Death Cafe profile for Carmen Elliott


Location: United States

https://www.facebook.com/deathcafedesmoines

What brings you to Death Cafe?

I experienced a mini-Death Cafe at the National Alliance for Grieving Children Symposium in June 2014, and have been eager to get started ever since!


Thoughts for sharing:

At the end of the day, death is difficult, and grief is hard, but there are people available to help.  No death happens in a vaccum, and no grief should be exprienced alone.


Contact Carmen Elliott



Carmen Elliott's posts on the Death Cafe website


Death Cafe: Death Cafe Iowa

Posted by Carmen Elliott on May 9, 2017, 9:27 p.m.



With Young Bereavement Professionals Group

May 16, 2017, 6.00 p.m. - 7.30 p.m. (Central)

Donations accepted (but not required) to help cover reservation fee charged by Palmer's

The Young Bereavement Professionals Group is excited to host another Death Cafe!  We will be meeting at Palmer's Deli on Ingersoll Ave. in the Community Room. Please join us ...



Death Cafe: Death Cafe Iowa

Posted by Carmen Elliott on Feb. 26, 2017, 5:28 p.m.



With Young Bereavement Professionals Group

April 18, 2017, 6.00 p.m. - 7.30 p.m. (Central)

Free

The Young Bereavement Professionals Group is excited to host another Death Cafe!  We will be meeting at Inspired Grounds Cafe in Valley Junction. Please join us for an open discussion ...



Death Cafe: Death Cafe Iowa

Posted by Carmen Elliott on Feb. 26, 2017, 5:01 p.m.



With Young Bereavement Professionals Group

March 21, 2017, 6.00 p.m. - 7.30 p.m. (Central)

Free

The Young Bereavement Professionals Group is excited to host another Death Cafe!  We will be meeting at Inspired Grounds Cafe in Valley Junction. Please join us for an open discussion ...



Death Cafe: Death Cafe Des Moines

Posted by Carmen Elliott on June 22, 2016, 12:27 a.m.



With Young Bereavement Professionals Group

Nov. 15, 2016, 6.00 p.m. - 7.30 p.m. (Central)

Free

The Young Bereavement Professionals Group is excited to host another Death Cafe!  We will be meeting at Inspired Grounds Cafe in Valley Junction.

Please join us for an open discussion ...



Death Cafe: Death Cafe Des Moines

Posted by Carmen Elliott on June 22, 2016, 12:15 a.m.



With Young Bereavement Professionals Group

Oct. 18, 2016, 6.00 p.m. - 7.30 p.m. (Central)

Free

The Young Bereavement Professionals Group is excited to host another Death Cafe!  We will be meeting at Inspired Grounds Cafe in Valley Junction.

Please join us for an open discussion ...



Death Cafe: Death Cafe Des Moines

Posted by Carmen Elliott on June 21, 2016, 12:32 p.m.



With Young Bereavement Professionals Group

Sept. 20, 2016, 6.00 p.m. - 7.30 p.m. (Central)

Free

The Young Bereavement Professionals Group is excited to host another Death Cafe!  We will be meeting at Inspired Grounds Cafe in Valley Junction.

Please join us for an open discussion ...



Death Cafe: Death Cafe Des Moines

Posted by Carmen Elliott on June 21, 2016, 11:48 a.m.



With Young Bereavement Professionals Group

Aug. 16, 2016, 6.00 p.m. - 7.30 p.m. (Central)

Free

The Young Bereavement Professionals Group is excited to host another Death Cafe!  We will be meeting at Inspired Grounds Cafe in Valley Junction.

Please join us for an open discussion ...



Death Cafe: Death Cafe Des Moines

Posted by Carmen Elliott on June 20, 2016, 10:25 a.m.



With Young Bereavement Professionals Group

July 19, 2016, 6.00 p.m. - 7.30 p.m. (Central)

Free

The Young Bereavement Professionals Group is excited to host another Death Cafe!  We will be meeting at Inspired Grounds Cafe in Valley Junction.

Please join us for an open discussion ...



Death Cafe: Death Cafe Des Moines

Posted by Carmen Elliott on June 20, 2016, 10:23 a.m.



With Young Bereavement Professionals Group

June 21, 2016, 6.00 p.m. - 7.30 p.m. (Central)

Free

The Young Bereavement Professionals Group is excited to host another Death Cafe!  We will be meeting at Inspired Grounds Cafe in Valley Junction.

