Hosted by Amanda the Panda Family Grief Center

This Death Cafe has taken place

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About this Death Cafe

Carmen & Cindy are very excited to run one of Iowa's first Death Cafes!  We want to give Iowans a safe space to explore issues surrounding the topic of death.  We believe talking about death is normal and healthy, not morbid.  

This death cafe is sponsored by Amanda the Panda Family Grief Center.  Scratch cupcakes will be served, and drinks will be available for purchase from the Des Moines Social Club.

RSVPs requested, but not required.  Please email carmen@amandathepanda.org or call 515-223-4847.

About Amanda the Panda Family Grief Center

Cindy Meek has been involved with Amanda the Panda since 1993. She first became involved as a part-time employee, assisting in the office and at camps. After the birth of her firstborn, she continued on as a volunteer camp counselor and grief support group facilitator. Cindy now serves as the Program & Communications Coordinator. She is responsible for organizing camp, support groups, and working with the volunteers and staff to promote Amanda the Panda in the community. She earned her BA in Communications/Public Relations at the University of Northern Iowa and has a work history that includes managing over 200 volunteers as Area Director for the American Cancer Society, staff development training as an associate with Mid-American Leadership, Inc., and working directly with grieving families as Family Services Coordinator at Hamilton’s Funeral Home. 

Carmen Elliott graduated from Iowa State University in 2009 with a Bachelor of Science in Child, Adult, and Family Services. In 2012, she graduated from Hood College in Frederick, Maryland with a Certificate and a Master’s Degree in Thanatology (the Study of Death, Dying, and Bereavement). While in Maryland, Carmen began volunteering with the local Hospice and The Ulman Fund, a branch of LiveStrong dedicated to young adults with cancer, as a visit volunteer, while continuing to come back to Iowa only twice a year, to volunteer as a teen counselor for Camp Amanda. Carmen worked as a Bereavement Coordinator for Heartland Hospice in Rockford, IL from 2011 to 2013, facilitating support groups in schools, hospitals, and senior centers, and providing individual support for over 500 grieving people in Illinois. She is extremely excited to “be home” at Amanda the Panda as the Program and Volunteer Coordinator.

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