Before I Die Ohio Festival Registration Now Open!
The first Before I Die Ohio Festival will take place October 27-29, 2022 in Dayton, Ohio. This series of events offers upbeat activities to think about, talk about, and do something about our inevitable mortality. Activities include Death Cafe conversations, field trips to cemeteries, funeral homes and crematoria, movies, panel discussions, and a wide range of speakers.
While most events are free, registration is encouraged. Events that include food have charges ranging from $20 to $35.
Gail Rubin, The Doyenne of Death and Death Cafe host.
Gail Rubin, Certified Thanatologist and The Doyenne of Death®, is a special guest speaker at the Before I Die Ohio Festival. A pioneer of the Death Cafe movement in the United States, she will facilitate these supportive discussions of mortality issues at Death Cafes on October 27 at Routsong Funeral Home & Cremation Services, 2100 E. Stroop Road, Kettering, OH, and October 28 at one of the Anderson Funeral Homes locations in the Dayton area.
Gail will also emcee her conversation-starter The Newly-Dead Game® the evening of October 28. The couples quiz about how well they know each others’ end-of-life wishes is part of the Death, Drafts and Directors event at Jimmie Ladder 11, a firehouse converted to a tavern located at 936 Brown St, Dayton, OH. She will also speak on panel discussions about downsizing and planning ahead for end-of-life issues.
“Just as talking about sex won’t make you pregnant, talking about funerals won’t make you dead,” said Rubin. “The Before I Die Ohio Festival will help people have important conversations about end-of-life issues and plan ahead for our 100% mortality rate. And you’ll have fun doing it! Register today for this incredible event.”
Here’s the full schedule of events at the Before I Die Ohio Festival.
Thursday, October 27, 2022
11:00am -12:00 pm Downsizing and Legacy
Where: Routsong Funeral Home
Speaker: Denise Swick/Gail Rubin
Event Synopsis: A conversation about downsizing with Denise Swick, Licensed Realtor with a new division devoted to senior relocation and downsizing consulting, and Gail Rubin, author of Kicking the Bucket List: 100 Downsizing and Organizing Things to Do Before You Die.
12:00pm- 1:30 Death Cafe
Where: Routsong Funeral Home
Facilitators: Gail Rubin, Death Cafe pioneer, Erika Knox, Funeral Director, Neil Fogarty, President, Dodds Memorials
Open Discussion/Answering your Questions
2:30-4:00 Being Mortal Documentary Viewing
Where: Ohio’s Hospice of Dayton
Speaker: Kim Vesey, President, Ohio’s Hospice of Dayton
Event Synopsis: Viewing of the PBS FRONTLINE documentary
5:00pm-6:00pm Calvary Cemetery Evening Tour
Where: Calvary Cemetery
Speaker: Scott Wright
Event Synopsis: A historical look at the cemetery and the famous permanent residents there
6:00pm-6:30pm COVID Remembrance Moment
Where: Calvary Cemetery
Speaker: Neil Fogarty
Event Synopsis: Moment of remembrance for those passed
6:30pm-7:00pm Festival Kickoff
Where: Calvary Cemetery
Speaker: Neil Fogarty
Event Synopsis: Introduction to the Festival and background on Before I Die Festivals
7:00pm – 9:00pm Dia De Los Muertos Dinner
Where: Calvary Cemetery
Cater: La Catrina in Troy
Event Synopsis: Dinner – register for $20
Friday, October 28, 2022
10:00am-12:00pm Death Cafe
Where: Anderson Funeral Home
Facilitators: Gail Rubin, Rebekah Giuffre, Neil Fogarty
Open Discussion/Answering your Questions
12:30pm-1:30pm Anderson Celebration Center Tour
Where: Anderson Funeral Home
Speaker: Rebekah Giuffre
Event Synopsis: Behind-the-scenes tour of their center and crematory
2:30pm – 4:30 pm Woodland Cemetery Historical Tour
Where: Woodland Cemetery Dayton
Speaker: Angie Hoschouer
Event Synopsis: Historical tour of the grounds, one of the five oldest rural garden cemeteries in the US, and the resting places of famous individuals, including powered flight pioneers Wilbur and Orville Wright and humorist Irma Bombeck.
7:00 pm -8:30pm Death, Drafts and Directors
Where: Jimmie Ladder 11
Panelists: Abby Snider-Robinson, Brian Sarver, Erika Knox
Event Synopsis: Question and Answer with Panel
Number of Max attendees: 50 – Register for $20
8:30pm – 9:30 pm The Newly Dead Game®
Where: Jimmie Ladder 11
Host: Gail Rubin
Event Synopsis: Game with couples focused on end of life planning
Saturday, October 29, 2022
Symposium
Where: Meyer Room University of Dayton Curran Building
8:30 am -9:00 am Registration
9:00 am – 9:15 am Welcome
9:15 am – 11:15 am Think you’re ready? Session 1- plan for the end then go on living
11:15 am – 12:00 pm Monumental Stories Presentation
12:00 pm – 1:00 pm Lunch
1:00 pm – 2:00 pm What you need to know about Hospice care
2:00pm – 3:30 pm Think you’re ready? Session 2 – Leaving a loving legacy to your family
3:30 pm – 4:00 pm Break
4:00 pm- 5:00 pm Living while Dying Documentary with Discussion
The sponsors of the Before I Die Ohio Festival:
- Dodds Memorials
- Calvary Cemetery
- Ohio’s Hospice of Dayton
- Routsong Funeral Home and Cremation Services
- Swick Real Estate Group
- KeyBank
- University of Dayton Osher Lifelong Learning Institute
- Rock of Ages®
- Woodland Historic Cemetery & Arboretum
- Anderson Funeral Homes
