Our Philosophy

Jen & Shelby embrace the Seven Pillars of Alternative Deathcare.

Alternative deathcare refers to evolving approaches to end-of-life care, body disposition, and memorialization that expand upon contemporary clinical and traditional funeral practices, emphasizing authenticity, sustainability, community participation, and personal choice.

It’s part of a growing movement to reclaim death as a natural, relational, and sacred process, while honoring the skills and compassion of all who serve the dying and the bereaved.

Pillar I

Transparency & Empowerment

Encouraging open conversations about prognosis, treatment limits and end of life options so individuals and families can make informed decisions.
People increasingly understand legal rights around after-death care (e.g., body custody, refrigeration instead of embalming, transport permits).
Moving away from opaque, upsold funeral packages toward open pricing, informed choice, and DIY empowerment.

Pillar II

Personal & Spiritual Autonomy

People crafting their own rituals, ceremonies or home vigils often facilitated by death doulas or celebrants rather than clergy or funeral directors.
Respecting diverse spiritualities from secular humanism to animist or ancestral traditions rather than a one-size-fits-all, traditional religious service.

Pillar III

Ecological Integrity

Emphasis on green and natural burial, conservation cemeteries, aquamation (alkaline hydrolysis) and human composting (natural organic reduction).
Reducing chemical use by avoiding embalming and vaults and choosing biodegradable materials.
Recognizing the body’s return to the earth as sacred and regenerative — not merely an endpoint but part of a living cycle.

Pillar IV

Community & Relationship-Centered Care

Encouraging family and friends to participate directly: washing, dressing, transporting or sitting vigil with the deceased.
Home funerals and community deathcare collectives providing education and mutual aid.
Recognizing that grief is communal not privatized.

Pillar V

Innovation & Accessibility

Tech-assisted memorialization (digital legacies, virtual memorials, AI “memory keepers,” QR-coded headstones).
Portable ceremony design bringing celebration into parks, homes and meaningful outdoor spaces.
Crowdfunding and sliding-scale models to make dignified deathcare accessible to all.

Pillar VI

Interdisciplinary Collaboration

Collaboration between death doulas, hospice teams, therapists, celebrants, grief workers, green cemeteries and progressive funeral homes.
The line between “funeral service” and “end-of-life care” is blurring toward holistic continuity from living to dying to remembering.

Pillar VII

Courageous Presence & Care

The concious willingness to aknowledge and remain present to death as a natural part of life.
Allows honest conversations to emerge without forcing or withholding
Honors presence, witnessing and being-with as meaningful forms of care.