10. #AbetterWay – From lived experience to your door: Help through understanding

Funerals don’t have to be about choosing options from a flip book at a funeral home anymore, there are so many options available to honour the life of a loved one.

Today we chat to Keri Alexander, founder of A Better Way Funerals, who started her business after a pushy funeral director left her reeling.

We explore what a day in the life of a funeral director looks like and give some insight into the process of death behind the scenes.

In this episode we cover:

• Family coming first during the funeral experience
• Having choice around style, timing and venues
• Society norms around shying away from death
• Opening people’s minds to alternative options
• Honouring loved ones in an authentic way
• By serving people we can serve ourselves
• A different level of grief when losing a child
• Nurturing people through grief
• What happens after someone has passed
• Some of the paperwork involved
• What happens after the funeral or cremation
• The impact of cremations on the environment
• Looking at a new process called aquamation
• Choosing your support person
• Normalising conversations about death, grief and loss.

Resources and links mentioned in this episode:

• #Hashtag Death Instagram: @hashtag_death
• Ways to work with Ingrid: com.au
• Ingrid Reiger’s Facebook: @forevernowcelebrant
• Ingrid Reiger’s Instagram: @ingrid_forevernowcelebrant
• Keri Alexander: linkedin.com/in/keri-alexander-08470664/
• A Better Way Funerals: abetterwayfunerals.com.au
• Episode 6: Interview with Professor Michael Arnold on alternative forms of body disposal: https://www.buzzsprout.com/2222592/13603215-6-technologyofdeath-beyond-rest-academics-probe-future-cemeteries-transcript

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