“My vision is to be someone who can be called upon, who builds connections, and creates a stronger social web of health in my community. I plan to volunteer with hospice with this education I’ve received, and I plan to be a voice for end-of-life care in public health and community health improvement planning. I think this grassroots work is the only authentic way to create sustainable change in how we care for each other and how we die. ”
Oregon rural end-of-life doula initiative
The Peaceful Presence Project reimagines the way communities talk about, plan for and experience the last stage of life. We are cultivating the Compassionate Communities Model of Care in the United States in an effort to expand death literacy and improve end-of-life experiences for all.
In our society, discussing terminal illness and death is generally avoided. As a result, even with hospice care, dying individuals and their loved ones sometimes do not have the support that they would wish for in their final days and hours.
Especially in rural communities, access to palliative care, including hospice, can be limited or non-existent. This can lead to broad disparities in end-of-life care. Trained end-of-life doulas who are embedded in rural communities can make a tremendous difference and fill in gaps not covered by hospice by providing support and skilled interventions to under-supported individuals. End-of-life doulas are able to provide lay knowledge as a complement to, and in collaboration with, professional medical end-of-life care. This makes them skilled conduits in that they are able to connect people to resources, as well as navigate between the different challenges that oftentimes accompany end of life experiences. Their involvement can encourage more equity-informed, culturally-centered, and relationship-oriented care.
FALL 2025, Rural Oregon: Fall Course Dates : October 1, 2025 - November 26, 2025
This 8-week training is available to residents residing in rural Jackson, Josephine, Douglas, Morrow, Gilliam, Wheeler, Baker and Malheur Counties and is supported with funding from the Wheeler Foundation. There is no tuition for selected applicants.
Participants will learn the doula model of care, network with other trainees across the state, and cultivate a plan for providing support in their home communities for individuals living with serious and terminal illness. This course requires 6-10 hours of your time per week, including self-study time and Zoom meetings.
There will be a total of 7 required zoom meetings during your course. The Live Zoom sessions will take place on Wednesday afternoons from 12:00 pm noon - 1:30 PM PST during weeks 1, 3, 5 and 8 of the program. You will begin your studies on Wednesday, October 1st, 2025 with Module #1, so you have a full week of learning prior to our first live zoom session together on October 8th. Live Zoom Sessions will take place on October 8, October 22, November 5 and and November 26. In addition to these full student cohort + faculty facilitated live zoom meetings, you will also be required to meet in small groups in weeks 2, 4 and 7, based upon self-scheduling within your small group.
Application cycle closes on September 1, 2025. Applicants will be notified by the week of September 8, 2025.
For an overview of the curriculum, please click HERE to visit the page for our professional training course.
If you have additional questions about the program, please write to info@thepeacefulpresenceproject.org
