Pre-Dead Social Club

10/04/2026

Bess Welden and our founder, Laura Emmer Cleminson had a great conversation with Heather McDougall from Maine Public Classical on State of the Art! last week.

Interested to hear more about the Death Wings Project and a toolkit you can use in the comfort of your home…give us a listen Sunday (Oct 4) at noon, Monday (Oct 5) or stream it later.

Looking forward to our Virtual Open House on Oct 8th, where we’ll answer your questions and do a live demonstration. You can sign up on our website - under events.

This Sunday and Monday at noon on State of the Art:

Death Wings is an award-winning play by Maine-based playwright, actor and educator Bess Welden. It’s about a woman who has dedicated her life to making wings as an end-of-life ritual. A story that asks us to marvel at the wonder of flight and the mysteries of human love, connection, loss and letting go.

The Death Wings Project has grown out of that script, offering death wing making workshops and community residencies to people experience loss. Bess and Laura recently developed a new toolkit and an upcoming virtual open house will help introduce the project’s art making and storytelling resources and experiences to a wider audience across Maine and around the country.

In this week’s episode, we’re joined by Bess Welden, the creator of the project, and her collaborator, Laura Cleminson, founder of the Pre-Dead Social Club.

For more about the Death Wings toolkit, and to register for the virtual open house on Thursday, October 8, go to predeadsocialclub.com. And for more about the Death Wings Project at large, go to deathwingsproject.org.

📻 Tune in to State of the Art on Maine Public Classical Sunday, October 3 or Monday October 4 at noon to hear Heather McDougall's recent conversation with Bess and Laura.

09/28/2026

What changes when we’re willing not only to learn about dying, but to lean in a little closer—to know it, witness it, and talk about it before we have to?

Knowing more about the often-fuzzy process of dying won’t take away the sadness, but it may leave us less overwhelmed by the unknown and more able to be present for what matters.

That is one of the many things we discussed with Jane K. Callahan, death doula and author of "A Death Doula's Guide To A Meaningful End" on August 5th to 100+ mortals at the Kittery Community Center and STAR Theatre.

In this clip Jane shares one of the strategy she shares with her clients to help them sort that out over time, "When do we know when and where to draw the line on medical interventions and, when we make room for the natural dying process to unfold?"

https://youtu.be/Ht5OruCKGD8?si=BmSdPX-figwaHvVl

Love to hear your thoughts around this question below.

This is one of the more nuanced decisions we are faced with for ourselves and in supporting someone important to us.

When do we draw the line on medical interventions—and make room for...

09/21/2026

Care touches us all—whether we’re providing it, receiving it, or wondering who might realistically be part of our circle of support soon or just a couple bends down the road.

Two new opportunities to join me for Beyond the Bedside: Planning to Care (FREE event - registration is required).

📅 October 1 (Berwick, ME)
📅 November 10 (Stratham, NH)

Together, we’ll explore the relational, logistical, emotional, and practical sides of care—and begin mapping a care ecosystem before urgency leaves us fewer choices.

For current or future caregivers, solo agers, care receivers, supportive friends and neighbors—and anyone who wants to begin these conversations upstream of crisis. These conversations can be hard to know when and where to start. The more opportunities we make to have them, the smoother this road can be.

Hope to see you at one of these events coming up.

Details and registration for both workshops are shared below.

09/18/2026

Had a great time talking with the founder of Seacoast Stories podcast, Troy Farkas, and sharing the "way back story" of my first experiences with death and how that imprinted on me (little did I know it at the time) and the birth of this social club and how we've grown in 3+ short years.

If you are curious to hear a bit more of the backstory and hear first hand what it was like to experience a Death Over Drinks event from a 30-something, plus a lot more - please give this podcast a listen (and share!). https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=byPuHxH9vzE&t=17s

07/13/2026

Have you snagged your seat yet?

Please join the Pre-Dead Social Club in welcoming North Carolina author, death doula and hospice volunteer, Jane K. Callahan, to the New England seacoast for a much anticipated author meet-n-greet on August 5th at the Kittery Community Center and STAR Theatre.

When you're invited to support people at end-of-life, you learn from each one of them. The stories Jane shares in her book, "A Death Doula's Guide to a Meaningful End" contain those insights. Some of them are subtle and none of them are prescriptive, because each of us will have our own personal end-of-life experience. This book and conversation is supporting you in thinking about how that looks for you.

