The wind phone is a concept originating from Japan, and it has been installed at five locations in York Region. Late last month, one was placed in a serene area at Scanlon Creek Conservation Area in Bradford West Gwillimbury.
The Lake Simcoe Region Conservation Authority hosted the unveiling in partnership with Oasis - a Centre for Bereavement and Healing.
The starting point in Japan for the wind phone came about when a man struggling with grief after losing his cousin installed an old phone booth with a rotary phone inside it in his garden.
"He could then walk out there and, though the phone is not connected to anything, just by sitting there, he was able to connect with his cousin over the wind and have that conversation he hadn't been able to have," explains Nicole Hamley, Manager of Education at the Lake Simcoe Region Conservation Authority.
At Scanlon Creek, the rotary dial wind phone has been placed in a wooden box with a glass cover, similar to what you might see at a local park, which has been filled with books for the public to access.
"We install them in areas of the community that are peaceful and serene, and somewhat private for people to go and have those moments and conversations that they haven't had the ability to have, according to Lisa Snow, director of Oasis.
Where to put the wind phone in Scanlon Creek was a thoughtful process, as a location was needed that was visible but not out of the way, though it offered some privacy so people would feel comfortable using it.
Hamley and a colleague scoured the conservation area and decided to put the wind phone near the Discovery Play Garden. It's about a kilometre drive deep into the property with washrooms and a picnic pavilion nearby.
The wind phone is a therapeutic tool, says Snow. She even found the rotary dial phone comforting.
"The fact that you have to spin the wheel, spin the dial has a therapeutic aspect to it."
When Snow walked up to the wind phone, she didn't know what to do, so she dialed her childhood phone number so she could have a conversation with her father.
There is a plaque inside the wind phone box that explains to people that the unconnected phone carries their messages on the wind to those they have loved and lost.
Reading from the inscription on the plaque, Snow says, "it is a phone for sharing memories and saying the goodbyes you never got to say. We hope you find peace and solace here."