Please join us for an open discussion ...



Death Cafe write up: Death Cafe Des Moines

Posted by Carmen Elliott on April 26, 2016, 9:48 a.m.


Our April Death Café was another stellar event!  The 11 of us started out the evening discussing practical tips if someone you care about has had a loved one die, from bringing supplies to their home to packing mints, tissues, and water bottles for the visitation and service.  One tip I have never heard before is to spray perfume in your hair, because you will be hugging lots of people all day.

We also talked about the well-intentioned but hurtful things that people say when someone dies, and discussed alternatives.  This was an especially poignant conversation as we talked about those in our lives who died young (early ...



Death Cafe write up: Death Cafe Des Moines

Posted by Carmen Elliott on Feb. 16, 2016, 11:40 a.m.


Last month was yet another great conversation!  We started out talking about how David Bowie’s death plans affected his loved ones and fans, and “who is the funeral for, anyway?!”  It was a great way to start the evening: questions that led to discussion.

 

We had a few new people join us, which was a welcome surprise: we had a snow storm that evening, so we only had one of our “regulars”, plus the three facilitators, attending that evening.  Our visitors rounded out our small group to 6 people and brought a burst of new energy!  They are interested in starting a Death Café in their corner ...



Death Cafe write up: Death Cafe Des Moines

Posted by Carmen Elliott on Dec. 17, 2015, 11:23 a.m.


 

The Young Bereavement Professionals Group hosted another meaningful Death Café this week!  It was great to see familiar faces, and welcome back some folks we hadn’t seen in a few months!  Our participants are so great about inviting friends, co-workers, and civic/social club members, so we expect to see new faces over the next few months!

 

We started the evening with a discussion about Huggable Pet Urns, which was mentioned at the tail end of our evening last month.  Someone had brought in a print out of some examples, which made for some great comments!  Most of the people thought it was a very weird idea ...



Death Cafe: Death Cafe Des Moines

Posted by Carmen Elliott on Dec. 16, 2015, 2:32 p.m.



With Young Bereavement Professionals Group

May 17, 2016, 6.00 p.m. - 7.30 p.m. (Central)

Free

The Young Bereavement Professionals Group is excited to host our ninth Death Cafe!  We will be meeting at Inspired Grounds Cafe in Valley Junction.

Please join us for an open ...



Death Cafe: Death Cafe Des Moines

Posted by Carmen Elliott on Dec. 16, 2015, 2:29 p.m.



With Young Bereavement Professionals Group

April 19, 2016, 6.00 p.m. - 7.30 p.m. (Central)

Free

The Young Bereavement Professionals Group is excited to host our eighth Death Cafe!  We will be meeting at Inspired Grounds Cafe in Valley Junction.

Please join us for an open ...



Death Cafe: Death Cafe Des Moines

Posted by Carmen Elliott on Dec. 16, 2015, 2:21 p.m.



With Young Bereavement Professionals Group

March 15, 2016, 6.00 p.m. - 7.30 p.m. (Central)

Free

The Young Bereavement Professionals Group is excited to host our seventh Death Cafe!  We will be meeting at Inspired Grounds Cafe in Valley Junction.

Please join us for an open ...



Death Cafe: Death Cafe Des Moines

Posted by Carmen Elliott on Dec. 16, 2015, 2:18 p.m.



With Young Bereavement Professionals Group

Feb. 16, 2016, 6.00 p.m. - 7.30 p.m. (Central)

Free

The Young Bereavement Professionals Group is excited to host our sixth Death Cafe!  We will be meeting at Inspired Grounds Cafe in Valley Junction.

Please join us for an open ...



Death Cafe: Death Cafe Des Moines

Posted by Carmen Elliott on Dec. 16, 2015, 2:14 p.m.



With Young Bereavement Professionals Group

Jan. 19, 2016, 6.00 p.m. - 7.30 p.m. (Central)

Free

The Young Bereavement Professionals Group is excited to host our fifth Death Cafe!  We will be meeting at Inspired Grounds Cafe in Valley Junction.

Please join us for an open ...



Death Cafe: Death Cafe Des Moines

Posted by Carmen Elliott on Nov. 30, 2015, 10:04 a.m.



With Young Bereavement Professionals Group

Dec. 15, 2015, 6.00 p.m. - 7.30 p.m. (Central)

Free

The Young Bereavement Professionals Group is excited to host our fourth Death Cafe!  We will be meeting at Inspired Grounds Cafe in Valley Junction.

