4 minute read
They're bringing ancient practices back (yeah) DEAD GOOD LEGACIES
Written by: Kera Sanchez
The sister duo changing the end-of-life narrative, one alternative funeral at a time.
Meet Katy and Lindsey Vigurs (like Tigers)—
These sisters are the Founding Directors of DEAD GOOD, a not-for-profit, arts-based death education company based in the UK that aims to end taboos around death, dying, and grief. They believe that it is not morbid to speak openly about death and they see honest conversations about death, dying, and grief as the foundation of a healthy society.
Before the start of DEAD GOOD, Katy dedicated herself to academia, as a professor and social researcher with expertise in social justice & education, with emphasis on creative approaches to research and public engagement. Katy's counterpart, Lindsey has spent most of her life working as an artist and commercial illustrator for clients such as the BBC. Both talents played a vital role, when in 2018, they began their journey with death education, stroking curiosity around the topic. Holding workshops and activities, and getting people to broach death conversations was their humble beginning, but a few years later, the sisters received a tough pill to swallow. Their father, Peter Vigurs was diagnosed with terminal cancer and died one year later in February 2022.
During that year, the family worked hard to confront death in the face and make the most of the time that was left. Katy recalls, “In many ways, it was an example of a privileged death, in that his death was both expected, supported, and relatively comfortable. We remain grateful that we had time to talk, plan, and prepare as a family, which we know is not possible for everyone. ”
She goes on to describe all of the interesting ways they honored his life, and death, while Peter’s heart was still beating. In fact, Peter took part in his funeral planning, curating the music, poetry, and even commissioned the weaving of a willow coffin by a local artist. The family also took part in numerous legacy projects, such as a memory jar, the creation of a Facebook group to reconnect and reminisce with long lost friends, and recorded interviews to keep the stories alive forever. Another notable project was the ceramic casting and mold of their father‘s hand, so they could continue to high-five after his departure.
And that is exactly what they are doing. Presently, DEAD GOOD offers an array of services, specializing in supporting people to plan eco-friendly funerals, living funerals, and home funerals. Outside of their funeral work, people commission DEAD GOOD to design DIY acts of remembrance, personal grief rituals, and creative legacy projects. To add, Katy and Lindsey deliver inventive death education to schools, community groups, the third sector, and businesses.
Oh, and they also have their own line of eco-death merch, all designed by Lindsey. (Her artistic talents do not go unnoticed)
I asked them why they think people are breaking from the societal expectation of death and dying, and Katy responded with this, “We just find that conventional approaches are starting to feel more limited and limiting to many people. When people realize that there are many more options to choose from, and that they can design and conduct grieving rituals for themselves, they tend to want to take more ownership over the process. We think of it more as a -taking back rather than a -breaking from tradition-” Also adding, “We hope people feel supported, understood, and empowered through their work with us. We hope that they feel less afraid of death and dying. We hope that they will enjoy taking ownership of death work with their family and friends - which after all is really life work! We hope they feel part of a curious, creative community ”
The ladies share there is a lot to look out for in 2024,
"Much more to come, we promise you that!"
TO LEARN MORE, SHOP, OR WORK WITH KATY AND LINDSEY, VISIT: WWW.DEADGOOD.ORG SHOOT THEM AN EMAIL: HELLO@DEADGOOD.ORG AND FOLLOW THEM ON INSTAGRAM @DEADGOODLEGACIES.
