so much, and would like a way to honor him. If this seems like a worthwhile way to remember our friend, I hope you will take part.
-And of course, once the bench is in place I’ll be sure to send out pictures and specific location info.
San Francisco Botanical Gardens
San Francisco Parks Alliance