WORKING WITH JUDGMENT: Offering Affirming Care at End of Life
WORKING WITH JUDGMENT: Offering Affirming Care at End of Life
Share this event
Need help?
with Rhonda Garnier & Sara Rodenhizer
OPEN TO THE PUBLIC - FREE TO ATTEND!
A 2 hour interactive workshop for caregivers and end-of-life professionals.
Facilitated by Rhonda Garnier and Sara Rodenhizer, this session explores how judgment naturally arises in end-of-life work, how it affects care, and how to respond with compassion instead of reactivity.
Through reflection and group dialogue, participants will examine their own biases, learn tools for staying grounded, and practice shifting from judgment to respectful presence. Together, we will identify how judgment shows up in our work, from subtle discomfort to overt withdrawal, and how it affects dying individuals.
By normalizing this ongoing inner work, this workshop emphasizes that while we don’t need to change our beliefs, we must ensure they never compromise the dignity of those we serve.
Workshop Outcomes — Participants will:
- Recognize how judgment naturally arises and how it affects end-of-life care.
- Develop greater awareness of their own biases and embodied responses.
- Learn practical strategies to transform judgment into compassionate presence.
- Strengthen their ability to provide affirming, respectful care across diverse identities, beliefs, and cultural contexts."
ABOUT YOUR PRESENTERS:
Rhonda Garnier & Sara Rodenhizer, Co-Leads, The Open Door Project
Rhonda and Sara co-lead The Open Door Project, a community-based initiative dedicated to fostering affirming environments for 2SLGBTQIA+ elders in long-term care (LTC) and at end of life. Rhonda, a retired school principal and end-of-life doula, brings extensive experience in inclusive leadership, facilitation, and legacy planning. She also runs her own doula practice, Life’s Moments in Love. Sara is a passionate community business developer who founded and managed a successful business and queer community hub in Berlin, Germany, before returning to Canada earlier this year. She is currently pursuing her MBA in Community Economic Development, with a focus on advancing inclusive, community-driven care initiatives.
OPEN TO THE PUBLIC - FREE TO ATTEND!
__________________________
Your co-hosts & co-founders of The Death & Dying Network International:
Jo-Anne Haun & Karen Hendrickson