Reason for Being
Sovereign Departures, was born out of a desire to support people in the reclamation of their sacred end-of-life journey. For the last 100 years, we have outsourced death to the medical and funeral industries and we are poorer for it, and not just financially.
Imagine if we approached our end-of-life phase and death with as much care, love, acceptance and preparation as we do for the arrival of a new baby.
Your end-of-life transition is as sacred as your birth.
I am here to help you understand your options, decide how you want things to be, support you in important discussions, advocate for your wishes, walk with and support you and your loved ones before, during and after death.
My Approach
I believe people do better when they are given honest information, genuine support, and the freedom to choose what feels right for them.
Too often, death and dying are approached with fear, avoidance, or the assumption that someone else knows best. Many people don't realise they have options. They don't know what questions to ask, what choices are available to them, or how to navigate the practical, emotional, and relational realities that can accompany serious illness, dying, death, and grief.
That's where I come in.
I help people navigate the threshold experiences of serious illness, dying, death, and grief. Not by taking over, but by walking alongside them.
Most people only encounter these experiences a handful of times in their lives. When they do, they can find themselves navigating complex systems, difficult decisions, unfamiliar language, and intense emotions - often all at once.
Medical teams care for your health. Funeral directors care for funeral arrangements.
As an End of Life Doula, I care for the space in between.
My role is to support the whole experience - helping individuals and families navigate the practical, emotional, social, spiritual, and logistical realities that arise before, during, and after death.
Sometimes that means helping someone plan ahead and document their wishes. Sometimes it means supporting difficult conversations, advocating for wishes to be respected, helping a family understand their options, or simply being a calm and knowledgeable presence when everything feels overwhelming.
Whatever the situation, my focus is always the same: to understand what matters most to you, honour your values, and do whatever is practical, helpful, meaningful, and needed in each moment.
I am independent, non-medical, and non-judgemental.
My focus is not on what the system needs.
My focus is on what you need.
Together, we can explore your options, prepare for what lies ahead, navigate uncertainty, and create an experience that feels aligned with your values, your relationships, and the way you want to live, die, and be remembered.
These experiences cannot be made easy. But they can be made more informed, more supported, and less overwhelming.
Why I Do This Work
None of us gets out of this alive.
Yet for something that touches every one of us, many people arrive at death and grief feeling unprepared, uninformed, and unsure of their options.
Throughout my career, I've been drawn to helping people navigate difficult conversations, complex decisions, and life's most significant transitions. For more than 25 years, I worked as an executive coach, leadership trainer, and HR & culture consultant, supporting people to communicate honestly, think clearly, and make decisions aligned with their values.
Over the years, I also found myself supporting dying friends and loved ones, sitting beside people at the end of life, and attending more than 30 funerals.
What I witnessed changed me.
I saw families wanting to care for a loved one at home but lacking the confidence, knowledge, or support to do so. I saw people overwhelmed by systems they didn't understand. I saw rushed, impersonal farewells that failed to reflect the person who had died. And I saw vulnerable families spending money they didn't have, let along need to spend - because no one had told them there were other options.
Again and again, I found myself thinking: there has to be a better way.
That belief eventually led me to End of Life Doula work.
Today, I combine my professional background in coaching, facilitation, education, and advocacy with practical end-of-life support and community education to help people navigate one of life's most significant thresholds with greater confidence, clarity, and choice.
Because death itself may be inevitable BUT feeling uninformed, unsupported, or powerless within it is not.
My work is about helping people reclaim agency, have the conversations that matter, and create experiences that genuinely reflect who they are and what matters most to them.
DEATH SHOULDN'T BE PRICE PROHIBITIVE!
Enabling people to claim sovereignty over their end-of-life journey AND avoid funeral poverty are two things I am extremely passionate about, so joining the ranks of the "Death Without Debt" social movement was a no brainer for me.
The mission of the Death Without Debt movement is to:
"Make dying more affordable and ensure every NZ’er receives the dignified farewell they deserve."
Along with a growing team of volunteers across the country I offer public Death without Debt workshops in person and online and I am always happy to share my knowledge with individuals and families who want to do things their own way and/or have a DIY family led funeral