Memorial Bench for Owen Joyner

Hi, my name is Helen LaRochelle. As many of you know I lost my longtime partner and best friend, Owen Joyner, last August. Owen was an exceptional human being who was good at pretty much everything, but his greatest superpower was his ability to make anyone in his orbit feel special and loved.

I have been yearning for a place where I feel I can go sit with him, and I’ve had a handful of people reach out asking how they could do the same. Owen’s remains were cremated, and while his family and I have plans for scattering them, they won’t be nearby.

That said, I recently came up with the idea to purchase a park bench for Owen in Memorial Park, where we spent a ton of time together over the years with Thomas, our beloved French Bulldog. I have so many fond memories of the time we shared there, and Thomas and I still walk to the park several times a week. The bench will be purchased through the Omaha Parks Foundation, and it will include a name plaque memorializing Owen. The total cost is $2,500, so I thought I’d use Owen’s vast popularity to my advantage in raising funds so that all who loved him can visit and have a chat with him anytime they please.

Please do not feel pressured to donate. I know many of you made very generous donations to the Arch Alumni Association after his passing, which is beyond amazing and so valuable (I’m a big fan of the Arch). However, if you have some extra cash lying around and the cause excites you, this would be a dream come true for me and many of his loved ones.

Thank you so much,

Helen