Death Cafe profile for Laura Lyster-Mensh - HCC


Location: United States

http://congressionalcemetery.org/death-literacy

About Laura Lyster-Mensh - HCC:

Death Doula in residence at Historic Congressional Cemetery in Washington DC


What brings you to Death Cafe?

Gratitude.


What would you like your legacy to be?

Started a few good conversations, kept a sense of humor, and ate some good cake.


Contact Laura Lyster-Mensh - HCC



Laura Lyster-Mensh - HCC's posts on the Death Cafe website


Death Cafe: Death Cafe on Capitol Hill

Posted by Laura Lyster-Mensh - HCC on Feb. 2, 2024, 3:55 p.m.



With Historic Congressional Cemetery

Dec. 5, 2024, 6.00 p.m. - 7.30 p.m. (Eastern Standard Time)

Accepts donations

Our historic chapel on the grounds of the cemetery is a welcoming space for conversation and sharing. The cemetery provides sweets and coffee and welcomes guests to bring sweets to ...



Death Cafe: Death Cafe on Capitol Hill

Posted by Laura Lyster-Mensh - HCC on Feb. 2, 2024, 3:55 p.m.



With Historic Congressional Cemetery

Nov. 7, 2024, 6.00 p.m. - 7.30 p.m. (Eastern Standard Time)

Accepts donations

Our historic chapel on the grounds of the cemetery is a welcoming space for conversation and sharing. The cemetery provides sweets and coffee and welcomes guests to bring sweets to ...



Death Cafe: Death Cafe on Capitol Hill

Posted by Laura Lyster-Mensh - HCC on Feb. 2, 2024, 3:54 p.m.



With Historic Congressional Cemetery

Oct. 3, 2024, 6.00 p.m. - 7.30 p.m. (Eastern Standard Time)

Accepts donations

Our historic chapel on the grounds of the cemetery is a welcoming space for conversation and sharing. The cemetery provides sweets and coffee and welcomes guests to bring sweets to ...



Death Cafe: Death Cafe on Capitol Hill

Posted by Laura Lyster-Mensh - HCC on Feb. 2, 2024, 3:54 p.m.



With Historic Congressional Cemetery

Sept. 5, 2024, 6.00 p.m. - 7.30 p.m. (Eastern Standard Time)

Accepts donations

Our historic chapel on the grounds of the cemetery is a welcoming space for conversation and sharing. The cemetery provides sweets and coffee and welcomes guests to bring sweets to ...



Death Cafe: Death Cafe on Capitol Hill

Posted by Laura Lyster-Mensh - HCC on Feb. 2, 2024, 3:53 p.m.



With Historic Congressional Cemetery

Aug. 1, 2024, 6.00 p.m. - 7.30 p.m. (Eastern Standard Time)

Accepts donations

Our historic chapel on the grounds of the cemetery is a welcoming space for conversation and sharing. The cemetery provides sweets and coffee and welcomes guests to bring sweets to ...



Death Cafe: Death Cafe on Capitol Hill

Posted by Laura Lyster-Mensh - HCC on Feb. 2, 2024, 3:53 p.m.



With Historic Congressional Cemetery

June 6, 2024, 6.00 p.m. - 7.30 p.m. (Eastern Standard Time)

Accepts donations

Our historic chapel on the grounds of the cemetery is a welcoming space for conversation and sharing. The cemetery provides sweets and coffee and welcomes guests to bring sweets to ...



Death Cafe: Death Cafe on Capitol Hill

Posted by Laura Lyster-Mensh - HCC on Feb. 2, 2024, 3:52 p.m.



With Historic Congressional Cemetery

May 2, 2024, 6.00 p.m. - 7.30 p.m. (Eastern Standard Time)

Accepts donations

Our historic chapel on the grounds of the cemetery is a welcoming space for conversation and sharing. The cemetery provides sweets and coffee and welcomes guests to bring sweets to ...



Death Cafe: Death Cafe on Capitol Hill

Posted by Laura Lyster-Mensh - HCC on Feb. 2, 2024, 3:51 p.m.



With Historic Congressional Cemetery

April 4, 2024, 6.00 p.m. - 7.30 p.m. (Eastern Standard Time)

Accepts donations

Our historic chapel on the grounds of the cemetery is a welcoming space for conversation and sharing. The cemetery provides sweets and coffee and welcomes guests to bring sweets to ...



