Perches Funeral Homes and La Paz Faith Center will present “Rise Again El Paso” with Gail Rubin, a certified thanatologist and award-winning speaker, on Friday, Aug. 16 from 4 to 6 pm at 1201 N. Piedras St. in El Paso. For further information, please call (915) 564-5348.
Gail Rubin will bring words of healing to the El Paso community that can help those still coping with the El Paso mass shooting tragedy.
The title of her talk refers the the refrain of the Stan Rogers song, “The Mary Ellen Carter.” The song is an inspirational hymn about triumphing over great odds. It tells the story of a heroic effort to salvage a sunken ship, the Mary Ellen Carter, by members of her former crew.
While the ship’s story is fictitious, the song’s refrain provides valuable life lessons in resiliency. “Rise again… rise again… turn to, and put out all your strength of arm and heart and brain, and like the Mary Ellen Carter rise again.”
To hear the song in its entirety as sung by Stan Rogers, watch this YouTube video, a recording of a live performance.
Gail Rubin will also present a full day Before I Die seminar on Saturday, August 17. The events were updated to include two Death Cafe discussions and “Lessons on Grief and Mourning in Cartoons.” Free registration is still open until August 12. More information here.
Gail recorded a video with Salvador Perches weeks before the mass shooting in El Paso. Here is their conversation about the seminar. We can only laugh about death when it seems like a distant possibility.