Community Events

Tuesday Sept 23 | Free Online Event

6:00 - 7:00 pm pst.

🌿 Our Bodies Are Designed to Return to the Earth 🌿
Join our Zoom to learn what a Conservation Cemetery is… permanently protected natural land where burials restore habitat. We'll take a deep dive into how a conservation cemetery differs from modern burial practices, and how it compares to green burial.

Here in California, we’re a community that thrives outdoors! From beaches to deserts to mountains, yet when it comes to our final rest, our options are far removed from the natural rhythms that reflect our lifestyle. Modern burial practices - concrete vaults, metal caskets, and toxic embalming chemicals - lock our bodies away from the very process we were designed for: to decompose naturally and nourish the earth. Instead of restoring the land, these practices harm it.

It doesn’t have to be this way.
A Conservation Cemetery is more than green burial. It’s a way of restoring land, protecting wildlife, and ensuring our final act on earth is one of renewal, not depletion.
Join us for this community gathering to:

Learn how conservation cemeteries differ from standard and green cemeteries.

Explore how our end-of-life choices can heal the planet.

Be part of the growing movement urging California lawmakers to cut the red tape and make these options available here at home.

Let's be honest... there isn't a lot of transparency within our current funeral industry, we want to change that! Join us for real conversation about our common burial practices and gain an understanding about how harmful they are not only to our bodies, but to the planet - and learn about greener options that may impact your end-of-life decision making.

Friday Sept 26

6:30 - 8:00 pm | Free

Sweetwater Zen Center

2727 Highland Ave. · National City, CA

The Death Network Discussion Group is a guided (but not rigid) space for deeper, topic-driven conversations around death, dying, and the many ways we relate to them.
Each month, our host team of experienced death workers bring thought-provoking prompts to help spark meaningful discussion. We’re here to explore real talk, in real time, with curious and open-hearted people.

What to expect:
⏳ A welcoming space to explore death through a different lens
⏳ Discussions hosted by a team of experienced death workers
⏳ Each month features thought-provoking prompts to spark deeper conversation
⏳ Not a workshop, not a class—just honest conversation
⏳ Come curious, leave connected

This group is ideal for people who:

Think about death and dying as part of life

Want to connect with others in conversation that’s real, respectful, and human

Aren’t seeking support or therapy, but want a space to talk

We’ll continue to host Death Cafes for those who enjoy open-format dialogue. This group simply offers something a little different - for those ready to go deeper.

Exploring Grief at the Met Museum

Saturday Sept 27 10:30 am - 12:30 pm EST

$65 (early bird $55) NY Met Museum 1000 5th Ave New York 10028

Throughout human history, art has played an important role in the ways that we memorialize loved ones in death and express our grief. Join us at the Metropolitan Museum of Art for a meaningful exploration of how art can illuminate and validate our personal experiences with loss. Led by creative grief professional, Melanie Wilson, and arts educator, Deborah Chi, this intimate group gathering will invite participants to view and discuss several carefully selected works of art that speak to different aspects of the mourning process. Through reflective exercises and thoughtful conversation, participants will have the opportunity to explore their own grief and feelings around dying, using art as a catalyst for deeper understanding. This engaging experience encourages processing and dialogue as we reflect on how these artistic expressions might resonate with our own journeys through grief, creating space for both individual contemplation and shared understanding.

Please note: This is an interactive experience where participants are invited to share thoughts and feelings. We understand that some people prefer to process quietly while others find healing through verbal expression—both approaches are welcome and honored in our group.

This tour is available in English only, and will require some mobility as we will be touring across two floors of the museum.

Group is limited to 15 people. Ticket purchase includes the tour and general admission to the museum.

