Commitee - Past Members

Since doing my very first funeral where everything felt so wrong, I have immersed myself head deep into the world of death and dying to advocate for a BETTER death, a BETTER farewell. Over the past 4 years I have met fellow deaths who are changing the way we perceive death and offering choices above and beyond anyone’s wildest dreams.

Death is where it’s at and the death space is where I want to be.

Phone : 0418 256 620
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Website : www.deedoesdeath.com.au

With over 20 years in the community services sector and a degree in psychology, I have heard the call to move further into truly heart-based work. With the sudden loss of my brother to suicide in 2006 along with other losses in life, I realised how disempowered families can be in being involved in the end-of-life phases of their loved ones. I am passionate about educating people and empowering them to take back control of the final farewells with a specific focus on family led funerals and promoting choices communities are not aware of.

My preference is that we all work together with our funeral homes and industries to fill the gaps in enabling us to create a farewell that brings peace and closure by being more involved in the transition from death to disposal in a more natural and inclusive manner.

I have chosen to become an End-of-Life Doula to support and improve our death literacy and to normalise this natural part of the life cycle process. I am extremely passionate about people planning ahead while they are well and healthy as an ‘Act of Love’ for their friends and families. I believe grief and loss is difficult enough without using that precious mourning time to make decisions and plan for a loved one when we don’t know what they would have wanted.

I am thrilled to be a part of NDAN and to join with them in empowering choice at the End of life.

Phone : 04 4818 4818

Website : graceandgratitude.com.au

Helen Callanan is both a practicing End of Life Doula and the founder and educator of Preparing the Way which presents the End of Life Doula Training in collaboration with the Australian Doula College.

Initially training and practicing in Traditional Chinese Medicine & body work along with almost 30 years direct experience working and being with people who are very ill and the dying in both public and private palliative/hospice situations provides Helen with a wealth of practical experience.

This includes over 30 years as a professional Reiki II practitioner and 20 years teaching Reiki ~ all providing Helen with insight into health and healing, including end-of-life, mental/emotional and spiritual development.

Helen is an advocate for ongoing personal and professional development in her own practice as an End of Life Doula and of those she teaches. To that end, Helen has pursued ongoing professional training in Medical Terminology, Grief and Loss Counselling, Certificate IV in Training and Assessment, Death Midwifery with Michael & Anne Barbato, Digging Deeper (6 day live in intensive training with Natural Grace Holistic Funeral Directors), various online study in end of life work and support.

In addition, for several years during that time Helen was working with a global personal development organisation as a leader, coach and manager which has fueled Helen’s passion for education and making a difference in the world.

Helen has also been studying with a Meditation Master teacher for many years and regularly goes to America to deepen her studies and volunteer at a private not-for-profit Animal Rescue Sanctuary inside her passionate commitment to animal welfare and conservation.

Helen has joined the Committee of the Natural Death Advocacy Network here in Australia and is a champion and advocate for family led end of life care, education and choices for all people at end of life.

www.preparingtheway.com.au      email: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.    phone: 0413917574

As a Social Worker, Christine commenced working in community palliative care in 1999. Working with people who were dying felt like all her knowledge, life experiences and skills had come together and she has since worked within the field at various levels, including senior management. More than anything, it is the privilege of working with dying people and their families that has driven Christine to continue her work in the field of death, dying and bereavement.

Becoming a Celebrant in 2010 created different options of working with people and whilst always being a strong advocate for advance care planning, as an Independent Funeral Celebrant, Christine became an advocate for families, to celebrate lives the way they chose.

In 2019 Christine completed her Deathwalker training and continued to spread her knowledge and experience within the community – increasing death literacy and encouraging compassionate communities.  She developed a workshop “Drop Dead Laughing” advocating for people to consider many options for both their living, dying and funeral planning.

Christine brings to NDAN many years’ experience and enthusiasm to spread the word about the natural approach to living, dying, and celebrating lives.

Phone : 0474 128 869

Website : www.soulfulceremonies.com.au   

Dr Annetta Mallon is an End of Life Consultant and Educator who has a private practice for End of Life Doula, home funeral and advance planning clients in addition to evidence-based EFT psychotherapy specialising in grief and loss, and injury and trauma recovery.

A passionate educator, Annetta oversees a comprehensive and inclusive online End of Life Consultant training which includes all seven non-medical end of life work roles and features expert contributors from both Australia and overseas.

Annetta is an Honorary Adjunct with Western Sydney University, a specialist lecturer and speaker in the arena of end of life, death, grief and after-death spaces, and a lecturer with Navitas Sydney City Campus for undergraduate and postgraduate units in social sciences, health sciences, and health psychology. As a psychotherapist of three decades experience, Annetta works primarily in the fields of complex and disenfranchised grief, loss, injury and trauma recovery, and childhood sexual assault (CSA).

Learn more about Annetta with this link.

Website : https://www.gdep.com.au

Phone : 0412702833

Libby Moloney, of Natural Grace, is a Holistic Funeral Director practising natural,Libby Moloney, of Natural Grace, is a Holistic Funeral Director practising natural,culturally sensitive, family led funeral care. Whilst Natural Grace specialises in home-based care, its own home can be found in “The Sanctuary”, a purpose built funeralhome in Woodend and in community care centres around the state.

