Compassionate Halesworth - Tributes to honour and remember

Mon 10 May - Fri 14 May,  11.00-15.00, St Elizabeth, physical event at Pear Tree Centre

Come and visit Seva and the team at The Pear Tree Centre. Have a cuppa, a chat and leave a memory for a loved one on our Memory Tree in the garden to honour and remember loved ones. COVID-19 restrictions will be in place.

Compassionate Cafe at the Pear Tree Centre

Mon 10 May, 10.00 - 12.00, St Elizabeth, physical event at Pear Tree Centre, 6 people max

Are you in a good place to die? Join Seva from The Pear Tree Centre and Lucy from Rosedale Funeral Home for a cuppa, cake and explore planning for end of life. What music would you like at your funeral? Who would you like to be at your side when you die? COVID restrictions will be in place.

Life's Questions 

Mon 10 May, 11.00 - 12.30, St Nicholas, Zoom

Life’s Questions gives young people the chance to discuss life’s challenges openly by recognising that children need to have the opportunity to talk about difficult subjects such as death, divorce, loss and grief. The hope is that Life’s Questions will help build their resilience now and in the future.

Compassionate Conversations Awareness Training 

Mon 10 May, 14:00 - 15:30, St Elizabeth, Zoom

Being able to talk with and comfort people who are experiencing end of life, loss or bereavement can be a daunting prospect - but it needn't be that way. Compassionate Conversations is a free awareness training session. Aimed at helping people (aged 18+) build the skills and confidence to enable open, honest and sensitive conversations around end of life, loss and bereavement, whilst identifying ways to help and support others.

Hospice Neighbours and acts of kindness

Mon 10 May, 15.30 - 15.40, St Nicholas, YouTube video

A short video hilighting the Hospice Neighbours project and the value of connection to our neighbours and local communties.

Making your living Will

Mon 10 May, 18:00 - 18:30, St Helena

Have you prepared for your end of life and made your wishes known to others? This short talk with St Helena chief executive, Mark Jarman-Howe, will cover the ways you can talk about it, plan for it and record your wishes.

Off The Twig presents The King Who Wanted to Live Forever

Tues 11 May, 10.00 - 10.30, YouTube video

The King Who Wanted to Live Forever is a short family-friendly shadow theatre film that explores emotions about dying, death and grief. The story is about a king who is so terrified of death that he ends up destroying all that he loves finally realises one day that he can no longer hold back his grief for all that he has lost. This Off The Twig film features an original story by Su Squire with beautiful shadow theatre by Zannie Fraser.

Compassionate Companions Video

Tues 11 May, 11.00 - 11.30, YouTube video

See how Compassionate Companions are supporting people at end of life in rural Suffolk with support from GP Lindsay Crockett and the Peninsula Practice. The aim is to enable this small locality to become “a compassionate community” networked and supportive to each other at end of life.

Grave Talk 

Tues 11 May, 14.00 - 15.00, St Nicholas, Zoom

Creating a space where questions can be shared and discussed about death and dying. Having someone to talk to can often be invaluable – but how do you start those conversations?

Kinda Education Campfire

Tues 11 May, 18.00 - 19.30, St Elizabeth, physical event Kinda Forest School, Kali Woods, Halesworth

Kinda Education is giving communities a chance to come together and open up the conversation around death, dying and bereavement. This evening will be held around a campfire and includes well-being activities, reflection and rememberance. This is a chance to find out more about Compassionate Communities in and around Halesworth and the multi -enerational work of Kinda Education. Numbers are limited and COVID-19 restrictions will be in place.

Compassionate Felixstowe - Radio Show 

Weds 12 May, 10:00 - 11:00, St Elizabeth, Felixstowe Radio

Meet the people who are supporting Compassionate Felixstowe. Cafe's, running clubs, parish nurses and volunteers are all playing a part and these stories will be recognised and celebrated with Felixstowe Radio presenter Rob Dunger.

