Home Hospice Association

DEATH CAFÉS

A Death Café is a group-led discussion about death. The goal of these spaces is to encourage and normalize conversations about this universal, yet not often talked about, experience. By becoming more aware of death, we can better appreciate and make the most of our finite lives.

About the program

Home Hospice Association’s Death Cafés are a vital component of our Death Education programming, and build on the international social movement of Death Cafés that emerged in the UK in 2010. Leading the national community in the facilitation of Death Cafés, HHA is committed to this important community outreach.

Whether a virtual or in-person event, all HHA’s Death Cafés are free to attend!

Why we meet

To invite conversation and explore feelings about dying and death, as well as living and life.

To bring people - often strangers - together to talk about death in the hope that they will extend this dialogue to their friends, families, and communities.

To engage with our own mortality in ways that help us deal with feelings of fear and anxiety around death.

Community-Specific Death Cafés

We're please to offer *most* of our Death Cafes virtually from 7:00-8:30PM (EST).

To view all upcoming dates/times and register, please visit our Upcoming Events page.

BIPOC Death Café

This death café for members of BIPOC communities provides a forum for open and honest discussion and a supportive place in which participants can navigate their feelings and thoughts about dying, death, grief and loss.

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Café Mortel

Un café mortel, c'est une rencontre où on discute de la mort. Notre but est d'aider les gens à être à l'aise avec l'idée de la mort et leur finitude. Les participants peuvent échanger des idées sur la mort, confortablement et authentiquement, dans un espace respectueux et confidentiel. Notez que les cafés mortels sont des espaces de rencontre mais non de soutien ou de counselling pour le deuil, et qu’il n’y aura aucune représentation de services commerciaux ou spirituels.

Caregivers Death Café

The Caregivers Death Café is for anyone who is currently, or who has ever been, in a caregiving role. Providing care to someone who sick or facing death can often greatly impact the caregiver’s relationship with their own mortality. This death café gives caregivers the chance to openly talk about their feelings, thoughts, and experiences around dying, death, grief, and loss.

LGBTQ2S+ Death Café

Feelings about death are as diverse as people are. And while we recognize that what someone thinks or feels about dying, death, grief or loss isn’t necessarily determined by their gender identity or sexual orientation, we also know how important it is to be able to talk about these issues and feelings in a space that feels safe and with people who share similar life experiences.

MAiD Death Café

Medical Assistance in Dying (MAiD) is one of our most requested Death Cafés, and we are proud to provide an open forum to discuss and destigmatize this topic in a safe, non-judgmental space. While MAiD became legal in Canada in June 2016, it remains a complex and deeply personal issue, with many people who seek access to MAiD or their loved ones feeling stigmatized and unsupported. This is a space to share our thoughts, feelings and emotions around MAiD, to discuss the emerging laws on MAiD and mental health, and to talk about the impact MAiD has on families and loved ones. 

Neurodivergent Death Café

Neurodiverse individuals often respond to loss and experience/express grief differently than their neurotypical peers. They often have different needs, and can be at greater risk of experiencing "suffocated grief," where grief is punished and misunderstood compared to societal norms and expectations. Grief may appear less significant while also being internalized with greater intensity. HHA is happy to hold space for this important dialogue. *Formal diagnosis not required.*

Older Adult Death Café

This Death Café is an opportunity for older adults to engage in conversations that honour their life's experiences and invite meaningful reflections on the transitions of aging and mortality. Intended to increase participants' awareness of death, this event explores our relationships with dying, death, loss and grief.

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Open Death Café

At Open Death Cafés people gather together to discuss death. This event doesn’t have any particular objectives or themes aside from increasing everyone’s awareness of death and exploring our relationships with death, dying and grief. As we grapple with what life looks like today, having a safe and non-judgmental space to talk about difficult subjects is so important and can have a significant impact both on how we live and how we die.

Parents & Guardians Death Café

Adults who have children and teens in their lives have a unique challenge when talking about dying, death, and grief. The HHA Death Cafés for Parents & Guardians actively explore how adult participants can intentionally help the children in their lives by talking about death with them openly and comfortably.

Pet Lovers Death Café

Approximately 13,209,754 people in Canada have dogs, and 14,342,018 have cats - that’s plenty of people who are going to experience pet loss one day. The Pet Lovers Death Café brings together the pet lover community so that the topic of pet death can be normalized and compassionately discussed through encouraging open discourse and examination. Talking about our experiences and feelings related to the illness and loss of a beloved pet can also be a great way to start the conversation about our own dying and death.

Spoonie Death Café

Recognizing that individuals who struggle with chronic pain & chronic illness face their mortality differently and daily, Home Hospice Association's Spoonie Death Cafés provide the opportunity for people with chronic pain & chronic illness to come together to talk about death, dying, and grief, and whatever these topics may bring up.

Host Partner Death Cafés

These Death Cafes are hosted on-site/in-person by our partners.

To view all upcoming dates/times and register, please visit our Upcoming Events page.

Calgary Public Library Death Café

Get ready Calgary, here we come! We’re thrilled to bring our HHA Death Cafes to the Calgary Public Library! Led by a Calgary-based HHA Death Doula, these Death Cafes allow participants to experience the power of reflection and connection. Let’s get together and talk about death… it won’t kill us!

City of Cambridge Death Café

In partnership with the City of Cambridge and facilitated by an HHA-trained Death Doula, our Death Cafes create an open dialogue around dying, death, loss, and grief. Let’s get together and talk about death… it won’t kill us!

Dignity Memorial Death Café

Continuing this incredible partnership, we're thrilled to host Death Cafes at the Dignity Memorial First Memorial Funeral Services Chapel in Ottawa. Join us for community connection and compassionate conversation, led by Ottawa-based HHA Death Doulas.

Glad Day Bookshop Death Café

Join us at Glad Day Bookshop in Toronto for a supportive space where LGBTQ2S+ individuals can openly explore thoughts, feelings, and conversations about mortality and grief. Led by HHA Death Doulas from LGBTQ2S+ communities, this event is open to LGBTQ2S+ participants only.

Ottawa Public Library Death Café

We’re excited to partner with the Ottawa Public Library (OPL) for our HHA Death Cafe programming! Led by an Ottawa-based HHA Death Doula, our OPL Death Cafes give participants the chance to benefit from shared dialogue and community connection. Let’s get together and talk about death… it won’t kill us!

Would your organization or community group like to host a Death Café? If you’re interested in bringing an HHA Death Café to your community, check our our Community Workshops & Presentations page.

Does your organization or business have a space where we could run a regular in-person Death Café in your community? We welcome the opportunity to expand our Host Partnerships, and would love to hear from you! Learn more on our Community Partnerships page, or send us an email.