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by Jenny Leigh Hodgins
One of the alternatives to traditional funeral plans explored in Creative Memorial Planning Facebook group is the involvement of a death doula. I spoke with Australia-based Death Educator, Doula, Trainer, and Clinical Hypnotherapist Denise Love about how an end-of-life-doula serves families as an alternative to a traditional funeral plan. Drop an #aha if anything in our conversation resonates with you! Ask questions freely! Contact Denise Love to learn more about involving a death doula in your end of life plans. I help 50+ adults and families explore earth-friendly, cost-reducing alternatives to traditional funeral plans with less or zero corporate or religious involvement and map out your personalized, meaningful, creative memorial plan. Get the step by step journey to relief, peace of mind, huge cost savings, and satisfaction from getting your personalized creative memorial planned.
Join Creative Memorial Planning Facebook Group to catch REPLAYS from my 5-day virtual event, SUNSET SUMMIT.
Learn about alternatives to traditional funerals and end of life plans that are more gentle, comforting, cost-reducing, and planet-friendly. SUNSET SUMMIT featured a variety of experts offering ways for transforming your Golden Chapter of life with earth-friendly, personalized, cost-reducing, and meaningful end of life services and support. For a limited time you may watch the REPLAYS from experts who presented throughout the 5-day event. You'll hear from death educators, transition doulas, and grief therapists. You'll gain educational information on support for caregivers, midlife wellness experts, and learn more about earth-friendly, gentler alternatives to traditional end of life planning. SUNSET SUMMIT is ONLY available to Creative Memorial Planning Facebook Group members.
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by Jenny Leigh Hodgins
Using courage to do the hard stuff empowers you with more confidence and forges inner strength. Why? When you do what’s hard—eventually you make it to the other side of that task or situation. You know what you feel once you've faced the challenge? You lighten up your life. You feel lighter because you’ve done what needs doing —so you have no regrets. It’s an incredibly positive feeling. I wish for you to experience it. The way you do that is by mustering your courage to face your fear, the discomfort, the challenge or obstacle, and moving forward anyway. Having courage doesn’t mean you don’t have fear, anxiety, or doubt. But moving forward even when you feel afraid, nervous, or anxious is courage itself. Once you have bravely moved forward to do the hard stuff anyway, you have created within yourself an expanded life state that will enable you to handle life’s inevitable obstacles more readily and with greater ease. It's like Eleanor Roosevelt said about facing the worst. Once you've gotten through it you can face anything else that comes along. Because you'll have found your inner strength and capability. This is my experience. Speaking of facing challenges, do you know what to do about your death and why it matters that you do it? I hope you use your courage to get your end of life plan in place now, regardless of your age or schedule. Facing this task courageously relieves not only you—but paves a much smoother path for surviving loved ones. Do you know what to do when someone dies? Do you know how to prepare your loved ones in advance for your end of life? (Other than just doing nothing about it and/or leaving it to corporate funeral reps to handle it in their corporate custom ways at their premium prices-- with earth damaging effects?) Why does that matter? Watch my video above to learn more...
Join Creative Memorial Planning Facebook Group to attend my upcoming SUNSET SUMMIT, from October 26 -30, 2020.
