Anam Cara Fasgadh Butterfly Releases
Anam Cara Fasgadh cofounder Susan Simpson first hosted a butterfly release in Inverness in 2013 when she was Highland Ambassador for baby loss charity SiMBA.
Since then she and the Trustees have hosted releases throughout Scotland, until the pandemic brought a halt to these poignant remembrance events. In 2023 the Trustees of Anam Cara Fasgadh agreed that it was time to bring these beautiful memorial events back to the families who so love them.
Inverness Memorial Event 2026
Whatever it is, the way you tell your story online can make all the difference.
Our 3rd Inverness Memorial Event welcomed over 150 bereaved family members, friends and supporters who came together at Lochardil House Hotel in Inverness to remember precious babies, children and young people who are loved beyond measure and missed every day.
Despite the weather, the wonderful team at Lochardil House ensured the day could go ahead, opening the MacDonald Room for our service before the rain eased and families made their way outside to release 95 beautiful Painted Lady butterflies in memory of their children.
We are so grateful to everyone who helped make the day possible ~ from our volunteers, supporters and performers, to Lorna and Fiona from D. Gunn Funeral Directors, our Millburn Academy YPI team, Jayne, Katie, Ann, Andrew, Susan, Aileen, Saffron, Sara, Catriona and Angeline from Butterflies for Occasions.
Most of all, thank you to every family who joined us, shared their child’s name, displayed their photograph, and allowed us the privilege of remembering alongside them.
Together we remembered. Together we honoured. Together we carried their love into the Highland sky.
Oban Memorial Event 2026
Our 2026 event, hosted on 30 May, was made possible by so many wonderful people, each playing their part in helping bereaved families honour the lives and memories of their babies, children and young people. From Angeline at Butterflies for Occasions, who lovingly provided our beautiful Painted Lady butterflies, to Siubhan, Beckie, Evie and Clan Chief Robin at Dunollie Museum, Castle & Grounds. From the incredible Lucy and team at Oban Royal Mail, to our dedicated volunteers Mairianne, Robert, Noah and Daniel, and our trustees Andrew, Susan and Sara.
We are grateful to our guest speaker MSP Jenni Minto, to Carolyn, Dunollie’s Heritage Gardener, and Janice, whose floral touches brought such beauty to the day. Thank you also to Laura from our charity partner MISS, the Oban Midwives for their continued support, and our fabulous singer Elissa Conway.
Most importantly, thank you to every bereaved family member who joined us ~ 51 souls joined our volunteers. Together, we celebrated lives that will always matter. Whether their time here was measured in moments or decades, each child is loved, remembered and missed beyond words. It was a reminder that none of us walks this path alone. When a community comes together, memories are honoured, hearts are held, and love continues to shine. In the calm, balmy afternoon sunshine, 50 Painted Lady butterflies took flight, carrying with them our love, our memories and our hopes.
“Grief is the price we pay for love, but love is also the gift that remains.”
Oban Memorial Event 2025
On Sat 2 Aug 2025, it was a privilege to again gather with families at Dunollie Museum Castle & Grounds, to honour and remember the children we love and miss so deeply. Being in the presence of others who truly understand this path brought quiet strength and comfort to all of us at Anam Cara Fasgadh.
Watching the butterflies take flight ~ each one unique ~ reminded us so powerfully of our children’s individuality and the love that endures beyond their physical presence. One particularly touching moment was Elissa Conway’s butterfly, which stayed with her until the final note of her song. It felt like a gentle reminder: our children stayed as long as they could… and their love never leaves us. We are deeply grateful to MSP Jenni Minto for standing alongside our families, listening with compassion and grace. Our thanks also to Siubhan and the team at Dunollie, whose kindness helped shape such a comforting day. And to The Kettle for the warm refreshments and care that followed.
Inverness Memorial Event 2025
We were honoured to welcome over 100 guests at Lochardil House Hotel, Stratherrick Road, Inverness on 28 June 2025, for a poignant service of remembrance. Stories were shared at our Memorial Tent and families felt connection, reflection, and mutual support throughout the day as each of us honoured the memory of our precious children in a meaningful way.
Our butterflies are lovingly bred in sterile conditions by an award-winning entomologist who is a member of the International Butterfly Breeders Association. Cared for by the expert team at Butterflies for Occasions, in the heart of the New Forest, from the moment they were eggs, these butterflies symbolize hope and love. In the afternoon sun 90 of them were gently woken from hibernation by the warmth of guest’s hands, and took to the skies, carrying with the the love and memories of each family.
