Making New Hampshire Funeral Information Easy to Find

What to do when someone dies is a mystery to most of us. But there is movement to regain the lost skills and self-reliance of previous generations, driven by a vision of creating more affordable, eco-friendly, meaningful and authentic ways of memorializing and caring for our own dead ourselves, in our own homes, in our churches, and in our communities. This movement is gaining momentum, guided by ethical and environmentally conscious values, seeking more congruent methods and practices that reflect our vision for the planet and provide a sense of place for those left behind.
For many, that will mean learning how to conduct a home funeral; for others, it will mean searching for a funeral director who will honor their unique ideas; for still others it will mean advocating for change in our municipal cemetery, hospital, and government laws and policies. However this reform in funeral practices and responsibility resonates with you, we are here to educate, to support, and to nurture new ideas that will change the way we do death in the best possible ways.

Quick Find
PictureClick on the image to watch the video
In New Hampshire, no one is required to purchase the services of a funeral director or funeral home. Families may conduct any or all tasks commonly performed by a funeral home (except embalming which is not required by New Hampshire law), and may bury on their own property if certain provisions are met. Sometimes called "family-led after-death care" or "home funerals" this may include:
  • bathing and dressing the deceased; 
  • sheltering the deceased at home;
  • spending time with the deceased (sometimes called a wake, vigil, or viewing);
  • filing the death certificate and obtaining a burial/transit permit;
  • making arrangements for final disposition (generally burial or cremation);
  • transporting the body home (or to another location) for care and viewing, and to place of final disposition;
  • making arrangements for any ceremony. ​​

Join Me for Online and In-Person Presentations
​Courses, and Conversations

Looking for a presentation for your event? Or seeking assistance with green burial in your town? Contact Lee at  [email protected]
Navigating Funerals: A how-to for the informed consumer
OSHER at Dartmouth
Online 3-part course
September 11, 18, and 25, 2024
9 - 11 am
​Register
The American Funeral
Aging Resource Center
September 13, 2024
10 - 11:30 am online
Call 603.653.3460 to register
Green Burials in New Hampshire
Senior Center
Plymouth, NH
September 19, 2024
​1 pm in-person
Going Out Green: Eco-Friendly Funerals
Sponsored by the Lyme Parish NurseTeam
Congregational Church
September 25, 2024
6 pm
The Eco-Friendly Funeral
Aging Resource Center
​September 27, 2024
10 - 11:30 am online
Call 603.653.3460 to register
You Can Do This: Family-led funerals
Funeral Consumers Alliance of Western Massachusetts
Annual Meeting
Unitarian Society of Northampton and Florence
220 Main Street, Northampton, MA
October 20, 2024
​2 - 4 pm
Register for online and in-person attendance at [email protected]
Eco-Friendly Final Exits: Planning Funerals with an Environmental Flair
OLLI at UNH
Online 3-part course
November 7, 14, and 21, 2024
9 - 10 am online
​Register
Free and paid online classes at Redesigning the End.com
Green Burial Masterclass
Green Funeral Services
Doulas and After-Death Care: Bridging Both Worlds
Hospice and Home Funerals In-Service Series
After-Death Care Mini Course for Doulas, Guides, and Individuals

Read teaching testimonials here: https://osher.dartmouth.edu/get_involved/study_leaders/meet_study_leaders/leewebster/

3 Approaches to Funerals

Meet Lee Webster, Funeral Reform Advocate

Picture
As a writer, researcher, hospice volunteer, home funeral guide, conservationist, web designer, and frequent speaker on the benefits of home funerals and green burial, Lee Webster's career and volunteer service spans years in public relations and development for nonprofits, conservation groups, health agencies, private secondary schools, colleges and universities. She serves as the Executive Director of New Hampshire Funeral Resources, Education & Advocacy, is a former President and Vice Chair of Education of the Green Burial Council, and was a six-year VP and President of the National Home Funeral Alliance. She is a founding member of the National End-of-Life Doula Alliance, the National Hospice and Palliative Care Organization's End-of-Life Doula Council, and the Conservation Burial Alliance.

​She is the author of several home funeral and green burial books, including Changing Landscapes: Exploring the growth of ethical, compassionate, environmentally sustainable green funeral practices and The After-Death Care Advocate Handbook, which includes titles previously published individually such as Essentials for Practicing Home Funeral Guides, Building Bridges Along the Death Care Continuum: Advocating for home funerals in hospitals, hospices, and care facilities, and the Planning Guide and Workbook for Home Funeral Families. She is a contributor to The Future of the Corpse, a collaborative book written with Columbia University's DeathLab. She has published articles and been interviewed for pieces that can be found in various news outlets, magazines, podcasts, and blogs, including Natural Transitions, American Funeral Director, FuneralOne, Funeral Business Advisor, Newsweek, PhillyVoice, the New Yorker, the New York Times, The New Republic, DeathTalk, EOL University, The Wall Street Journal, and many others. Webster is also responsible for design, content, and maintenance of various death care websites through SideEffects Publishing, Inc.

Lee has developed several cornerstone courses for professionals and lay people seeking to learn more about green funerals and burials, including Green Funeral Service, Doulas and After-Death Care: Bridging Both Worlds, and Hospice and Home Funerals In-Service Series. Also co-taught with Holly Blue Hawkins through Redesigning the End is the 12-week online Green Burial MasterClass that covers the technical and ethical aspects of natural burial. She also assisted with instruction at the Gamliel Institute supporting David Zinner and Holly Blue Hawkins in teaching Jewish and Green: Cemetery Management for the 21st Century. All four courses are the first of their kind. She guest lectures and teaches frequently at colleges, universities, life-long learning programs, including OSHER at Dartmouth College, OLLI at UNH, Dartmouth's Aging Resource Center, and mortuary schools.