Blue Mountains Dying To Know Day

Community Morning Tea
Wednesday 6th August | 10am – 1pm
📍 The Hub, Springwood, NSW
🎟️ Reserve your free place here:
https://www.nbmphn.com.au/community-events/dying-to-know-day-2025

We’re not here to whisper about death. We’re here to yell about life.
Join us for a heartfelt morning of storytelling, tea, and courageous conversation as we gently lift the veil on death and dying in the Blue Mountains.

This free community gathering is part of the national Dying to Know Day campaign – an annual invitation to bring death back into everyday conversation. Not with fear, but with purpose, love, and a sense of legacy.

This year, we’re shining a light on the power of intergenerational conversations. Because even though 100% of us will face the end someday, only 53% of Australians feel comfortable talking to a loved one about it. Let’s change that – together.

We’ve gathered death care experts from across the Blue Mountains to offer insight, practical advice, and deep community knowledge on everything from paperwork to ceremony, dying at home to burial options.

Whether you’re planning ahead for yourself or caring for someone you love, this event is here to empower you with knowledge, remind you of your choices, and help you connect with others doing the same.

What to Expect
📖 Real stories from local death care workers
💬 Insight into wills, funerals, dying at home, eco-burials, and more
🍰 A nourishing morning tea and chance to connect
❓ A live panel Q&A with all speakers

 Sessions Include:

1) Who Will Speak For Me? — What Happens When We Don’t Plan Ahead?
Why getting your affairs in order is one of the kindest things you can do for your loved ones. We’ll explore wills, Advance Care Directives, substitute decision-makers, and how to get clear on what you want—before crisis hits.
With Jude Warren – Palliative Care Worker, Eco-Rest Advocate

2) Home Is an Option — Reclaiming the Right to Die—and Mourn—at Home
Did you know you have the legal right to die at home – or care for your person’s body at home after death? We’ll hear stories from families who have done just that, and explore how death doulas and gentle planning can support this deeply personal choice.
With Sarah Barry – Mortality Doula & Funeral Celebrant

3) Where Do I Go When I Die? – Your Body, Your Choice: Blue Mountains Burial, Cremation, and More
From eco-coffins and aquamation to traditional burials and cremation, we’ll unpack your options—cost, environmental impact, and legal considerations included.
With Faye Woodward – Funeral Director

4) Not Just a 40-Minute Slot – Funerals Without Limits: Ceremony Your Way
You don’t have to have a funeral – but here’s why you might want to. Discover how personal, meaningful and creative ceremony can honour a life well lived – whether in a hall, garden, a bookshop, or your own backyard.
With Amy Firth – Interfaith Minister & Funeral Director

5) Let’s Keep Talking – What is a Death Café?
A relaxed and open invitation to continue the conversation long after this event ends. Learn about local Death Cafés and how they’re helping people talk about death in warm, welcoming, and unexpectedly uplifting ways.
With Lisa Charnley – Death Doula & Death Café Host

Followed by a Q&A open session where we can practice having the difficult conversations and explore more deeply all the details you need to know.

Come with your questions, your curiosity, and your appetite – for wisdom, connection, and cake.

Spaces are free but limited, so please book ahead.
🎟️ Reserve your free place here

Blue Mountains Compassionate Communities
Proudly delivered by Wentworth Healthcare, Springwood Neighbourhood Centre Cooperative & Blue Mountains Death Care Collective

SPEAKER BIOS:

Jude Warren is the Palliative Care Volunteer Coordinator at Belong Blue Mountains and the founder of Eco Rest, a community space for exploring natural death care and conscious dying. She’s deeply passionate about Advance Care Planning as one of the most loving and empowering things we can do for ourselves and those we love.

Sarah Barry is a mortality doula and funeral celebrant. She has worked with and alongside Life Rites Funerals since 2020 and has a background in mortuary body care and funeral directing. Sarah would love to see families and communities get more involved in the care of their dead, at home when possible, working through any fear and embracing this process as a natural part of life.

Faye Woodward is a funeral director and celebrant based in Katoomba.  She was drawn to the death care industry after the sudden loss of her father and felt a deep calling to support others in navigating the death of a loved one.  Faye empowers families to honour the lives of their people in whatever ways feel right – every life is unique and their funeral can be too.  With a background as an environmental practitioner, Faye is passionate about sustainable death care options and offers guidance to those seeking a more natural or eco-friendly farewell.

Amy Firth is an Interfaith Minister, Celebrant, and Funeral Director born & raised in the Blue Mountains. With over 20 years’ experience in theatre, music, and the arts, she brings creativity, compassion, and a deep sense of presence to every ceremony she crafts. Amy specialises in bespoke, family-led funerals that honour diverse beliefs and life stories. Passionate about doing death differently, Amy is known for co-creating remarkable ceremony experiences in hidden nooks all over the Blue Mountains.

Lisa Charnley is an End of Life Midwife (Doula), holistic counsellor, and life coach who walks alongside individuals and families during some of life’s most profound moments and specialises in guiding individuals & families through the sacred journey of dying and conscious living. With warmth, wisdom, and grounded presence, she helps people face the end of life not with fear, but with meaning, grace, and connection. Blending practical guidance with soul-level support, Lisa creates sacred space for honest conversations, emotional healing, and conscious transitions—reminding us that even in death, there is deep beauty and humanity.