“The Cost of Goodbye: Confronting Funeral Poverty in Our Communities”
Funeral poverty and indigent burial continue to be overlooked issues that disproportionately impact marginalized communities. Rising funeral costs, limited access to affordable alternatives, and systemic inequities leave families burdened with overwhelming expenses and difficult choices during times of grief. This year’s conference theme challenged us to confront these injustices head-on and explore sustainable, community-centered solutions.
Our keynote speaker, Dr. Pamela Prickett, had a post-conference chat with Sara Williams, FCA Board President, to discuss the subject of her presentation, unclaimed deaths in this country. Watch that recording here. Prickett interview
Miranda Panther, NAGPRA Officer for the Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians Tribal Historic Preservation Office (EBCI THPO), gave an in-depth introduction to the Native American Graves Protection and Repatriation Act Federal law (1990) in her talk “Returning to the Earth: Native American Perspectives in Burial and Death Care.” This law “has provided for the protection and return of Native American human remains, funerary objects, sacred objects, and objects of cultural patrimony. By enacting NAGPRA, Congress recognized that human remains of any ancestry ‘must at all times be treated with dignity and respect.’ . . . (US Senate Report 101-473).” Explore more about NAGPRA at the Federal website: Native American Graves Protection and Repatriation Act (U.S. National Park Service) Read an article about NAGPRA, co-authored by Ms. Panther, which appeared in Advances in Archaeological Practice (2023). Panther article
Nasser Khadjenoori discussed insights from his latest book, “Hodie Mihi, Cras Tibi,” an unconventional photo book that profoundly reflects life, death, and cherished memories. Through a combination of photographs, poems, and personal writings, it captures the essence of his journey spanning 13+ years, during which he explored cemeteries in more than 30 countries. His presentation included a moving and evocative video featuring photographs, poetry and prose from his book. He graciously gifted a copy of his book to each Conference attendee. More about Nasser: View a portfolio of his images, and watch a podcast that discusses his work. Nasser podcast
Mel Bennett, Co-Founder of Life Forest, believes every person deserves a dignified, recorded burial, and a public guardianship burial program is one such offering that meets this objective. At the conference, Mel used conference volunteers to perform a live skit. Through their various roles, Mel demonstrated how under a public guardianship, your assets are slowly sold off to support this arrangement, often leading to a person becoming indigent at their death. Learn more about the innovative no-cost alternative offered at Life Forest. Life Forest video
Isabel Knight, President of the National Home Funeral Alliance, and a volunteer for the FCA of Pennsylvania, discussed how to make dying more affordable with her presentation “Some Ice and a Mini-Van: How Home Funerals Can Make Dying More Affordable.” Watch a video recorded at the conference where Isabel invites you to be part of the NHFA pilots for community death care groups! Knight video
Liz Dunnebacke previously served on the Board of Directors of the Green Burial Council and now is the Executive Director of Wake in New Orleans. She was one of the founders of the Equitable Disposition Alliance in an effort to provide sustainable and affordable end-of-life care for all. Learn more about her conference presentation and how you can get involved here. Dunnebacke video
Sarah Chavez is the Executive Director of The Order of the Good Death, co-founder of the anti-racist nonprofit the Collective for Radical Death Studies, and one of our most vocal advocates for funeral industry reform. Sarah’s conference presentation, “We’ve Got Each Other (And Our Dead): Addressing Funeral Poverty Through Organizing & Community Care,” had us at hello as she recounted gripping stories of newsboy funerals. Between 1850 and 1910 these events were profound collective rituals displaying solidarity and commitment to avoid a pauper’s burial. Be involved! Learn more with The Order’s Legislative Advocacy Hub! And sign up for the Death Positive Advocate! Legislative Advocacy | The Order of the Good Death Take a deep dive and learn more about newsboy funerals here. Newsboy Funerals
Sara Williams, FCA Board President, discussed the “12 Funeral Myths” that continue to pervade our society’s consciousness. For example, did you know that embalming is never required in any state? Use this bookmark, compliments of FCA North Carolina, as a reminder on how to avoid mortuary mischief! Bookmark
Victoria Haneman, Professor, University of Georgia School of Law, has published extensively on the death care industry and in particular the way in which tax law may be leveraged to meaningfully address funeral poverty. She proposes a change to the 529 savings plan to allow their use in establishing a death care fund to pay for funeral expenses. Watch a video from Victoria here. Haneman video
Joyal Mulheron, Founder, Evermore, has been a policy advisor to the White House and Congress and worked on both the tobacco and the childhood obesity settlements. Utilizing her previous experience and lessons learned with these two campaigns, she discussed what the FCA needed to do to mobilize our affiliates and supporters for funeral industry reform. Watch her recap video here. Mulheron video
Amy Shea, PhD, Writing Program Coordinator for Mount Tamalpais College (a free community college for the incarcerated people of San Quentin), and author of “Too Poor To Die: The Hidden Realities of Dying in the Margins,” prepared the following video for the conference. We are so excited to see her book in print soon! Shea video
Pallbearer Ministry of the St. Joseph of Arimathea Society at Saint Xavier High School, Louisville KY, is a ministry that provides trained student pallbearers, a prayer service with Scripture readings, and a dignified final resting place for the deceased. This ministry brings dignity and respect to the funerals of those who die alone or without available family or friends to serve as pallbearers. Watch the moving video about this program here. Pallbearer Ministry
Loose Ends, a volunteer community that matches handwork finishers with textile projects people have left undone due to death or disability, was a great way for conference attendees to learn how their efforts can reconnect a bereaved individual with a garment or accessory that was begun for them by a loved one. Loose Ends video
Conference Attendees were invited to share inexpensive, creative ways they used to honor their loved ones which were personally meaningful to them. Have a look at some of these here: