Death Cafe write-ups
Nelson Death Cafe Write up
Posted by Nelson Death Cafe on Jan. 23, 2014, 1:31 a.m.
Nelson BC 's Second Death Cafe was a great success. Forty people showed up and sat around 10 tables discussing and sharing their thoughts. Lively sharings followed. In the second half, after a 15 min. break, with live accordion music, life & living were discussed, with questions like:When do you feel most alive ? Or Have you lived the best years of your life?
Laughter and wonderful insightful, intimate sharings took place from everyone - ages mid 20's to 82.
The group decided to have another DC in mid March. Over 30 have already signed up!
Gill and I were very excited to welcome 20 people to our very first meeting, the ages ranging from 27 to 85. One had even bought her own home-made brownies to add to the wonderful selection.
We were struck by the diversity and richness of experiences shared in the group discussion - from what constitutes a 'good' death, anticipatory grieving, loss of a baby, different attitudes to funerals, whether children should attend, as well as caring for an aging disabled parent whose quality of life is so sadly diminished. There were also life-affirming experiences shared, where perspectives change after sudden trauma and the reminder of one's own fragile ...
Death Cafe at Cafe Rouge in Hampstead, London Write up
Posted by Josefine Speyer on Jan. 17, 2014, noon 2 comments
Number of participants: 31 guests, (26 returned feedback sheets: 20 women, 6 men)
Average age: 50
(women: 48 (22 – 78)], [men: 54 (27 - 78)]
(Plus 3 female facilitators/host: Average age: 48)
Overall, how would you rate this event? Overall: 9
(Average for women: 9.1) (Average for men: 8.5)
This Death Café at Café Rouge on 9 December was surprisingly busy. We had space for 27 guests. But on the evening many more guests arrived and many who had booked did not turn up. We were a little crowded but managed to squeeze everyone in. I had already decided that the booking system did not work ...
Death Cafe in Winnipeg, Canada Write up
Posted by Death Cafe Winnipeg on Jan. 16, 2014, 9:55 p.m.
Our first event had more than 50 participants ! We sat at round tables of 6 - 8 people and had a facilitator at each table. The group ranged in age from 18 to 90, and included several married couples .
Discussion was heartfelt and genuine as people shared personal stories and thoughts..truly amazing.
Evalutions were very positive and our next event is in the works for mid February.
.. an enriching and powerful experience..
Friendly & Fearless Tucson Death Cafe Write up
Posted by tucsondeathcafe on Jan. 15, 2014, 11:59 a.m.
A whole new place! A great big circle of interested, friendly and fearless folks!
Tucson Death Cafe started the new year with a new location and lots of new participants. More than twice as many people showed up than anticipated via RSVPs. Including facilitators Kristine and Cindy we made 27 participants (8 of whom were men!), which was a cozy crowd at Big Moe's, formerly the Coffee Loft, located in the Metal Arts Village. The new owner is opening the mid-town shop in the evening just for us and it offers privacy and nice outdoor spaces for spreading out when it is warm. We are grateful to ...
Death Cafe Ukiah Write up
Posted by Death Cafe Ukiah on Jan. 14, 2014, 6:47 p.m.
We had a lovely group in January. There was such a warm and comfortable feeling to the group. The four of us who are facilitating are so grateful to be doing this work. Next Death Cafe Ukiah will be February 1, same time, same place.
Norwich, NY Death Cafe Write up
Posted by hospicechenango on Jan. 13, 2014, 11:36 a.m.
Hospice & Palliative Care of Chenango County sponsored the first Death Café in Chenango County on October 29, 2013. 14 brave souls gathered at Uncorked Café, to talk about death with the understanding that openly talking about death allows us to live a more fulfilled life. The discussion was led by Hospice Volunteers Virginia Lee and Rebecca Young. Rebecca and Virginia opened the session by allowing people to introduce themselves and speak to what brought them to the café. The reasons ranged from always being intrigued by death discussion, to people who had recently lost someone and now were questioning what “it all means”.
