Orange County Death Cafe May 1 2025

Notes from Orange County Death Café, May 1, 2025

Moderator: James McKelvey

ANNOUNCEMENTS:

-There are now 6 Death Cafes in Durham and Orange counties:

-1st Thursday of the month, 6:00-8:00 p.m.: Orange County Death Café,
Endswell Funeral Home, 407 Meadowlands Dr., Hillsborough, facilitator James
McKelvey. Registration at https://endswellfuneralhome.com/news-and-events/

-2nd Monday of the month, 6:00-8:00 p.m.: Hillsborough Death Café, 903 Eno
Street, Hillsborough, facilitated by Neidra Clark. Potluck. To register contact Neidra at
neidra@mindspring.com.

-3rd Monday of the month, 9:30-11:00 a.m.: Daylight Death Café, Seymour
Center, Chapel Hill, facilitated by John Chase. To register contact the Seymour Center
front desk, 919-968-2070.

-3rd Wednesday of the month, 6:00-8:00 p.m.: Orange County Death Café,
Endswell Funeral Home, 407 Meadowlands Dr., Hillsborough, facilitated by Sara
Williams. Registration at https://endswellfuneralhome.com/news-and-events/

-4th Monday of the month, 5:30-7:30 p.m.: Southwest Durham Death Café,
Southwest Regional Library, Shannon Road, Durham, facilitated by Kathy Rudy, Ph.D.
No registration needed.

-4th Thursday of the month, 1:30-3 p.m., LGBTQ+ Death Café, Seymour Center,
Chapel Hill, facilitated by Tsyr Han Chow.

UPCOMING EVENTS:

-Shrouding Workshop at Bluestem, May 16 from Noon to 2:00. Register at
Endswell Funeral Home, https://endswellfuneralhome.com/news-and-events/

-Re-emergence of Green Burial and DIY Funerals, Durham Main Library
(downtown), May 24, Noon-2:00 p.m.

-Funeral Consumers Alliance conference, June 26-29, for more information
and to register, https://funerals.org/2025-biennial-conference

CONVERSATIONS:

-Swedish Death Cleaning—yes or no?

-Who’s the funeral for?

-NOK box

-The Conversation Project

-Advance Directives

-SECU Estate Planning

-Cultural Expectations at Death

-When is an autopsy required?

RESOURCES:

Book:

-Magnusson, Margareta. The Gentle Art of Swedish Cleaning.
https://www.amazon.com/s?k=swedish+cleaning+book&crid=F5TB1KG5V5P6&s
prefix=swedish+cleaning+book%2Caps%2C406

Websites:

-Advance Directive for Dementia: https://compassionandchoices.org/wp-
content/uploads/2024/03/Dementia-Tool-Fact-sheet-01-30-24.pdf

-Conversation starter guide: https://theconversationproject.org/wp-
content/uploads/2020/12/ConversationStarterGuide.pdf

-Five Wishes: https://www.fivewishes.org/
Living Funeral: https://www.care.com/c/what-is-a-living-funeral-celebration-
of-life/

-NC Advance Directives:
https://www.sosnc.gov/forms/by_title/_advance_healthcare_directives

-NOK box: https://www.thenokbox.com/

-NC Medical Society Advance Directives:
https://ncmedsoc.org/healthync/end-of-life-resources/

-State Employees Credit Union Estate Planning:
https://www.ncsecu.org/planning/estate-planning.html