Death Cafe: Death Cafe on Capitol Hill

Posted by Laura Lyster-Mensh - HCC on Feb. 2, 2024, 3:47 p.m.



With Historic Congressional Cemetery

March 7, 2024, 6.00 p.m. - 7.30 p.m. (Eastern Standard Time)

Accepts donations

Our historic chapel on the grounds of the cemetery is a welcoming space for conversation and sharing. The cemetery provides sweets and coffee and welcomes guests to bring sweets to ...



Death Cafe write up: Washington DC Congressional Cemetery Death Cafe

Posted by Laura Lyster-Mensh - HCC on Nov. 20, 2023, 4:59 p.m.

It was a lively conversation visited by several dogs who ran into the chapel curious about what we were doing. With lovely sweet snacks provided by the Congressional Cemetery staff, we settled in to conversation that circled and grew. Even the silences were thoughtful.

What an impactful evening. Thank you to all who come out.



Death Cafe write up: Death Cafe Capitol Hill

Posted by Laura Lyster-Mensh - HCC on Aug. 9, 2023, 9:06 a.m.

The second Death Cafe of 2023 at Congressional Cemetery drew two dozen people on a gorgeous spring evening. We split the group as the numbers rose and half met in the chapel and half outdoors. Participants enjoyed sweet treats offered by Congressional Cemetery staff and baked goods from participants.

 

Both groups had lively conversation touching on: letting go of expectations of reconciliation and ways to find conciliation before and after death of a loved one with whom the relationship was challenging, having conversation about dying and death with family and friends who are reluctant to speak on the topic, suicide as an option for the terminally ill, the ...



Death Cafe write up: Washington DC Congressional Cemetery Death Cafe

Posted by Laura Lyster-Mensh - HCC on Aug. 9, 2023, 9:02 a.m.

Our 4th death cafe of the year was held on August 8 in the cemetery’s historic chapel. The weather was warm but a welcome cooler respite from recent steamy and stormy evenings here in Washington DC. The cemetery staff put out a lovely spread of sweet treats, and iced tea to welcome participants. As always a few curious dogs ran into the building to see what was going on. 

 

Twenty or so people gathered in a circle in the one-room chapel led by guest facilitator, Liz Gregg, a longtime Capitol Hill resident and end-of-life doula who works at Capitol Hill Village as Director of Volunteer and Care ...



Death Cafe: Washington DC Congressional Cemetery Death Cafe

Posted by Laura Lyster-Mensh - HCC on July 9, 2023, 3:20 p.m.



With Congressional Cemetery

Dec. 12, 2023, 6.00 p.m. - 7.30 p.m. (EDT)

Accepts donations

Join us for our every-other-month death cafes in the cemetery chapel.



Death Cafe: Washington DC Congressional Cemetery Death Cafe

Posted by Laura Lyster-Mensh - HCC on July 9, 2023, 3:19 p.m.



With Congressional Cemetery

Oct. 10, 2023, 6.00 p.m. - 7.30 p.m. (EDT)

Accepts donations

Join us for our every-other-month death cafes in the cemetery chapel.



Death Cafe: Washington DC Congressional Cemetery Death Cafe

Posted by Laura Lyster-Mensh - HCC on July 9, 2023, 3:03 p.m.



With Congressional Cemetery

Aug. 8, 2023, 6.00 p.m. - 7.30 p.m. (EDT)

Accepts donations

Join us for our every-other-month death cafes in the cemetery chapel.



Death Cafe write up: Capitol Hill Death Cafe

Posted by Laura Lyster-Mensh - HCC on June 15, 2023, 2:25 p.m.

We met in the cemetery chapel again this month, with a circle of about 20 people including both regular and first time participants. Our facilitator, Valoria Walker, convened the gathering with an invitation to fully feel our emotions as they came up. Topics evolved, including: the need to do better supporting families facing a death, fresh grief re-surfacing after a long time, new technologies for caring for bodies after death, differing cultural views of death, the role of rituals, finding respect across different spiritual and atheist belief systems, and signs we see from those beyond the grave. Our host, Congressional Cemetery, provided sweet treats and beverages, and tissues ...



Death Cafe: Capitol Hill Death Cafe

Posted by Laura Lyster-Mensh - HCC on April 17, 2023, 6:12 p.m.