Care & loss during COVID: Palliative care nursing Q&A

Wednesday 12 May, 11.00 - 12.00, St Elizabeth, Zoom

Broadcaster Rachel Sloane hosts an interview and Q&A session with the specialist palliative care nursing teams at Beccles Hospital & St Elizabeth Hospice, Ipswich. This is a great opportunity to find out more about the services provided by the well-respected organisations and to ask questions of the panel.

Anticipatory Grief for Adolescents: Teens facing the imminent death of someone significant in their life

Weds 12 May, 4-5.30pm , St Nicholas, Zoom

A session for adults who would better like to support an adolescent facing anticipatory grief. 

Safe Harbour – reaching out to underserved groups in the last year of life

Weds 12 May, 11.00 - 11.30, St Helena, YouTube premiere

This talk will outline the Safe Harbour Project and the work we are doing to increase referrals from hard to reach communities in the area. Debbie Pigeon, outreach clinical nurse specialist at St Helena, will explain some of the difficulties and barriers that people experience in accessing palliative care and what we are doing to overcome this.

Ending Life's Taboo

Weds 12 May, 16.00 - 17.00, St Helena, YouTube premiere

Imagine you are 27 years old and your life is just coming together; your career is taking off, you have just got engaged and plan to marry.  Would you be ready to hear that your life is going to end?  This was Ross' reality.  His mum talks about the impact it had on him.

Run Talk Run, Ipswich

Weds 12 May, 18.00-19.00, Cult Cafe, Ipswich Waterfront

Run Talk Run is a free mental health running support group that exists to make both running and mental health support less intimidating and more accessible. It's free, 5km - open to all abilities and no runner is left behind.

A Day in the Life of a Funeral Director - Laying the Myths to Rest

Thurs 13 May, 10.00 - 11.00, St Elizabeth, Zoom

Join Melanie to discover more about her role as a funeral director.  Her family business is well known in Suffolk & Essex and has a reputation for excellence of service to bereaved families.

Compassionate Cafe at the Pear Tree Centre

Thurs 13 May, 10.00 - 12.00, St Elizabeth, physical event at Pear Tree Centre, 6 people max

Are you in a good place to die? Join Seva from The Pear Tree Centre and Lucy from Rosedale Funeral Home for a cuppa, cake and explore planning for end of life. What music would you like at your funeral? Who would you like to be at your side when you die? COVID restrictions will be in place.

The benefits of therapeutic touch at end of life 

Thurs 13 May, 11.00 - 12.00, St Helena, YouTube premiere

Complementary therapy is a non-pharmacological approach of using various therapeutic treatments and products to support patients and their loved ones with facing the end of life. This short presentation will demonstrate some massage techniques and Namaste care principles and how to create a space to enable a relaxed mind-set, improved symptom control and wellbeing.  

Are you 'Dying to talk'?

Thurs 13 May, 13.00 - 14.00, Age Concern Colchester and North East Essex, Zoom

There is no right or wrong way to die - we are all individuals- the experience will be different for everyone. We plan for moving home, study and career, giving birth, getting married- yet we don’t plan for death. Why?

It is so important for families to think, talk about, and plan for dying, to ensure that we each experience death in line with our wishes. We want everyone- to be in a good place physically, mentally & emotionally when they die- with access to the right care. Let’s start the conversation now.

Age Concern Colchester and North East Essex is a charitable organisation focussed on improving quality of life for individuals in later years. 

Grave Talk

Thurs 13 May, 14.00 - 15.00, St Nicholas

Creating a space where questions can be shared and discussed about death and dying. Having someone to talk to can often be invaluable – but how do you start those conversations?

Care and loss during COVID - How do we heal?

