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Hello, and welcome. I’m so glad you’re here and exploring the many ways support can look at the end of life.
My path to this work was shaped first by my own personal experiences supporting both my father and my mother through their deaths, and later by a deep calling that emerged after retiring from my career in education.
At my core, I am a planner. I am someone who loves a good spreadsheet and a well-organized to-do list. It occurred to me that we create detailed plans for so many of life’s major moments and transitions: births, education, careers, weddings, milestone birthdays, retirement, and family adventures. Yet for one of the most certain and significant transitions of all, we often avoid planning altogether. We tuck it away, afraid to name it, hesitant to acknowledge that death is part of every life.
Perhaps we avoid it because we fear it will come sooner if we speak of it. Or maybe we worry it will bring sadness into the present moment. I have come to believe the opposite is true, that by speaking openly and honestly about death, we create space for clarity, kindness, and deeper connection. We allow ourselves the opportunity to prepare with intention, understand one another’s wishes, and approach life’s final chapter with less fear and more peace.
My journey toward becoming an End-of-Life Doula began in 2006 when my father died of cancer at Ian Anderson House. It was there that I was first introduced to palliative care and the hospice setting. I was deeply moved by the dignity afforded to my father, the compassion shown to our family, and the profound model of care that held us all during such a difficult time. That experience stayed with me and planted the first seeds of the work I do today.
Ten years later, I was introduced to the book Being Mortal, and my curiosity about end-of-life care was reignited. I saw so many examples around me of the medicalization of death and dying as described in the book. I was particularly struck by Atul Gawande’s statement: “Just because we can, doesn’t mean we should.” That idea stayed with me and deepened my reflection on the way we approach death and dying.
My professional career has spanned marketing (6 years) and education (30 years). As I approached my retirement date in teaching, I knew I wanted to continue working in a meaningful way after leaving the school system. Around 2020, I began exploring my options and found myself continually drawn back to the field of death and dying.
Through my work in education, I had the opportunity to travel extensively and meet with families in over 45 countries. During those experiences, I noticed that conversations around death often seemed far more open and honest in other cultures. This inspired me to help encourage those conversations here and to support people in speaking more openly about end of life, rather than tucking it away in fear.
As I researched the deathcare field more deeply, I learned more about palliative care, the hospice world, and was introduced to the emerging role of death doulas. After discovering the End of Life Doula Association of Canada, I explored the training programs available, I enrolled in the palliative care program at Durham College in 2023, and began volunteering at Hospice Peterborough. I completed my course work just as I retired from education in 2025 and did my field placement at Ed's House in Cobourg. After graduating from the program, I have continued my volunteering in Peterborough as a member of the Hospice Singers as well as working in the residence supporting the health care team with the hospice clients and their families.
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