SUNSET SUMMIT will feature thirteen fabulous experts offering ways for preparing and transforming your Golden Chapter of life by living fully and dying well! SUNSET SUMMIT will feature LIVE presentations from experts throughout the 5-day event. You'll hear from death educators, transition doulas, grief therapists, hypnotherapists, and coaches. You'll gain educational information on support for caregivers, tips for dealing with anxiety, and wellness for midlife, as well as more earth-friendly, gentler, personalized alternatives to traditional end of life plans. SUNSET SUMMIT will ONLY be available to Creative Memorial Planning Facebook Group members.  by Jenny Leigh Hodgins We die how we live. Yeh, I know my topic is How Can We Access A More Mindful State Of Living? But living fully and dying well go together like PB & J, a ball and glove, or fish and water. Here’s the silver lining to that seemingly dark cloud; there are huge benefits from accepting and addressing our mortality. ‘We die how we live’ means that we can access a much more mindful state of living in the present with a sense of relief and peace of mind—once we grapple with the issue of death. None of us will escape the experience of loss. The fundamental commonality we have is that we will all leave this world at some point. Reality check: we have no control over when we go. This is what I’ve learned through personal tragedies and helping many others as an unofficial celebrant through their losses. Through that role I helped others sort out how to handle the remains, prepare a Goodbye Ritual, emcee, facilitate, perform, or speak at the services. I also helped sort out the agenda and create programs, prepare recordings and other personalized tributes as part of the event. I was in that situation because people did not have end of life plans in order and frankly, were unable to function due to grief and heavy emotions. So they could not get anything properly done. No Plan Adds Burden I saw this heavy suffering firsthand many times when there was no plan in place. This is what motivates me as a Creative Memorial Planning Coach; I do not want to see YOU suffer or your loved ones needlessly suffer in that way. I’ve heard some folks say that a plan, and in particular, a Goodbye Ritual is unnecessary. I beg to differ. I have seen both sides to this. When there’s a plan, despite the natural grief process, the burden is lighter, and the legacy provided with a detailed plan becomes a source of comfort, and proof of a loving gesture for surviving loved ones. No plan in place simply adds burden to those already in the vulnerable position of deep emotion. I cannot understand why anyone would dump that onto their loved ones. Mapping out your end of life plan is important as a way of relieving burden, extra expense, suffering, and providing a loving legacy. An end of life plan is a way of leaving our compassionate mark on others and the planet (when opting for alternative, earth-friendly choices). It saddens me when someone doesn’t care enough to get a plan in place. They don’t see how that impacts surviving loved ones. I have seen it. I don’t want people to go through that. Impact Your State of Life But, back to the original topic--having an end of life plan also impacts your state of life. You can relax knowing you’ve done your best, made that compassionate cause, and left your legacy through your compassionate actions. As a Creative Memorial Planning Coach, and host of Creative Memorial Planning Facebook Group, I’m different from other end of life pre-planners because I strongly support ALTERNATIVES to the traditional corporate funeral customs. I share about these alternative options in my private group and through my hybrid self-study/coaching program Explore, Choose, and Plan Your Creative Memorial. I’d like to invite you to join my group. I’m hosting an exciting SUNSET SUMMIT October 26-30! You'll learn about alternatives to traditional funerals and end of life plans that are more gentle, comforting, cost-reducing, and planet-friendly. SUNSET SUMMIT will feature a variety of experts offering ways for preparing and transforming your Golden Chapter of life with gentler, personalized, cost-reducing, earth-friendly, and meaningful midlife and end of life services and support. We'll have LIVE presentations from experts throughout the 5-day event. You'll hear from death educators, transition doulas, grief therapists, hypnotherapists, counselors, social workers, wellness and mindset coaches. You'll gain empowering information on living fully, dying well, caregiver support, dealing with anxiety, midlife wellness, and alternatives to traditional end of life plans. SUNSET SUMMIT will ONLY be available to Creative Memorial Planning Facebook Group members. So, I invite you to join the group . Please help me spread the word; invite anyone you feel would benefit from learning more about alternatives to traditional corporate funerals, end of life planning, and how to leave a loving legacy with less or zero corporate or religious involvement.
Join Creative Memorial Planning Facebook Group to attend my upcoming SUNSET SUMMIT, from October 26 -30, 2020.