Thurs 13 May, 15.00 - 16.00, All hospices, Zoom

St Elizabeth, St Helena and St Nicholas Hospices will be leading this conversational session on behalf of our Integrated Care System (ICS), which provides an opportunity to listen to others experiences and to contribute to the discussion exploring:

1. Who needs to heal? What has been the impact of COVID-19?

2. What’s changed now in a post-COVID world? What have we learned?

3. What is the contribution of health and care to healing? What helps?

4. How do we help everyone to heal? How do we make sure that no one is left behind?

Off the Twig presents - Tales from the Heart of the Labyrinth

Thurs 13 May, 19.00 - 20.30, St Elizabeth, Zoom

Off The Twig presents an evening of story telling, poetry and song. Drawing inspiration from the world of traditional tales and folklore, Su Squire shares stories of life, death, love, loss and finding beauty in the midst of it all. Interwoven with poetry and told with warmth and humour and a touch of magic, this feast of tales will be served up alongside beautiful songs by singer-songwriter Holly D Johnston for this special Compassionate Communities event.

Finding peace through dying, death and bereavement 

Fri 14 May, 10.00 - 10.30, St Helena, YouTube premiere

St Helena chaplain, Terry, shares some of his thoughts following his first year working in the spiritual care team at the hospice. Part of Terry’s role is to help people find peace in their last days or hours, through having conversations about their life story, love, forgiveness, remembrance, and through tears of joy.

"We’re all going to die, so let’s really talk about death." 

Fri 14 May, 18.00 -  18.30, St Helena, YouTube premiere

"We’re all going to die, so let’s really talk about death." Toby Freeman and his family were supported by St Helena when his big brother, Robin, was diagnosed with incurable germ cell cancer. Toby received bereavement counselling after his brother's death in 2011 which he found life-changing. 

"The bereavement support really helped kick start my life around the grief. I take it with me rather than it being my entire world, with me just trying to follow on behind it." In this session, Toby has an open and honest conversation about dying, deat and grief with St Helena clinical nurse specialist, Josh Wilkins.

Rest and Restore

Fri 14 May, 19.00 - 20.30, St Elizabeth, Zoom

Stress and grief become held in our bodies. Experienced yoga and somatic movement teacher Jo offers breathing, gentle movements and rest to allow physical and emotional tensions to release.

Finding Magic 

Fri 14 May, 19.00, Zoom, Tickets £5

In her beautiful and poignant one-woman show, Beverley Bishop explores her progression through grief and healing as she tries to understand her own bereavement journey whilst seeking to find her magic again.Following the loss of her son Jess to suicide, Beverley invites us to share in her new reality of unpredictable triggers, clichés and flashbacks, and the surreal humour she deploys to ‘make it through’. Finding Magic is a story of loss, longing, love and laughter. 

Death Cafe - Adele Chaplin

Sat 15 May, 18:00 - 20:00, St Elizabeth, Zoom

Join our Death Café for an evening filled with life-affirming conversations about death and our mortality with Adele Chaplin - just bring an open mind and a drink of your choice.

Death Cafés provide a respectful space where you can feel comfortable sharing your questions, curiosity, fears, beliefs and stories about any/all aspects of death, grief, mourning and bereavement. There is often lots of laughter, as well as a few tears. 

Run Talk Run, Ipswich

Sun 16 May, 10.15-11.15, Cult Cafe, Ipswich Waterfront

Run Talk Run is a free mental health running support group that exists to make both running and mental health support less intimidating and more accessible. It's free, 5km - open to all abilities and no runner is left behind.

What Happens at a Funeral

St Elizabeth, YouTube video

Throughout their years in the funeral profession, Rosedale have encountered many families who are unsure about whether children should or shouldn’t be allowed at funerals.  When they don’t know what a funeral is, how can they be asked to make an informed decision about whether to attend one, when someone close to them has died? 

This film is there to educate, dispel myths and answer many questions surrounding what happens at a funeral.  Taking inspiration from a young man who told us that “When I walked through the door to my mum’s funeral, I didn’t know what I was walking into.” We hope that this resource will empower children, young people and adults alike and break down some of the taboos around discussing death and dying. 

The complete film and training resources will be available from the Rosedale website. Please email anne@rosedalefuneralhome.co.uk for further details.