Demystifying Death Week 2024
Taking place across Scotland from 6-12 May, Demystifying Death Week is about shining a light on death, dying and bereavement in Scotland. We are encouraging people to get involved by holding in-person and online events that bring death, dying and bereavement into the limelight.
Below is a list of events registered so far - these pages will be updated over the coming weeks. If you are organising an event that you'd like us to feature, please get in touch.
Coffin & Cake
Organised by To Absent Friends Space
Tuesday 7th May from 7:00-8:30pm
Bellfield Community Hub, 16B Bellfield Street, Portobello, Edinburgh EH15 2BP
This event is open to the public and requires booking in advance.
Join us for a free Demystifying Death Week event for open conversations about death, whilst also discussing pre-set questions from our "menu" of attitudes toward death.
This in-person event will be held at the Bellfield Community Hub in the celebration foyer, where we will gather to share thoughts and questions in a relaxed and supportive atmosphere.
We will be joined by local funeral director Murdo Chambers from Go As You Please Funerals. This is a wonderful opportunity to ask a member of the funeral industry about the role of the undertaker and anything else you have always wanted to know, but were afraid to ask.
So, if you're curious about death and want to connect with others over some chat and a slice of cake, this event is for you. Come as you are, bring an open mind, and let's explore the taboo topic of death together. See you there!
Please register your interest on Eventbrite.
Strathcarron Hospice Event
Organised by Strathcarron Hospice
Tuesday 7th May, 1pm to 3.00pm
Strathcarron Hospice, Randolph Hill, Denny
This event is open to the Strathcarron Hospice community.
As a follow up to the successful To Absent Friends event at Strathcarron Hospice in November last year we wanted to invite some of the young people back to a follow-up event.
We were so impressed by their contribution on the day – their maturity, articulacy and openness – an example to adults as much as other young people.
We will host an arts workshop in the Hospice on the afternoon of the 7th of May. We will provide a lunch and access to an artist to work with the young people, and the school professionals who work with them, to capture some of the experiences and perceptions of loss and grief.
The art work and discussion which arises will then be given to the schools to take away with them. We also hope to use outputs to develop a focus on young people and grief on our Bereavement Hub: Bereavement Information and Support | Strathcarron Hospice.
If you have any questions please get in touch with David Henderson, Lead officer Compassionate Communities on david.henderson10@nhs.scot or 07810 550217
Power of Attorney
Organised by NHS Greater Glasgow & Clyde.
Tuesday 7th May 2024, 12.30pm-1.00pm
Taking place online (MS Teams)
This event is open to the public. Everyone is welcome.
The legal parts of future planning can often be confusing, with lots of people not quite sure where to start. This session will explore how to get started with Power or Attorney and making a Will, and why both of these things are so important. There will also be an opportunity to put any questions you have to an expert.
More information: https://www.nhsggc.scot/your-health/planning-for-care/events/
Register: https://link.webropol.com/ep/poa070524
Photo by Scott Graham on Unsplash
A Place for Keening Today?
Organised by Pushing Up the Daisies
Tuesday 7th May 2024, 7:00-8:00pm
Online.
This event is open to the public. Please register in advance.
We are delighted that Madge Bray is joining us to share her explorations of keening in the Scots tradition, the sounds of pibroch lament, and the use of sound and vibration in holding a container for visceral grief.
In Scots tradition, Highland Clan chiefs would have had their “Keening Women“ (mnathan-tuirim) whose role was to attend to the grieving and the uncried tears, and the transition of the soul.
Can these ancient traditional practices, have a current relevance in assisting modern day society in dealing with the fragmentation of loss? Can ritual serve to ease transition from life to death and offer meaning and context in the face of overwhelming grief? Join us to discuss. Find out more about Madge Bray and this event here.
Book your place on Eventbrite here.
For more information contact admin@pushingupthedaisies.org.uk.
What We Leave Behind
Organised by St Columba's Hospice Compassionate Neighbours
Tuesday 7th May
St Columba's Hospice, Edinburgh
This event is open to staff & volunteers from the St Columba's Hospice Compassionate Neighbours team.
To open up conversations about death & dying, the Compassionate Neighbours volunteers at St Columba's Hospice will be exploring the beautiful Dean Cemetery in Edinburgh and thinking about the words and images found on the monuments and headstones across the cemetery and also thinking about how we would like to be remembered in times ahead.
We will then visit Modern One art gallery for coffee, cake and great conversations
Photo credit: courtesy of St Columba's Compassionate Neighbours
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