You'll learn about alternatives to traditional funerals and end of life plans that are more gentle, comforting, cost-reducing, and planet-friendly. SUNSET SUMMIT will feature a variety of experts offering ways for preparing and transforming your Golden Chapter of life with gentler, personalized, cost-reducing, earth-friendly, and meaningful end of life services and support. We'll have LIVE presentations from experts throughout the 5-day event. You'll hear from death educators, transition doulas, grief therapists, hypnotherapists, and coaches. You'll gain educational information on support for caregivers, a Natural Burial Site within a 41-acre conservation sanctuary, living fully, dying well, and more earth-friendly, gentler alternatives to traditional end of life plans. SUNSET SUMMIT will ONLY be available to Creative Memorial Planning Facebook Group members. 
There’s no good time for end of life planning. It only gets easier once it’s DONE.
Advancing like a LION through the end of life planning challenge results in positive feelings like confidence, peace of mind, and a sense of relief. I know this because I've been a creative memorial planner and celebrant for many people. On the other hand, and I know this from personal experience, if you do nothing to prepare an end of life plan, surviving loved ones will have more suffering and burden than their grief of the loss. This is why it's important to use courage to get things in place now. Courage, when it comes to an end of life plan, translates into a lasting, loving legacy for your loved ones. In my video above, tune in to learn how I introduce funeral ALTERNATIVES that help the planet and SAVE you and your loved ones unnecessary expense!
Are you fearful of the End of Life conversation?
Watch my LIVE video to get FOUR STEPS you need to take in preparation for your most critical moment.
by Jenny Leigh Hodgins
Are you fearful of starting the End of Life conversation? I get it. Death is a taboo topic. We wanna LIVE! But are you able to live fully and mindfully if you haven’t prepared yourself or loved ones for a defining and crucial moment? Follow these 4 STEPS to start a plan for your most crucial moment: 1. Start the conversation. 2. Share your ideas for your creative memorial plan—how to handle remains, where/contact info/payment plan, a Goodbye Ritual (earthy to celebrations of life with a full memorial agenda) 3. Ask for your loved ones’ wishes/preferences/feedback to personalize a meaningful memorial plan. 4. Get these details written and ready The results will be a tremendous relief, peace of mind, a sense of accomplishment, and a lasting gift of your love to those who mean the most —because YOU made the difficult decisions so THEY won’t have to. I help 50+ adults, caregivers, veterans, & families explore earth-friendly, cost-reducing ALTERNATIVES to traditional funeral plans with less or -0- corporate &/or religious involvement—& map out a personalized, meaningful, creative memorial plan. 
Join Creative Memorial Planning Facebook Group to attend my upcoming SUNSET SUMMIT, from October 26 -30, 2020.
You'll learn about alternatives to traditional funerals and end of life plans that are more gentle, comforting, cost-reducing, and planet-friendly. SUNSET SUMMIT will feature a variety of experts offering ways for transforming your Golden Chapter of life with earth-friendly, personalized, cost-reducing, and meaningful end of life services and support. We'll have LIVE presentations from experts throughout the 5-day event. You'll hear from death educators, transition doulas, and grief therapists. You'll gain educational information on support for caregivers, a natural cemetery within a 41-acre conservation sanctuary (Natural Burial Site), and more earth-friendly, gentler alternatives to traditional end of life planning. SUNSET SUMMIT will ONLY be available to Creative Memorial Planning Facebook Group members. Join now by clicking the image above or the button below. Why ALTERNATIVES to traditional funerals are better PLUS the ONE thing that will make the biggest impact for your loved ones!