The conversation was raw and ...
Death Cafe, Brisbane, Queensland Write up
Posted by Beth OBrien on Jan. 12, 2014, 8:44 p.m.
First Death Cafe in Brisbane, Australia Write up
Posted by Beth OBrien on Jan. 12, 2014, 8:42 p.m.
The evening was facilitated by Beth O’Brien and Neil Davis. We had 5 attendees come and share with us that evening. Beth was interviewed for the local newspaper and on 4BC Radio. The story was also covered in the leading city newspaper the Courier Mail. It amazed us that in a short time with a small but eager group of attendees that conversation flowed, and flowed fast! Topics included such items as working in the funeral industry; what does a dead person look like; I closed my eyes in the church when I opened them my Mum’s coffin was gone; advanced health directives; euthanasia; confronting your ...
Death Cafe Brisbane, Australia Write up
Posted by Beth OBrien on Jan. 12, 2014, 8:41 p.m.
Death Café, Brisbane 6 November 2013
Last night 10 people joined us for our second death café at Mt Gravatt.
There was again a delightful mix of people, and we had the opportunity to hear some insights from a palliative care nurse, and a hospital chaplain working with the oncology ward. Amongst the group were also team members from Karuna http://www.karuna.org.au/ community and home palliative care who again shared some wonderful insights. We thank them for their openness in sharing, and for all the other people for their honest sharing and wisdom.
Many topics were covered and we shared, laughed and sometimes sighed at ...
On December 30th 2013 we had our second Death Cafe in Ocala.
As our first meeting place was in a restaurant and quite noisy, we looked for another location. Which we found in Mojo's Grill in Ocala. They graciously offered us the use of their seperate room free of charge. It can seat about 20 people, so there is room to grow, as there were 11 of us this time.
Three new people came, so we pretty much did another introduction round, where everyone shared some of their experiences with death.
As it was the night before New Years Eve, the people in the main restaurant were ...
Well, we have met again. This evening was a chilly night for the Sebastian Florida area. We had a group of six, five women and one man. This was our first evening meeting at the local library. The environment was quiet and comfortably warm. A happy skull with a hat and sunglasses has become our mascot, we call him D.C.. This in and of itself livened up the conversation. Was it ghoulish and/or disrespectful to have such a centerpiece. We discussed life and death as a continuum, not a black and white cut off. The discussion of near death experience was revisited. Each expressed some type ...
Death Cafe San Francisco Write up
Posted by Shelley Adler on Jan. 6, 2014, 10:56 a.m. 2 comments
We had a great launch to the Zen Hospice Project Death Cafes! We met at the ZHP Guest House for tea, Bundt cake, and lively discussion about death. Our 30 attendees were so enthusiastic that we've decided to host quarterly San Francisco death cafes. Please join us--all are welcome (after an RSVP)!
Death Cafe - Fremantle, WA - Special Event - 'End of Year, End of Life' Write up
Posted by Death Cafe - Fremantle on Jan. 5, 2014, 8:55 p.m.
I am so pleased that the number of participants is finally getting up there! The last two Death Cafe's here in Fremantle had 14 and 12 participants! This is in part due to the recent media coverage by ABC News and word getting out via word of mouth.
I believe that although the experiences/fears/stories are always unique to the person sharing, there is a common conversation that emerges.
We all get intimate with each other very quickly when having a conversation that is as deeply felt as that of the death of a loved one, imagined or lived.
Most of the people that come are ...
Death Cafe, Brisbane, Queensland Write up
Posted by Beth OBrien on Jan. 4, 2014, 2:12 p.m.
It was a pleasure to meet with a great group of people so close to Christmas to reflect on the topic of death leading up to this celebration time.
There were some professional people from the palliative care teams of Brisbane and we discussed the lack of available hospice or palliative care in our city. It was interesting to hear how many people died in emergency wards or regular wards, when they could have been cared for in the community if those resources were available.
As usual the topics were amazing and our conversation travelled on some many interesting paths. Some of the discussion topics were as follows ...