Sign In / Register
Claire Turnham
A growing interest in low-cost and eco-friendly funerals has prompted Warkworth Wellsford Hospice to organise a public talk in Warkworth this month.Claire Turnham, chair of the Home Funeral Network UK, will speak on ‘Gentle Care in Death’ at the new Masonic Hall on Baxter Street on Tuesday, July 19, from 2pm to 4pm.
Claire is in New Zealand to educate people about caring for their own at death, personalising and arranging a funeral, and the benefits of home funerals.
Hospice nurse and palliative care education specialist Karen Williamson invited Claire to speak in Warkworth. Karen says more and more people are asking about alternatives to the traditional funeral, and one of hospice’s goals is to give people the information they need to make their own choices.
“When I started work at Warkworth Wellsford Hospice eight years ago, patients and families never asked us about funerals, but now we get questions all the time,” Karen says.
“People want to know how they can have a funeral that is less expensive, more environmentally friendly, or just no-fuss.”
Karen believes people should be encouraged to talk about death and to consider how they want to be cared for at the end of their life. She has organised several Death Cafes and has written a brief guide to funeral planning, which will be available at the talk for a nominal cost.
Entry to Gentle Care in Death is by koha and bookings are essential. Phone 425 9535 or email lesley.ingham@hospicehouse.org.nz