by Jenny Leigh Hodgins
As Mom’s caregiver, I do what I can to assure she enjoys a quality life. I make sure she has plants on the patio to enjoy during breakfasts. I take her for drives in the countryside in beautiful Kentucky during this period of pandemic isolation. When possible, I take her for walks in the neighborhood or nearby park areas where there are few people about. We eat home-cooked, whole, mostly organic foods. We Zoom and text with other family members to keep her spirits up and stay connected. I stay on top of her meds and doctor communications. Another thing I do is engage Mom in stories about her history. We recently talked about how my Dad worked regularly to update his end of life plans so none of us had anything to figure out when he died of cancer in 2014. Mom and I also talked about making the end of life a quality experience for Mom and those of us who will remain after she’s gone. The ONE thing that will make the biggest impact toward a quality end of life experience is preparing in advance. Preparing for Mom’s end of life is a huge step. Why? It brings the benefits of:
We’ve been updating Mom’s Will and end of life plans (mine, too!) with attention to as much detail as possible. DETAILS are where you can have the biggest impact for a quality death experience! Mom and I have covered: 1. exploring alternatives to traditional funeral plans for how to handle the remains, 2. payment info of these services, 3. preparing a life story announcement, 4. how to get the announcement communicated, 5. final legacy messages, 6. photos, 7. and more personally tailored details for a Goodbye Ritual to comfort surviving loved ones and serve as a loving, lasting legacy. Our late relatives only knew one way to handle end of life planning: corporate customs that were costly, damaging to the planet, and impersonal and abruptly handled. Over the years and through experiencing the loss of loved ones, Mom has changed her mind from having traditional funeral plans to alternative options. Why? BENEFITS OF CREATIVE MEMORIAL PLANNING ALTERNATIVES to traditional funeral plans with less or zero corporate and/or religious involvement have great benefits! Alternatives to traditional funeral plans are: 1. less abrupt and more personally meaningful to both the dying and surviving loved ones, 2. dramatically less expensive, and 3. far less destructive to the earth Planning these details now for alternatives to corporate funeral customs: 1. makes things easier for all of us, 2. cuts cost dramatically, 3. assures Mom’s preferences to protect the planet, and 4. allows for a personalized plan that will become her loving legacy. Was this helpful to you? As a Creative Memorial Planning Coach, I invite you to learn more about how I can help you explore earth-friendly, cost-reducing ALTERNATIVES to traditional funeral plans with less or zero corporate and/or religious involvement. My Explore, Choose, and Plan Your Creative Memorial Program is a 2-month hybrid self-study and 1:1 weekly one-hour coaching program with me. During my two-month program, I walk with you step-by-step to:
Within my two-month program, I help you map out your creative memorial plans—based on your personal values. Get help with exploring earth-friendly?, cost-reducing? ALTERNATIVES to traditional funeral plans with less or zero corporate funeral &/or religious involvement. Relieve the burden from your loved ones by getting your Creative Memorial Plan mapped out! ❣️ I help 50+ adults, caregivers, and families explore earth-friendly, cost-reducing ALTERNATIVES to traditional funeral plans with less or even ZERO corporate and/or religious involvement. I help you map out your personalized, meaningful, creative memorial plan. I invite you to join my Creative Memorial Planning Group to access my FREE Video series with Reflections For You downloadable ebook as a supportive guide!
Join Creative Memorial Planning Facebook Group to attend my upcoming SUNSET SUMMIT, from October 26 -30, 2020.
You'll learn about alternatives to traditional funerals and end of life plans that are more gentle, comforting, cost-reducing, and planet-friendly. SUNSET SUMMIT will feature a variety of experts offering ways for transforming your Golden Chapter of life with earth-friendly, personalized, cost-reducing, and meaningful end of life services and support. We'll have LIVE presentations from experts throughout the 5-day event. You'll hear from death educators, transition doulas, and grief therapists. You'll gain educational information on support for caregivers, a natural cemetery within a 41-acre conservation sanctuary (Natural Burial Site), and more earth-friendly, gentler alternatives to traditional end of life planning. SUNSET SUMMIT will ONLY be available to Creative Memorial Planning Facebook Group members.