Please join us for an open ...



Death Cafe write up: Death Cafe Des Moines

Posted by Carmen Elliott on Nov. 18, 2015, 4:06 p.m.


Last night, one of our members told me that she had declined going out with friends that evening, because she was tired and it was icky out.  When she got home, her husband told her that it was Death Cafe night, and she was immediately energized!  What a great testament to the conversation our group members provide at Death Cafe!

 

This was the third Death Cafe hosted by the Young Bereavement Professionals Group, and in that short time we have developed a small group of regulars who join us each month.  Last night, one of these "regulars" brought a cake that she had made for Death Cafe, and ...



Death Cafe write up: Des Moines Death Cafe

Posted by Carmen Elliott on Nov. 10, 2015, 1:21 p.m.


We had another GREAT Death Cafe last month!  It was a cold, rainy night, which contributed to this being our smallest Death Cafe yet, with 3 facilitators and 8 particpants.  However, I would venture to say that the small numbers provided even better conversation, because we all had a chance to speak at length, if we wanted to. 

As we've seen before, the conversation developed a few "themes" as people shared their stories and ask questions.  Tonight's conversation revolved around the body: what happens after we die (physically), how we prepare bodies, and how we dispose of bodies.

Our conversation was kicked off by a member ...



Death Cafe: Death Cafe Des Moines

Posted by Carmen Elliott on Nov. 9, 2015, 9:13 a.m.



With Young Bereavement Professionals Group

Nov. 17, 2015, 6.00 p.m. - 7.30 p.m. (Central)

Free

The Young Bereavement Professionals Group is excited to host our third Death Cafe!  We will be meeting at Inspired Grounds Cafe in Valley Junction.

Please join us for an open ...



Death Cafe: Des Moines Death Cafe

Posted by Carmen Elliott on Sept. 29, 2015, 2:24 p.m.



With Young Bereavement Professionals Group

Oct. 27, 2015, 7.00 p.m. - 8.30 p.m. (Central)

Free

The Young Bereavement Professionals Group is excited to host our second Death Cafe in October!  We will be meeting at Smokey Row.

Please join us for an open discussion about ...



Death Cafe write up: Valley Junction Death Cafe

Posted by Carmen Elliott on Sept. 16, 2015, 1:33 p.m.


Last week, the Young Bereavement Professionals Groups hosted a GREAT Death Cafe in Valley Junction!  We had 20 participants (including facilitators), and a wonderful discussion.

Topics ranged from the language we use around death (especially concerning children), to physician-assisted suicide.  The topic that got the most time was on legal issues surrounding death: how to let our wishes be known, how to appoint someone to carry out our wishes, and money issues that need to be taken care of after death.  It worked out beautifully that one of our participants is a banker, and was able to give some general advice on some of these issues as a ...



Death Cafe: Valley Junction Death Cafe

Posted by Carmen Elliott on Aug. 31, 2015, 3:32 p.m.



With Young Bereavement Professionals Group

Sept. 9, 2015, 7.00 p.m. - 8.30 p.m. (Central)

Free! Drinks and food available for purchase.

The Young Bereavement Professionals Group is excited to host our first Death Cafe in September!  We will be meeting at Inspired Grounds, right outside the large meeting space.

Please join ...



Death Cafe write up: Death Cafe Des Moines, IA

Posted by Carmen Elliott on Aug. 18, 2014, 10:51 a.m.


Amanda the Panda Family Grief Center hosted Des Moines' first Death Cafe this past Saturday!  It had a lot of challenges, but also a lot of rewards.

 

We sent out the message via Facebook (our page & an event page), Twitter, Pinterest, & Instagram, as well as emails to grief services state-wide, our program committee, word-of-mouth, and using the event button on the Death Cafe Website.  We had LOTS of interest, and by Saturday night, we had about 30 RSVPs!

 

Our challenges were all venue-related.  We had reserved the rooftop, but when we arrived, we were locked out, and all of the chairs we stacked & padlocked together.  We couldn't ...



Death Cafe: Death Cafe Des Moines, IA

Posted by Carmen Elliott on July 24, 2014, 8:48 a.m.



With Amanda the Panda Family Grief Center

Aug. 16, 2014, 7.00 p.m. - 9.00 p.m. (Central)

Free

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 ...





Contact Carmen Elliott

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