68 episodes
A Path Home National Home Funeral Alliance
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- Education
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5.0 • 27 Ratings
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What is a home funeral? How can I have a green burial? Do I have to hire a Funeral Director? On this podcast we’ll be focusing on reclaiming our innate right to care for our own loved ones at death in natural, and often, environmentally friendly ways. We’ll demystify the tasks related to after death care through hearing stories from people who have ventured into culturally unfamiliar territory and cared for their own deceased loved ones at home, chose a natural burial or both. Hearing what’s possible and how lives have been transformed by engaging in this final act of love is one path towards changing our culture and our relationship to death. A Path Home is a production of the National Home Funeral Alliance.
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Following Sue's Lead
On today's episode Sarah has a conversation with David Schinsing about his wife Sue's experience with ovarian cancer and the home funeral they planned together. Sue was a nurse, a birth doula and home-schooled their children.
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Nora "Bird" Takes Flight
Today I have a conversation with Lauren Sample about the home funeral and natural burial her family held for her daughter Nora, nicknamed "Bird," and the many final acts of love provided to Bird in her last hours of living and following her death.
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Dr. Annetta Mallon, Down Under
On today's episode I have a conversation with Dr. Annetta Mallon, founder of Gentle Death Education and Planning, in Tasmania. We talk about her work in the community and the state of green burial in Australia. For more information on Annetta's work, click here: https://www.gdep.com.au/
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Changing Lives through Tending Death
On this episode I talk with Margaret Henderson and Robin Cottrell in Ukiah, California. The two serve as death midwives and home funeral guides in their community. They are also singers and members of a Threshold Choir who bring songs to the bedside of terminally ill people.
For more information on Threshold Choir see here: https://thresholdchoir.org/
Margy mentions Redwing Keyssar's book called Last Acts of Kindness. Find it here:
https://redwingkeyssar.com/book/
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Precious Bird
A call to listeners to reach out and share their stories, followed by Sarah's original song, Precious Bird, in honor of her friend Puja.
Precious Bird is Sarah Crews on guitar and vocals.
Tim Crews on mandolin.
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Ann's Last Act of Rebellion
On this episode, Sarah has a conversation with sisters, Lucinda, Maud and Cecily in Ashland, Oregon. The three of them share the story of creating a home funeral for their mother, former Civil Rights attorney turned Oracle, Ann Macrory.
Watch the video of Ann's home funeral here: https://vimeo.com/399209253
Forest Conservation Burial Ground: https://theforestconservationburial.org/
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Customer Reviews
Quiet enough to hear
I learn best by listening. Podcasts expand me. They’re often NOISY. Here, I learn from each deeply true story. Conversational voices talking about the precious, sacred witnessing of the loved one’s presence after death. Makes sense to me. What’s the rush? When I’m dead, it’ll take a while after last breath to get used to it. Maybe float around a little before taking off. I’d like to know this old body is gently held, sung to, washed. Safe and quiet among friends who would do this for me.
Wonderful Stories
Such real people. Such real experiences. I can't get enough of this podcast and the light that it shines on alternative ways of "doing death." Proof for all of us that this movement is really happening. Pull up a chair and let yourself get lost in the beauty and the possibility.
Such a wonderful podcast
Sarah does a great job. The audio is clear and the stories are amazing. I love the theme song and have benefited from learning about so many different experiences surrounding home funerals.