It can be expensive to die in New Zealand.

Many people don’t realise there are other options than recruiting the services of funeral homes.

A do-it-yourself approach may keep people out of debt, end of life doula Gaylene Delaney said.

She is running a Death Without Debt workshop in Omokoroa next month.

“An average funeral can cost $10,000 and a lot of people go into debt.

“It’s a hard enough time as it is without spending years paying off funeral debt of loved ones, so this is a community initiative to help [show]people how to do it themselves — or how to use a hybrid of services for some things. It’s about providing that information to people.”

In her profession as a doula (one who supports someone who is dying or their family and looks after them holistically) it appeared to Delaney funeral directors seemed to have the monopoly.

Death Without Debt gives people some autonomy, she said.

The workshops, which are held nationwide, are not to put down funeral directors as they have their place, she said, and many opt for a combination of their use.

“Many people don’t know things like, that you can build your own coffin, you can transport your loved ones yourself, you don’t have to use a hearse and you can do your own paperwork.”

The workshops cover funeral planning, wills, enduring power of attorney, advanced care plans, probate, after-death paperwork and avoiding professional service fees, care and transport of the body, coffins, cremation versus burials, alternative technologies, politics of funerals, community initiatives and collective action for funeral reform and more.

This will be her third workshop.

Delaney also runs Tauranga Death Cafe and the group meets at Patio Rose Cafe on Cambridge Rd every few months. The next meeting is March 22 at 10am and people can just show up.  Death cafes are a place for people to talk about death and dying. The idea is to improve people’s death literacy. They are not bereavement groups, nor is counselling offered.

The details:

What: Death Without Debt workshop

Where: Omokoroa Pavilion

When: March 7 from 11am-3pm

Cost $40 or donation. Register deathwithoutdebt@proton.me