Libby is a founding committee member of the Natural Death Advocacy Network(NDAN), a not-for-profit community organisation committed to demystifying andreclaiming death and dying in our community as well as the founding Chair of ItTakes A Village Compassionate Communities Inc. (ITAV) which is also a not-for-profit community organisation whose vision is to encourage capacity building incompassionate Australian communities. Passionately committed to raisingawareness about natural cemeteries in Australia, Libby works actively withcommunity groups to establish natural sanctuaries for the interment of our dead.

Connecting, networking, empowering, and supporting people to do what they are passionate about comes naturally to Nicole.

Many years ago, Nicole’s youngest brother was killed in a road accident on his 21^st birthday. This experience ignited in her a passion to know more about death, dying, grief and spirituality that has continued throughout her life.

Nicole is passionate about her community and has had many roles within this sector, either through volunteering or employment, including projects working with the multicultural community (“New and Emerging Communities Leadership Program CALD Community”), CFA, Farmer’s Markets and Landcare and has undertaken the Alpine Valley Community Leadership Program.

In the recent past, Nicole has worked for the Beechworth Cemetery, coordinated and spoken at the “What to know before you go” workshops for the Indigo Shire, and is currently a volunteer for Albury Wodonga Palliative Care. At this stage of her life, she says she has finally found what she wants to be when she grows up and has placed her focus and considerable energy and passion, through End Stage Matters, on supporting people at the end of their lives with a holistic approach that includes spiritual, emotional, mental and physical.

Nicole lives on a farm in North East Victoria with her partner David and their gentle black dog Buddy, who is her constant companion. She loves walking the hills around the farm, and taking photos of the constantly changing landscape, animals, plants, and fungi. She delights in cooking for friends and family and sharing produce and plants from her garden. Nicole loves people and loves listening to their stories. 

One of her greatest accomplishments has been raising three children who have grown into beautiful engaged adults, of whom she is immensely proud.

Phone : 0428 171 272

Website : endstagematters.com

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Sandra is a qualified, registered Civil Marriage and Funeral Celebrant and is Founder and Director of Soulful Celebrations located in her home town of Melbourne. She has trained as an End of Life Consultant and has completed her training as a Reiki practitioner. 

She is a member of the International College of Celebrancy Association and a volunteer with Jewish Care Victoria.

Sandra is a keen walker and animal lover and a proud mum, step mum and step grandmother, grateful to be raising her family in the culturally rich diverse country that is Australia. She is in awe of our Indigenous peoples, their ancient spiritual practices and connection to their land.

The daughter of a Holocaust survivor and mother of premmie twins who died at birth, Sandra has had an affinity with loss and grief all her life and has tremendous empathy for those grappling with end of life experiences.

Sandra feels immensely privileged to care for grieving families at a time when they are extremely vulnerable, and is a firm believer that a truly authentic funeral ceremony that accommodates choice has tremendous power to heal.

However, for almost 10 years in her capacity as a Funeral Celebrant she has discovered that most people are unaware of the many choices available to them.

Sandra has engaged in discussions with Aged and Palliative Care professionals and organised workshops, discussing the myriad of choices available at end of life. 

She is passionate about End of Life education amongst affiliated professionals and the broader community and believes that by gently breaking the taboo that is “talking about death” we may just begin to be more at ease with the language of death and dying and all it can teach us about dying and living well.

She is excited to be an NDAN Committee member and grateful to have the opportunity to work together with those who share her passion for death literacy.

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Website : soulfulcelebrations.com.au

Phone : 0412 003 612

Sally Cant is the NDAN Vice President – and the owner of The Celebrants Training College, a well known celebrant, mentor and trainer and assessor of celebrants both here in Australia and overseas. She is the author of two books: ‘The Heart and Soul of Celebrancy’ which has sold over 5000 books into seven countries and ‘Conversations About Death’ released in 2016. Sally a highly sought after trainer and presenter speaks about many topics and is passionate about creating ceremonies that are both personal and authentic. She is President of the Celebrants Assoc of Aust, an inaugural member of the Funeral Industry Ministerial Advisory Council and a committee member of number of other organisations and associations; she is a Corporate MC and public speaker.

www.celebrantstraining.com.au

www.sallycant.com.au

Jacqui Williams is an End of Life Doula, Funeral Celebrant, Death Café facilitator, an end of life public speaker and the founder of End of Life Transitions.

Along with a background in nursing and palliative care, based on her own personal and professional exposure to dying, death, grief and loss, Jacqui has witnessed not only the challenges that people can experience when facing their own death, or the death of their loved one,  but also how more peaceful death can be when there are conversations shared, purposeful planning and the necessary supports put in place. She has seen the service gaps, the social isolation, the lack of knowledge and choices that are often faced at the end of life. And how important it is to promote death literacy, build Compassionate Communities, support those grieving and experiencing loss; and to have rituals and ceremony at the end of life.