Every Tuesday | Free

Top Kare Hospice - San Diego, CA

1:15 pm pst

Did you know we offer Free Weekly Tuesday Community NADA Acupuncture at our office 7071 Convoy Ct Suite 101 San Diego, Ca 92111. This is a resource for anyone in the community experiencing grief or wanting to try a holistic modalities to reset the nervous system. Our upcoming student internships with @pacificcollegeedu starts on May 14th. We have 10 appointment time slots available each week at 1:15pm and are taking reservations now. Our conference room is turned into a spa like setting with dim lighting and chairs are placed in a circle. Once each person sits comfortable and ears seeds and needles are placed @dr.amymarie leads a meditation. Text our Volunteer Coordinator Rebekah Finn @harmoniumdeathdoula at 858.833.0546 or email rfinn@topkare.com

Every Wednesday

4:30 - 5:45 pm

South Park Yoga & Wellness

2985 Beech St. San Diego

Free for members / $25 drop in

Grief is a universal experience—one that touches every life, yet is so often pushed aside in our fast-moving world. Whether you're grieving a person, a place, a version of yourself, or something else entirely, you are not alone. In this space, we normalize grief and gently explore creative ways to weave it into our lives, rather than hide it away. Let’s face it—none of us can avoid grief, but we can choose how we meet it.

Each week, we’ll begin by grounding ourselves in the space and settling into a guided meditation to help center the mind and body. From there, we’ll move through gentle, restorative yoga postures designed to support the release of grief held in the body. Afterward, you’ll have a few quiet moments for personal reflection (feel free to bring a journal!) We’ll close our time together in community, with an optional invitation to share what surfaced during the practice.

This is not a support group or therapy session. Rather, it's an invitation to be in community and acknowledge that grief is a natural part of the human experience.

This class is open to all, regardless of yoga or meditation experience. Our intention is to create a supportive, inclusive space where everyone feels welcome. Please bring a yoga mat, a blanket, and a journal if you’d like - mats and blankets will also be available to borrow.

Every 1st Saturday

1:00 - 3:00 pm pst

Pioneer Park Mission Hills

You are invited to the Grief Garden Club! Please join us every first Saturday of the month at Pioneer Park in Mission Hills for a peer-support grief gathering of gardeners. No experience needed! Beginners are welcomed and encouraged!

What is the Grief Garden Club?

A seed, succulent, plant, and harvest swap

A place for tips, tricks, and suggestions for grief gardening

A death positive community space with like minded people

A casual and safe place to discuss grief among peers

What should I bring?

Any seeds, succulents, plants, or harvests for swapping (not mandatory!)

A camping chair or blanket to sit on

Any photos you'd like displayed on the temporary community grief altar we build for each event

Please walk to the back corner of the park where the Calvary Cemetery Monument is located. You will see a row of headstones that were salvaged when this park was converted from a cemetery into a public park. Look for us close to them!

Every Last Sunday of the Month | Free

Top Kare Hospice - San Diego, CA

3:00 - 4:00 pm pst

Experiencing grief? Come check out our Free Monthly Sound Experience with Topkare Hospice’s Bereavement & Volunteer Coordinator Rebekah Finn @harmoniumdeathdoula hosts Free Monthly Sound Experiences for Grief at our office location 7071 Convoy Court Suite 101, San Diego, CA 92111 the last Wednesday of each month from 3:00 pm-4:00 pm. She plays instruments she’s collected throughout her global travels and honors wherever you are on your grief journey. Participants can be who they are and experience for themselves how the vibrations make them feel. We acknowledge grief is an individualized and human experience. Instruments may include: harmonium, shruti box, buffalo drum, deer drum, bells, shaker, chapaka, therapeutic infinity harp, ocean drum, swing chime, crystal sound bowls, and wooden koshi chimes.

More Information here

Every 4th Saturday

10:00 - 11:30 am pst | Free

Seaside Center for Spiritual Living

1613 Lake Dr · Encinitas, CA

At a Death Cafe, people, often strangers, gather to eat treats, drink tea and discuss death. Our objective is to increase awareness of death with a view to helping people make the most of their (finite) lives.

We are creating an inviting, safe space to share the heartfelt experience of diving into a taboo topic which unites us all. Whether you've experienced death first hand or you're exploring your mortality, you can expect authentic, engaging and lively conversation with people from all walks of life.

Our discussion groups are hosted by volunteer facilitators and the intention is to foster positive conversation within a like-minded community. Please be mindful and respectful of others. Remember, this is a discussion led by you. We want to hear as many voices as possible.