In downtown Williams Lake, a memorial bench honours lives lost to addiction — and calls for compassion

In a small park just outside city hall in Williams Lake, British Columbia, a public bench carries an unusually direct message.

Printed across its surface are the photograph, biography, and obituary of Cheryl Folden — a woman who spent much of her life navigating addiction, abuse, and homelessness in the Cariboo region. Alongside her story are QR codes linking to organizations that support people facing similar struggles.

The memorial, officially titled “Cheryl’s Bench: Empathy in Action,” was created to honour Folden’s life and to challenge how communities view people living on the margins.

The project was led by Stuart Westie, a retired teacher who met Folden while biking through town and speaking with her as she lived unhoused. Over time, Westie offered her a room in his home, where she stayed for about eight months before her death on Jan. 8, 2024, at the age of 57, after suffering severe abdominal pain.

“So many people living on the street are actually really good people,” Westie said. “They’ve just had a horrible life.”

As Folden shared her story with him, Westie learned she had endured sexual abuse, mental health struggles, and homelessness from her teenage years onward. By 17, she was already living without stable shelter. Drugs — and later drug dealing — became a means of survival, not choice, he said.

Westie grew increasingly frustrated with how people experiencing homelessness and addiction are treated.

“There’s this idea that they chose this,” he said. “They didn’t. People don’t understand what was done to them — or what we failed to do to protect them.”

After Folden’s death, Westie wrote an obituary that was later published locally. Its blunt honesty resonated widely.

“People like Cheryl never had a chance,” the obituary reads. “We should never look at people for what they appear to be, but ask why they are like that. What was done to them, and what did we not do?”

The piece sparked conversations throughout Williams Lake and beyond. It was shared on social media, discussed at city council, and circulated by local leaders. Encouraged by the response, Westie began working on a permanent public memorial.

The result now sits in Herb Gardner Park, along a well-travelled route between city hall and downtown — a deliberate location meant to ensure the message isn’t hidden or ignored.

“I’m still kind of amazed it exists,” Westie said. “It’s right in the middle of town saying, ‘This is who we are — or who we should be.’”

Since its installation, Westie says he’s heard from parents who bring their children to read the bench, from passersby who stop and reflect, and from people currently experiencing homelessness or addiction who say they feel seen by it.

For him, the bench is not just about remembering Folden, but about shifting attitudes — away from judgment and toward understanding.

Still, the memorial carries personal weight.

“I wish I’d done more,” Westie said quietly. “I should have loved her more.”

He hopes Cheryl’s Bench ensures her life — and the lives of others like her — are no longer invisible.