by Jenny Leigh Hodgins
As a caregiver for my senior mom, we recently updated her End Of Life plan. I helped Mom change from a corporate funeral prepaid plan to an alternative that saved her THOUSANDS and is more in line with her personal values and beliefs. What I learned: I see the itemized breakdown of corporate costs as extravagant and mainly lining corporate pockets w profit—straight out of my Mom’s pocket—and people like her. I’ll admit that a pre-plan MIGHT save you money if you’re going the full traditional funeral route; caskets, corporate facilities for visitations and receptions, transportation like hearses and limousines, graveside burials, etc. The truth is that the average traditional corporate funeral costs in the USA run between $8-$25K depending on where you live. The pre-paid policy option claims to save you money by locking in the price against inflation. But these preplanned policies are more costly than necessary and definitely more expensive than the alternatives that I help you explore as your Creative Memorial Planning Coach and within my Creative Memorial Planning Facebook Group. Let me paint a clear picture: After looking through Mom’s itemized prepaid plan she’d previously arranged through corporate funeral, I recognized that a prepaid policy costs two to three times more than the ACTUAL cost of the services requested (depending on the services opted for). Corporate funerals help keep death a mystery so people don’t readily ask the right questions. Most people get easily overwhelmed by the topic of death due to emotion and spiritual beliefs--and therefore willingly pay premium fees for corporate funeral staff to handle it. There are often what I call ‘blanket fees’ that are just pure gravy for corporate funeral-- in addition to the actual itemized services and products you opt for--and you will *pay additional* fees beyond this blanket fee for each of these itemized services and products. I get it —corporate funerals are there for profit. They’ve got to keep their lights on—so that expense falls directly on you and YOUR pocketbook. The more you opt for, the more they stand to gain. But end of life planning doesn’t need to break your bank account or deplete your pocketbook! As your Creative Memorial Planning Coach, I can help you with that! Instead of the excessive cost or the abrupt and impersonal customs of the corporate funeral route—here’s what I offer you:
My program is a two-month hybrid self-study and one on one coaching program—with video tutorials, templates, checklists, and my Reflections For You workbook as a supportive guide. I work through every detail with you at *your own pace* to cover the issues of most importance to you—within a two-month period. I help you map out your creative memorial plan within two months--so your loved ones don’t have to think about it in their most vulnerable moment. Imagine how you’ll feel knowing that you’ve got your end of life plan completely mapped out within two months. Everything in one place, your personal wishes and options completely customized to your personal values. You can rest assured that your surviving loved ones have nothing to figure out or pay for or deal with because you’ve got it all done for them. Get my help with exploring earth-friendly, cost-reducing ALTERNATIVES to traditional funeral plans with less or -0- corporate funeral &/or religious involvement. Relieve the burden from your loved ones by getting your creative memorial plan mapped out! Join my CREATIVE MEMORIAL PLANNING GROUP to access my FREE video series with Reflections For You ebook!  by Jenny Leigh Hodgins
I'm super pumped to have been featured this week on the Women Living Well After 50 Podcast! This is a great podcast by my fellow entrepreneur buddy and Creative Memorial Planning Facebook Group member, Australia-based Sue Loncaric. Her podcast episode is called CREATIVE MEMORIALS - WHAT ARE THEY? AND WHY YOU SHOULD CONSIDER ONE. Check out her intro below and click the links to explore more: "I was delighted to have a chat with Jenny Leigh Hodgins from Creative Memorial Planning to discuss the various options available to us if we are looking for an alternative to the traditional funeral. After chatting with Jenny, I had the conversation with Mike, my husband and we are both in the process of documenting our wishes. We have had previous discussions about what we wanted, however, we hadn’t documented them. This episode was also originally published on the YouTube channel so you can also watch the video here." HIGHLIGHTS from our chat:
Click here to listen to the podcast. Let me know if you found the podcast to be helpful! Share widely on your social media and forward by email if you wanna show me some love. 🦋🌳 Book a FREE Discovery Call with me to see how I can help you explore earth-friendly🌎, cost-reducing💰💰 ALTERNATIVES to traditional funeral plans with less or -0- corporate or religious involvement— and map out your personalized, meaningful, creative memorial plan!❣️ |
CAREGIVERIn my Caregiver blogs, you'll find I understand the internal struggles and daily stress as a caregiver juggling entrepreneurial life. Archives
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