Complimenting the roles she undertakes for End of Life Transitions, Jacqui continues to work part-time as a Registered Nurse for a state-wide palliative care telephone information and support service across Queensland. And is an active committee member for the Queensland Compassionate Communities Strategic Advisory Committee – Palliative Care Queensland; an Ordinary Member of the Natural Death Advocacy Network; and a member of the Funeral Celebrants Association Australia; the End of Life Doula Directory and Palliative Care Queensland.

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Website : https://www.endoflifetransitions.com.au

Dr. PIA INTERLANDI is a fashion designer holding a PhD in Architecture and Design from RMIT University, where in 2013 she completed her doctoral study [A]Dressing Death: Fashioning Garments for the Grave. A full time academic in the School of Fashion and Textiles at RMIT, she also freelances as a Creative Ritual Facilitator within the funeral industry and runs her fashion design consultancy Garments For the Grave. 

In 2014 she co-founded the Natural Death Advocacy Network (NDAN), and has served as it’s Chair since its formation. Pia is also is an ambassador for Dying2Know Day and a member of the Order of the Good Death.  She has spent over a decade years immersing herself into the funeral industry, including 2 years working at the award winning Clandon Wood Natural Burial Ground in the UK where she was involved in over 100 Natural Burials and funerals. In 2013 she was featured in an ABC Artscape Anatomy documentary called ‘Soul’ in which she worked with her first Garments For the Grave client. In 2014 she was nominated and came runner up at the Good Funeral Awards for the Most Significant Contribution to the Understanding of Death. In 2017 she was commissioned by the Museum of Modern Art (MOMA) in New York for a Little Black (Death) Dress, emphasising the importance of dressing and touch at the end of life. 

My name is Aidan Bird, I’m a death doula and a student of health science (DipHsc). I’m an advocate for natural burials, holistic health, and an admirer of nature. 

My journey towards being an advocate for our rights around death and dying started from a YouTube channel “Ask a Mortician”. From there my curiosity around death care was set in motion and I began to research burial practices and the spiritual aspects of death and dying around the world.

I’m dedicated to supporting people online and in-person with end of life planning, natural death care advocacy, and a holistic approach to death. 

Phone : 0466 664 696
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Since the age of four with the knowledge that one day we will all die, Vicki has developed a natural curiosity of death and dying. Accepting that dying is a normal part of life and a human experience, she questions the medicalisation of the dying process; the unrealistic expectations of treatment to prolong life and the reluctance of healthcare professionals and families to engage in meaningful end of life conversations.

She also challenges our traditional funeral and death care practices influenced by the Victorian era and America Civil War and a funeral industry that is over regulated and largely motivated by commercial interests. In an increasingly secular community she finds it difficult to understand why we cling to the traditional and the socially familiar when so many choices are available. She is a proponent of family-led or hybrid funerals where family members and close friends are actively engaged in directing the funeral plans and undertaking activities, believing that they are best placed to know how best to symbolise/ritualise the life of their loved one and what that person meant to them.

Vicki has a wealth of experience across health, business, government and the community sectors. She is a self-confessed end-trepreneur with a passion to drive change to ensure that we all get the best ending in life possible. With a focus on natural burial, death and dying, advance care planning, creative funeral planning, as well as developing compassionate communities, her aim is to: advocate, educate and facilitate. She is a Board member of Palliative Care WA and hosts the Perth Death Café.

Courtney is a bioethicist and researcher with extensive experience across the health sector. She has particular interest in the regulation of dying and death, and is currently undertaking a PhD examining the ethics and politics of law reform regarding assisted death in Victoria.

In addition, Courtney teaches bioethics into the medicine and surgery program at Monash University, and also into undergraduate bioethics through the Monash Bioethics Centre. She holds research appointments with Monash University’s Department of Psychiatry and Cabrini Health’s Szalmuk Family Psycho-oncology Unit, where she contributes to collaborative research across psycho-oncology and palliative care. Courtney is also the coordinator for Emerging Researchers in Ageing (ERA), a higher education initiative that provides support to students undertaking higher degrees by research across the field of ageing in Australia.

Courtney likes long walks in the forest and plans for a natural death.

After a satisfying and successful business career, I began conducting funerals in 2015 and became an Authorised Marriage Celebrant in 2016. My life has a happy balance with several volunteer community roles. Involvement in intercultural experiences has broadened my sensitivity to other cultures.

Membership of NDAN  and other volunteer leadership roles such as Anam Cara Colac have strengthened my Celebrant skills and knowledge.  As an Independent Advocate for Funeral Planning and support towards end of life for the dying and their families, my lived life’s experience has given me much to draw on. Holding the space for others is a true vocation that is rewarding for me and enlightening for the people I share the journey with. 
My work as Celebrant and Advocate is a calling for me. I am privileged to connect with people, leaving a lasting feeling of understanding joy hope and love deep within.

I am anticipating the pleasure of further rewarding work within the wider community, encouraging dialogue and opening up communication about death and dying. Making it possible to share this journey not in fear but with peace and purpose.