Inverness 2024
with Highland Voices Choir
On Sat 17th Aug 2024, bereaved families gathered together at Lochardil House, Stratherrick Road, Inverness, IV2 4LF, for a short service of remembrance, during which we each released a live butterfly (or butterflies) in memory of our children.
The day was hosted by cofounder Susan Simpson, trustee Tracey France, and our Highland ambassadors Catriona Gray and Sara Hearmon. We are so grateful to our amazing volunteers Jane & Aila Hepburn, Lisa Davies, Lorna Murdoch, Jayne Jeffery, Norma Murray, and Megan Urquhart. Anam Cara Fasgadh Patron Mairi Rodgers read a poem, as did Deputy Provost of Inverness Morven Reid.
We were joined by the world famous Highland Voices choir, who chose a beautiful play list for the day.
Oban 2024
Louise watches Elsie’s butterfly take flight
On Sat 18th May 2024, the Trustees were delighted to return to Dunollie Museum, Castle & Grounds to release butterflies in memory of their children gone too soon.
Trustees Andrew, Irene, Tracey and Susan were assisted by volunteers Yvonne & Tayler Robinson, May & Eachann McKenzie, Youth Champions Scott France, Charis & Noah Simpson. Kevin McGlynn captured beautiful images of the event.
Singer Suzie Guthrie travelled all the way from Glasgow to sing for us, and composed a song especially for the day called Bluebells.
We were also joined by Sophie from Play Prodigy and Lisa from ReLisa Scent.
Jim Lynch, leader of Argyll & Bute council, shared how important events like this are to help families see that they are not alone. Jim released a butterfly as a mark of respect for the countless families in Argyll who live with the pain of losing their beloved child, especially those who have been bereaved this past week through the loss of a baby and young person.
Oban 2023
Lana-Jae releasing butterflies for her brothers.
In 2023 Susan and the Trustees were privileged to host an Anam Cara Fasagadh Butterfly Release in Oban. It was a truly poignant event, bringing over 50 of us together to remember the baby, child or young person whom we could not watch grow up.
Though these butterflies look fragile, they are incredibly strong and resilient because they migrate to North Africa each Autumn. That reminds us of what each bereaved family goes through - the fragility of a broken heart but the strength that bereaved families find to keep living without their child.
Pop over to our Instagram page to see photos from the day.
ABOUT OUR BUTTERFLIES
Our butterflies are lovingly bred in sterile conditions by an award-winning entomologist who is a member of the International Butterfly Breeders Association. Cared for by the expert team at Butterflies for Occasions, in the heart of the New Forest, from the moment they were eggs, these butterflies symbolize hope and love.
The butterflies that are bred for the releases are Painted Ladies (Vanessa cardui) and Red Admiral, which are migratory species of butterfly, and Peacock, which hibernates over winter. Angeline breeds these species is that they are one of the most widespread species of butterfly, found right across the world, and they do not impact the native butterflies when they are released.
The butterflies are sent to us in a state of hibernation in their own sleep-box. They are gently woken during our service by the warmth of the loving hands of our families holding their individual boxes.
The butterflies feed on a wide variety of flowers, over 300 recorded host plants, and the caterpillars feed on thistles, mallows and Viper's-bugloss, as well as a wide variety of cultivated plants. An adults life span has been observed to last from 14 to 28 days. After release, the female butterflies can lay anywhere from 200 to 500 eggs throughout her lifespan. It takes up to a week for the eggs to hatch, and the caterpillar stage lasts for around 10 to 14 days, then will then spin a silk chrysalis for themselves in a quiet, sheltered spot & after 7 to 10 days the adult butterfly emerges. And so they will continue until the generation that is ready to migrate in the Autumn takes to the wing to start the journey of up to 9,000 miles to their winter grounds ~ these incredible creatures can fly for up to 12 hours a day using the sun to navigate back to Africa.
Richard Fox, Surveys Manager at Butterfly Conservation, reports, “This tiny creature weighing less than a gram with a brain the size of a pinhead and no opportunity to learn from older, experienced individuals, undertakes an epic intercontinental migration in order to find plants for its caterpillars to eat. Once thought to be blindly led, at the mercy of the wind, into an evolutionary dead-end in the lethal British winter, this amazing combination of mass-participation citizen science and cutting edge technology has shown Painted Ladies to be sophisticated travellers."
If you would like to be kept informed about future Butterfly Release events, or you would like our support to host one in your area, email Irene on info@anamcarafasgadh.org.