Upper Makefield Township flash flood victims honored with new memorial garden 2 years after devastation
Friends and family members of the seven people who died during the flash floods that devastated the Upper Makefield Township community in July 2023 came together on Sunday for the official dedication ceremony of a brand new memorial garden.
First responders, Upper Makefield Township employees and flash flood survivors joined the victims' loved ones for the ceremony at the Brownsburg Park Memorial Butterfly Garden.
The sudden flash flooding on the evening of July 15, 2023, sent rescue teams from across Bucks County into high gear, dropping 6-7 inches of rain in less than one hour. Several cars were trapped in the floods, and roads were damaged due to the extreme flooding.
"We hope this new memorial butterfly garden will ensure that the memory of Katie Seley, Mattie Sheils, Conrad Sheils, Enzo and Linda DePiero, Yuko Love, and Susan Barnhart will endure as their lives deeply touched innumerable souls in our community and beyond," Upper Makefield Township police wrote following the event on social media. "The flash flood transformed so many of us and we would like the garden to be a place of hope and healing to all who visit."
According to the , Pastor George Clash of the Washington Crossing United Methodist Church blessed the garden and offered a prayer rite during the ceremony. CBS News Philadelphia attended a vigil in July 2024 on the one-year mark of the flash flood's devastation. Clash led the vigil at the church, which also served as the command center during the flood.
Upper Makefield police also thanked the township's volunteer fire company for naming a high-water truck and UTV after two of the victims, Conrad and Mattie Sheils.
The garden has a benches with the names of the victims.
Peter Gower said he was driving in the area during the storm. He visited the garden Tuesday to honor those lost along with the first responders and community members who stepped in the help in the hours and days after.
"I go past it all the time. There's not a day that goes by that I don't think about it," Gower said.
Carl Vivaldi visited to honor Barnhart, his friend who was caught in the flood with her beloved dog Koda. He said the garden offers a place to go to remember her and the others who died.
"I knew Susan, she worked at the post office and we became really good friends," he said. "She was super sweet. Everybody loved her, and like everybody, we were all shocked to find out she was in the middle of all of this."
The police department encourages residents to visit the garden to reflect, heal and honor the memory of those for whom the garden was built.
