Pre-Dead Social Club

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

04/14/2026

Looking forward to connecting with folks at Rye Public Library on Thursday night. As with all my public appearances, I’ll be inviting conversation while sharing how the Pre-Dead Social Club is showing up in our communities. Hope to see you there!

Thursday evening, join us and The Friends of the Rye Public Library for a chat with Laura Emmer Cleminson, founder of the Pre-Dead Social Club!

04/13/2026

There are 3 chances to pull up a chair, bring a friend or neighbor, and talk about the thing we all have in common this May.

🖤 Death Over Drinks – Portsmouth: A free, facilitated community gathering where curious humans come together to talk openly about dying, death, and end-of-life. Death Over Drinks Portsmouth series sponsor: NokBox.

☕ Death Over Coffee: A free small-group conversation for anyone ready to get a little more intentional about end-of-life—coffee in hand, no experience required. May Death Over Coffee is sponsored by: Seacoast Village Project & Portsmouth Senior Activity Center

🖤 Death Over Drinks – Vermont: Same welcoming format, different zip code.

While all 3 events are free, they sell out frequently. Please put your name on the waitlist, we're often able to squeeze some folks in. You WILL hear from us—we promise!

🔗 Reserve your seat: https://www.predeadsocialclub.com/events

04/07/2026

Our individual stories are woven together over time. Let’s keep leaning in to listen and share.

For most of human history, dying was something people witnessed, understood, and supported at home. Today, many of us reach the end of life without ever havi...

04/03/2026

Last April, our founder Laura Cleminson took the CreativeMornings PKX stage to explore the theme “Crossroads.”

In her talk, Detours, Dead Ends & Deadlines, she names the one crossroad many of us avoid—or don’t know how to navigate: our dying and eventual death.

As a death doula, Laura saw a gap—no consistent, social spaces to explore these conversations outside of medical offices, and in community with others.
So she built one.

Curious about the story behind Pre-Dead Social Club?

Watch the full talk at the link in our bio.