Board Members
Dr. Robert Neimeyer
Psychology Professor at University of Memphis
Director of The Portland Institute for Loss and Transition
Why I got involved in Grief Dialogues: Our connections define us, and we can accomplish far more together than we can independently. I’m excited to support the Grief Dialogues and its innovative grief therapy technique.
Peggie Dickens, M.A., MHC
Solution-oriented, Strength-based Counseling & Coaching
Why I got involved in Grief Dialogues: My focus of working with health care providers has taught me that no one is immune to human grief and that we must support one another. Grief Dialogues has so much they can teach us about that.
Scott Coplan
Change Manager, Educator, Author and Speaker
Why I got involved in Grief Dialogues: Facing anticipatory grief, I felt the need, no the necessity, of connecting with others and our shared losses.
Carla Rose Fisher
Songwriter
Why I got involved in Grief Dialogues: A friend of mine told me I nailed the grieving process when I wrote the song “Go On” for her mother’s death. Now I can share this song with Grief Dialogues.
Caitlin Doughty
Licensed Mortician, Death Acceptance Advocate, Founder of The Order of the Good Death, Author of Smoke Gets in Your Eyes, and owner of Undertaking LA, her first funeral home
Why I got involved in Grief Dialogues: I started my career staging death and dying for the theatre so the mission of the Grief Dialogues is close to my.
Karen Vargas
Director of Living Life
Leadership, a youth mentoring program in leadership and cultural awareness
Why I got involved in Grief Dialogues: Grief Dialogues is a way to enjoy the good in grief and everyone is feeling good about the transition.
Dr. Sharon Stanley
Psychotherapist and Educator Care
Why I got involved in Grief Dialogues: I am interested in the neurobiology of healing grief, loss and trauma as well as ancient wisdom practices that traditional societies bring to people suffering from adversity. I believe the GD offers me the opportunity to use the findings of neuroscience that facilitate the grieving and healing process.
Katrina Spade
Founder and director of the Urban Death Project, a new model of death care
Why I got involved in Grief Dialogues: I started my career staging death and dying for the theatre so the mission of the Grief Dialogues is close to my.
Nora Menkin
Managing Director at The Co-op Funeral Home of People’s Memorial
Why I got involved in Grief Dialogues: I was working as a stage manager in Seattle when The Co-op Funeral Home of People’s Memorial was formed in 2007. Grief Dialogues was a natural way to combine my theatre background with my work and to pull back the curtain on the funeral industry.
Taryn Lindhorst
Carol LaMare Associate Professor of Social Work at the University of Washington
Why I got involved in Grief Dialogues: I feel a strong connection with Grief Dialogues as my current work focuses on training social work students in palliative and oncology and I encourage my students to lead conversations about death.