With Congressional Cemetery

June 13, 2023, 6.00 p.m. - 7.30 p.m. (Eastern US)

Accepts donations


Death Cafe write up: Death Cafe Capitol Hill

Posted by Laura Lyster-Mensh - HCC on April 17, 2023, 4:55 p.m.

The second Death Cafe of 2023 at Congressional Cemetery drew two dozen people on a gorgeous spring evening. We split the group as the numbers rose and half met in the chapel and half outdoors. Participants enjoyed sweet treats offered by Congressional Cemetery staff and baked goods from participants.

 

Both groups had lively conversation touching on: letting go of expectations of reconciliation and ways to find conciliation before and after death of a loved one with whom the relationship was challenging, having conversation about dying and death with family and friends who are reluctant to speak on the topic, suicide as an option for the terminally ill, the ...



Death Cafe write up: Death Cafe Capitol Hill

Posted by Laura Lyster-Mensh - HCC on Feb. 9, 2023, 7:14 p.m.


At our first Death Cafe of 2023 we met in the chapel at the center of the historic Congressional Cemetery. So appropriate a setting for considering mortality.

We started with a grounding exercise of stomping our feet on the marble floor to send vibrations to the over 60,000 former DC residents surrounding us.

The conversation flowed through themes of control, death cleaning, losses of grandparents, and children's understanding of death.

We will meet every other month this year with a rotating panel of facilitators from the community. 



Death Cafe: Death Cafe Capitol Hill

Posted by Laura Lyster-Mensh - HCC on Dec. 20, 2022, 6:10 a.m.



With Historic Congressional Cemetery

Dec. 12, 2023, 6.00 p.m. - 7.30 p.m. (East Coast US )

Accepts donations

Death Cafes at Congressional Cemetery's chapel will be held every other month on the 2nd Tuesday 6:00-7:30pm. Seats are limited so please rsvp one month prior to ...



Death Cafe: Death Cafe Capitol Hill

Posted by Laura Lyster-Mensh - HCC on Dec. 20, 2022, 6:09 a.m.



With Historic Congressional Cemetery

Oct. 10, 2023, 6.00 p.m. - 7.30 p.m. (East Coast US )

Accepts donations

Death Cafes at Congressional Cemetery's chapel will be held every other month on the 2nd Tuesday 6:00-7:30pm. Seats are limited so please rsvp one month prior to ...



Death Cafe: Death Cafe Capitol Hill

Posted by Laura Lyster-Mensh - HCC on Dec. 20, 2022, 6:08 a.m.



With Historic Congressional Cemetery

Aug. 8, 2023, 6.00 p.m. - 7.30 p.m. (East Coast US )

Accepts donations

Death Cafes at Congressional Cemetery's chapel will be held every other month on the 2nd Tuesday 6:00-7:30pm. Seats are limited so please rsvp one month prior to ...



Death Cafe: Death Cafe Capitol Hill

Posted by Laura Lyster-Mensh - HCC on Dec. 20, 2022, 6:07 a.m.



With Historic Congressional Cemetery

June 13, 2023, 6.00 p.m. - 7.30 p.m. (East Coast US )

Accepts donations

Death Cafes at Congressional Cemetery's chapel will be held every other month on the 2nd Tuesday 6:00-7:30pm. Seats are limited so please rsvp one month prior to ...



Death Cafe: Death Cafe Capitol Hill

Posted by Laura Lyster-Mensh - HCC on Dec. 19, 2022, 5:44 a.m.



With Historic Congressional Cemetery

April 11, 2023, 6.00 p.m. - 7.30 p.m. (East Coast US )

Accepts donations

Death Cafes at Congressional Cemetery's chapel will be held every other month on the 2nd Tuesday 6:00-7:30pm. Seats are limited so please rsvp to reserve your chair!



Death Cafe: Death Cafe Capitol Hill

Posted by Laura Lyster-Mensh - HCC on Dec. 6, 2022, 1:34 p.m.



With Historic Congressional Cemetery

Feb. 7, 2023, 6.00 p.m. - 7.30 p.m. (East Coast US )

Accepts donations

Death Cafes at Congressional Cemetery's chapel will be held every other month on the 2nd Tuesday 6:00-7:30pm. Seats are limited so please rsvp to reserve your chair!





Contact Laura Lyster-Mensh - HCC

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