THE W.E.E. WORKSHOP SCOOPDeath Becomes Her
With Allie Cunninghame
Many of us know very little about the process of death and the practicalities that surround it.
While the media continually draws our attention to stories about violent and tragic death, and while our health and wellness culture engages us in a seemingly endless quest to stave off the advances of age and its consequences, many of us know very little about the physical process of death, and the practicalities that surround it, until we, or our loved ones, are faced with it.
This workshop will offer a safe space to discuss some of the issues, and to answer some of the questions, that often come up when we think about death and dying. What happens to the body? What is an undertaker? Who makes the decisions in the final days and after? What does a funeral cost? What does the Coroner do? What do kids think about it all? What decisions can we make, and what actions can we take, in the present day that will make things easier for our loved ones when our time comes?
In her role for the last 5 years as one of New Zealand’s 28 Coroners, Allie has had the opportunity to reflect on how a better understanding of death and its associated processes can help us, and those we love, to have better lives, and she is delighted to be able to share her perspective on this important topic with you.
Allie Cunninghame
I am a Dunedin-ite and a W.E.E.Treat alumni. I am the mother of a teenager, a cat owner, a runner and a skier and a tramper and a lover of arts and culture.
My cultural heroes include Joan Didion and Beyoncé. I’ve taught English in South Korea and I’ve litigated banking disputes in the Court of Appeal. I’ve chaired school boards and environmental groups and activist organisations.
I’ve sat with my mother and father while they died, and I’ve organised their funerals. I don’t identify as religious and I take a fairly secular, scientific view of death and what that means for us.
What qualifies me to take this workshop is that for the last years I have 5 years I have been one of New Zealand’s 28 Coroners. I have the responsibility, and the great privilege, of investigating the circumstances of sudden deaths and making recommendations and comments that might prevent further deaths occurring in similar circumstances.