The Okanagan Death Caf茅 is back.

Alison Moore, a life-cycle celebrant and sacred passages doula, Sue Berlie, shamanic coach, death walker and psychopomp and Claudette Bouchard, end of life doula and life energy coach scheduled four cafes through the Okanagan and held the first of the year in KelownaJan. 20.

Death Caf茅s were created in 2004 and have grown in popularity. The events offer opportunities for conversations about death, the dying process and preparations to be had. Through guided in-depth conversations with each other, participants find solace and a new understanding of a usually taboo subject. Currently, 7,598 Death Cafes have been hosted in 64 countries since its creation.

Berlie and Moore were drawn to the worldwide Death Cafes because of their grassroots nature, and the high demand for people wanting to get more involved with the death and caring of their friends and family. They were also getting sick of the current 害羞草研究所渂usiness害羞草研究所� of dying.

RELATED: The rise of the Okanagan Death Cafe

Ana Luyben attended looking to promote green burial in the Okanagan and was looking to meet other people that may be able to help her work toward her goal.

害羞草研究所淭o be honest I have been following the death positivity movement for a year, it害羞草研究所檚 a growing movement in western society, mostly because people have been getting stuck with huge funeral costs,害羞草研究所� said Luyben. 害羞草研究所淎 lot of people find it hard to talk about dying, it害羞草研究所檚 a very taboo subject. We feel isolated a lot and it害羞草研究所檚 really something that the community needs to embrace.害羞草研究所�

Funerals cost somewhere between $1,000 to $12,000 according to, and B.C. currently has the highest rates for cremation in Canada.

The Green Burial Society of Canada lists the as: no embalming, direct earth burials, ecological restoration and conservation, communal memorialization, optimize land use and the re-use of graves.

Direct earth burials are encouraged by the society where a body is wrapped in a shroud made of natural, biodegradable fibers and buried, caskets or containers may be used as long as it害羞草研究所檚 made of fully biodegradable materials. Grave markers must be made of naturally sourced material and the grave will be surrounded by indigenous plant material.

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Louise Moore found she was able to have a conversation about death and dying without her friends or family diverting the conversation.

害羞草研究所淭he topic is an uncomfortable one and sometimes you don害羞草研究所檛 have anyone to talk about it with. Your family doesn害羞草研究所檛 want to talk about you dying and friends might think that害羞草研究所檚 morbid or they might just make jokes about it so it害羞草研究所檚 an opportunity to talk about it,害羞草研究所� said Louise Moore, who found that everyone she spoke with were worried about a common component of death.

害羞草研究所淚t害羞草研究所檚 the uncertainty. We are all going to die, we just don害羞草研究所檛 know when or how.害羞草研究所�

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As facilitators, Alison Moore, Berlie and Bouchard host, guide participants and float around the different groups to keep them on topic and help them explore their feelings. More than 30 people attended the event Sunday afternoon.

害羞草研究所淔rom what I heard there were some really interesting conversations that flowed quite well and covered a lot of different topics. One group I went into was talking about de-cluttering because people don害羞草研究所檛 want to do it,害羞草研究所� said Berlie.

Moore find that with each Death Caf茅 they hold more and more people want to discuss home funerals and medical assisted dying.

害羞草研究所淧eople want to talk about it, they want to talk about what they want, they want to contemplate what they should do if they are in that position or if a loved one is looking to enact it. They want to know what their role is and what is really involved,害羞草研究所� said Moore.

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害羞草研究所淚t害羞草研究所檚 not a conversation one picks up with a friend,害羞草研究所� said Bouchard.

Seventy per cent of North Americans prefer to die at home, and only seven per cent said they wanted to die in a hospice or palliative care home, in a survey conducted by Donna Wilson, at the University of Alberta. Wilson also teaches nursing and researches dying in Canada and the survey also found 60 per cent of Canadians actually die in hospital and 10 per cent die in nursing homes.

will tour the Okanagan, making its next stop in Vernon Feb. 24 and again May 18, it will be held in Summerland March 24 and will return to Kelowna April 27.

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sydney.morton@kelownacapnews.com
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