• Get your Camino Frances Guidebook here.
  • For 2024 Pilgrims: €50,- donation = 1 year with no ads on the forum + 90% off any 2024 Guide. More here.
    (Discount code sent to you by Private Message after your donation)
  • ⚠️ Emergency contact in Spain - Dial 112 and AlertCops app. More on this here.

Search 69,459 Camino Questions

Walking for a sick friend

Ceci

Member
Time of past OR future Camino
Camino Ingles from Ferrol; Camino Portugues from Valenca do Minho; Camino Frances from O Cebreiro - October 2014
I understand that a person can walk the Camino for a deceased person, or at least I read that somewhere.

Does anyone know if I can walk for someone who is seriously ill and dying?

I know that I am walking for my very good friend of many years, who made me fall in love with Spain. He's the reason I discovered the Camino. However, does anyone know if I can get a Compostela with his name instead of mine, or maybe with my name as having walked for him? He has cancer and is near the end. I hope I make it to see him before he leaves us. I would so love to give the Compostela to him or to his wife if he has already passed over before I get there.

I am leaving this Tuesday, October 7, to start the Camino on October 10.

Any leads would be very much appreciated.

Thank you.

Ceci
 
Get a spanish phone number with Airalo. eSim, so no physical SIM card. Easy to use app to add more funds if needed.
I walked the Camino for my grandson, who had been battling cancer for a year when I left. He had finished his chemo and radiation therapy before I planned for and began the CF, and we thought he was going to be okay, but it was a very bad kind of cancer and there was a substantial chance of it recurring. A month after I returned, his cancer came back and he died two months after i got back.

I left so many prayers, and tears, in so many churches and paths and pillows along the way. I told his story and showed his picture to pilgrims along the way, and asked them to carry his name with them, and they told me they did. I bonded deeply with so many people in my sweet grandchild's name... it was pretty amazing.

So I would say that you can most definitely walk the Camino for your friend, and you will be doing it for yourself, and for all those you meet that you tell about him, and of course also for him. But I wouldn't worry at all about the Compostela. He is going where he can't take it with him. Write your journey for him in the compostela of your heart, dedicate it to him there, that is the real place to keep it.

Also, since my pilgrimage was such a single-minded and fervent prayer for our Little Bhau, I made the decision not to take a camera, as it was far from that sort of trip for me, and to try to accept whatever happened along the way with grace in honor of his suffering. Both of these stood me in good stead along the Camino.

lots of love and good wishes to you on your Way!
 
A selection of Camino Jewellery
The first edition came out in 2003 and has become the go-to-guide for many pilgrims over the years. It is shipping with a Pilgrim Passport (Credential) from the cathedral in Santiago de Compostela.
The one from Galicia (the round) and the one from Castilla & Leon. Individually numbered and made by the same people that make the ones you see on your walk.
I am looking at one now. When you get the Compostela, just ask the Pilgrim Office to have the pilgrimage dedicated to the person. They hand-write a dedication on the Compostela.

Buen camino.
Thank you so much to all. God Bless You all! I think it would mean a lot to my friend, if I make it to see him, or his wife, if not. I just want to give that to him/them. I have no doubt in my mind that my friend will soon be in a more beautiful place than we could ever imagine. Buen Camino!

Ceci
 
I walked the Camino for my grandson, who had been battling cancer for a year when I left. He had finished his chemo and radiation therapy before I planned for and began the CF, and we thought he was going to be okay, but it was a very bad kind of cancer and there was a substantial chance of it recurring. A month after I returned, his cancer came back and he died two months after i got back.

I left so many prayers, and tears, in so many churches and paths and pillows along the way. I told his story and showed his picture to pilgrims along the way, and asked them to carry his name with them, and they told me they did. I bonded deeply with so many people in my sweet grandchild's name... it was pretty amazing.

So I would say that you can most definitely walk the Camino for your friend, and you will be doing it for yourself, and for all those you meet that you tell about him, and of course also for him. But I wouldn't worry at all about the Compostela. He is going where he can't take it with him. Write your journey for him in the compostela of your heart, dedicate it to him there, that is the real place to keep it.

Also, since my pilgrimage was such a single-minded and fervent prayer for our Little Bhau, I made the decision not to take a camera, as it was far from that sort of trip for me, and to try to accept whatever happened along the way with grace in honor of his suffering. Both of these stood me in good stead along the Camino.

lots of love and good wishes to you on your Way!

How hard it must be to lose a child or grandchild and to watch them suffer before they go. What a beautiful thing you did to walk the Camino for him and with him in your thoughts and in your heart. I'm so sorry for your loss. I found out from others that I can get a Compostela with my friend's name on it. It might be of some comfort to his wife. I'm sure he doesn't need the help to get into Heaven, but it's one small thing I can do to to give a little comfort to someone going through a tough time.
 
The 2024 Camino guides will be coming out little by little. Here is a collection of the ones that are out so far.

Most read last week in this forum

When I hiked the Frances Route this happened. I was hiking in the afternoon just east of Arzua. I was reserved a bed at an albergue in Arzua, so I had already hiked all the way from San Xulien...
I am finalizing my packing list for Frances, and do not want to over pack. (I am 71) I will be starting at SJPdP on April 25th to Roncesvalles and forward. I was hoping on some advise as to...
First marker starting from Albergue Monasterio de la Magdalena in Sarria (113.460 km) Start: 2023.9.29 07:22 Arrival: 2023.9.30 13:18 walking time : 26 hours 47 minutes rest time : 3 hours 8...
A local Navarra website has posted a set of photos showing today's snowfall in the area around Roncesvalles. About 15cm of snow fell this morning surprising pilgrims on the way...
Hi! I’m a first time pilgrim. Is it possible to take a taxi from Astorga to Foncebadon? Thanks, Felicia
I have been planning to return and rejoin the path from Leon next week. ( Main route) I am wondering whether it might be better to wait until later in April to rejoin the path, my hope is to...

❓How to ask a question

How to post a new question on the Camino Forum.

Forum Rules

Forum Rules

Camino Updates on YouTube

Camino Conversations

Most downloaded Resources

This site is run by Ivar at

in Santiago de Compostela.
This site participates in the Amazon Affiliate program, designed to provide a means for Ivar to earn fees by linking to Amazon
Official Camino Passport (Credential) | 2024 Camino Guides
Back
Top