DALLAS, LUZERNE COUNTY (WBRE/WYOU) — A new feature has been added to a local hiking, biking, and jogging trail. One woman started it as a way for others to connect with their lost loved ones. This project, called Wind Phone, is bittersweet for anyone who interacts with it.
The woman behind this new addition that she helped bring to life in Luzerne County has an emotional connection to it.
"'Grief is love with no place to go.' That was, like, my first major quote that I related to when I first lost my mom," Shavertown resident Tara Yamelski said.
The purple phone box on part of the back mountain trail is called a Wind Phone.
It's a project originally from Japan that lets grieving people call their loved ones.
"So, I actually made a private Wind Phone at my house first, and then I realized how amazing the concept made myself and my family feel. So, that's when I decided I wanted to do a public one," Yamelski explained.
Yamelski heard about the Wind Phone in a grief group she joined after her mother, Karen, passed away in May of 2023.
Now that she's brought it to life in a public place, anyone on the trail can use it.
"Pick up that phone, and it does reach over to the bench, which is nice, and then, you know, you're going to have the phone, and you can either dial your loved one's number right here or you cannot dial any numbers," Yamelski added.
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The Wind Phone was dedicated on September 20. People have already begun using it, and the response has been emotional.
"I was inundated with messages of people just saying 'thank you for doing this,' and 'I'm going to call my mom. I'm going to call my son, I'm going to call my daughter, my cousin, my friend.' Whoever it was, so, I think it's just like a humbling kind of feeling to know that what my vision was meant to be is actually coming to life," Yamelski continued.
Each time Yamelski visits the phone, she finds a new message of gratitude.
"I was finding messages in pen afterwards. So, these were other people that came after the ceremony and knew enough to sign it, so I feel like this is just an extra special touch," Yamelski said.
Whether someone needs to sit in silence at the Wind Phone, or leave a lengthy voicemail to someone they're missing, Yamelski wishes for healing for whomever is dialing.
"My hope is that people use it the way their heart is telling them to use it because there are no rules when it comes to the Wind Phone," said Yamelski.
The Wind Phone can be found on the Judith and David Rimple loop portion of the trail, near Geisinger Dallas Medical Clinic.
Yamelski also hopes the Wind Phone will become a comforting trend in other communities.