For Pre-Dead Social Club "official annual paid members" you'll be invited to a private author gathering before the event. Keep an eye in your email for those details as it gets closer to the date.

Excited to see that 70+ mortals already reserved their seats!

If you own a copy of Jane's book - bring it along and there will be time for signings and a small quantity of her books will be available for purchase. The good folks over at the Portsmouth Book Nook have offered an advance purchase discount - check out their website for details.

05/27/2026

Here's the premise:

You already know more about supporting someone at end-of-life than you think.

Before death doulas had a title, many of you were already showing up—offering comfort, helping organize, advocating, witnessing, listening, gathering people, and helping create meaningful goodbyes, sitting vigil for those you loved and ones you just met.

This isn’t about becoming a death doula.

It’s about recognizing what you already carry—and identifying the gaps where additional support matters.

Follow along. Take notes. Reflect.

You might surprise yourself.

✍️ What skills do you already have?
✍️ Where do you feel you'd like support?

At the end of this series, what surprised you, comforted you, made you want to understand more?

05/21/2026

Music is often the road we travel that connects us to conversations with others (and ourselves!) about meaningful things in our lives.

That’s why the Pre-Dead Social Club supports the arts and the artists who have the ability to tap into that part of our collective journey.

If you’re within driving distance to the NH Seacoast and you are looking for “just the thing” TONIGHT (May 21st) grab a ticket 🎟️ or 🎟️ 🎟️ and enjoy the music and will be sharing along with the stories behind them.

Ticket 🔗 in bio.
Barn doors open at 6pm || Music at 6:30pm
Venue: WG Farm, 35 Frying Pan Lane, Stratham, NH

P.S. Our British Guard 💂 is available for photos too!

Sooo looking forward to a fantastic night with you all.

05/14/2026

Question: When is the last time you met two women, from different parts of the country, who randomly crossed paths in Maine at a music concert, who ordered boxes of engraved pencils--as a way to recognize their dead parent?

Fact: You haven't...YET! ( )

Opportunity: You can meet them both on May 21st (coming right up!) and hear firsthand from Rachael Kilgour, award-winning singer-songwriter the backstory of how her pencil came to be.

She's on tour from her home state of MN and agreed to join us for an intimate concert in an 1830's barn in the Stratham, NH.

Come hear her "dad album" and have a rare opportunity to sit down with a musician to connect on and off stage.

For those of us navigating both the tricky and not-always-tricky relationships of people who have died in our lives, you'll truly enjoy the heartwarming and honest lyrics Rachael shares on her album "My Father Loved Me".

We still have a small handful of tickets--grab yours today here: Rachael Kilgour: Intimate, Live Acoustic Performance (MAY 21st) — Pre-Dead Social Club

Geoff Crosby will be opening for Rachael from his latest album and some unreleased songs.

05/10/2026

We have the good fortune to welcome Minnesota born, singer-songwriter, Rachael Kilgour, for an evening of music featuring her heartfelt album, “My Father Loved Me'“ (2023). Kilgour writes in hopes of finding a truth she can live with. "My Father Loved Me" was written and produced in memory of her late Canadian dad. In this album Kilgour poses questions about belonging, inheritance and grief and triumphantly affirms the value of one ordinary working man’s life. Her intimate live performances radiate with sincerity and humor.

Join us for an intimate evening at the WG Farm Music Loft Stage, located in an 1830’s New Hampshire seacoast barn.

Grab your TICKETS here: https://www.predeadsocialclub.com/events/rachael-kilgour-intimate-live-performance

04/18/2026

What happens when the medical system treats death as a failure—and you're the one left making decisions in the middle of it?

June 1st, we're sitting down with cardiologist, educator, and author Dr. Luis Pagan-Carlo, MD for an author meet & greet in conversation with Pre-Dead Social Club (PDSC) founder Laura Cleminson. Together, they'll dynamic of both the limits of modern medicine and the increasing number of choices available; the weight of end-of-life decisions; and how to approach making more intentional, values-aligned choices before a crisis arrives. Dr. Pagan-Carlo brings both his clinical experience and observations along with something deeply personal—having navigated these decisions himself as a medical proxy for his own father.

This is a free event hosted in collaboration with the Portsmouth Public Library. Registration is required and seating is limited. An audience Q&A and book signing will follow, with copies of Your Life's Choice available for purchase at the event.

Reserve your seat: https://www.predeadsocialclub.com/events/author-meet-n-greet-your-lifes-choice