Thanksgiving Service

News Update

This year's Body Donor Thanksgiving Service will be held on Wednesday 2nd May 2012, from 5.30pm at theUQ Centre, University of Queensland, St. Lucia Campus.

This year's service will commemorate those deceased donors whose bodies were received into the care of the School of Biomedical Sciences during 2010. Their gift has assisted many students in their studies during the past two years.

The families and friends of all donors, community representatives, and members of the general public were invited to attend the service and join with students and staff to pay tribute to and recognise the generosity of these people.

Thanksgiving Service for Body Donors

The Thanksgiving Service is an opportunity for the staff and students of the School of Biomedical Sciences to publicly express their appreciation for the extreme generosity of those persons who donate their bodies to The University of Queensland for use in anatomical teaching and research.

This annual service, where the donors' families and friends meet with University staff and students, is a common celebration of thanks to honour the donors and their bequests.

The first Thanksgiving Service took place on 29 April 1992. It was initiated by a committee established in 1991 under the Chair of Dr Walter Wood of the Department of Anatomy (a predecessor of the School of Biomedical Sciences). The service was the first of its kind to be held in Australia or New Zealand and honoured all donations to The University of Queensland since 1927, and specifically (by name) the donors whose bequests had been received during 1990 and recently been cremated.

The Thanksgiving Service is now firmly established as an annual University event.

Symbolism of the Thanksgiving Service

A central feature of the service is the Book of Remembrance which records the names of deceased donors. During the entrance procession, a recent graduate carries the book into the hall, followed by representatives of various religious faiths, students, teaching and general staff.

The book and a single lit candle, representing the spirit of all donors, are centrally placed on the stage.

The Lighting of Candles is a gesture symbolising the transfer of knowledge from donors to students. As the Book of Remembrance is opened to the list of donors’ names, an anatomy tutor passes the flame from the central candle to students who light eight other candles representing the various professional groups who benefit from the donations. The donors' names are then read out and this is followed by a minute's silence.

The latter half of the service includes prayers for the comfort of families, and prayers for staff and students, that they may gain the maximum benefit from the knowledge offered.

The service ends with a common blessing.

After the service, guests are invited to light candles in the reflection area and to view the donors’ names in the Books of Remembrance and sign the Visitors’ Book. Families and friends are encouraged to mingle with students and staff during the serving of light refreshments after the service. Many donors' families and friends return annually to pay tribute to all donors.