Brad Hunt, the Archuleta County coroner, will be speaking at End of Life Education on Thursday, April 30.
Beginning at 1 p.m. at the Community United Methodist Church at 434 Lewis St., Hunt will be speaking and answering your questions.
Use the side door right off the parking lot, which takes you first into the kitchen and then the large fellowship hall. Usually, the front doors to the church sanctuary are locked if no staff is on duty.
Hunt is our county coroner and he has assistant coroners.
State laws have increased what the coroner must do with every death in each county.
Hunt promised that speaking to us will be his No. 1 priority on Thursday, April 30 from 1:15 to 2:15 p.m. It might turn out to be the most important thing you do on that day also.
If you ever need to work with him, it can be beneficial to have met him and know what to expect. He is diligent and caring. He will share with us the nature of his work and spend time answering all our questions.
It is possible that the emergency medical response team will be doing informal training (not for certification) on resuscitation, possibly at 2:15 p.m. They will be bringing large dolls or dummies for everyone to practice on. If they do not come, there will be another opportunity later.
Did you know that every law enforcement car in Archuleta County carries an emergency defibrillator for resuscitation? And there are several at public buildings around town, like the library, schools and the community center. That is valuable information to keep in mind. Seconds matter for resuscitation.
We have so much that we need to learn.
On Thursday, May 21, End of Life Education is having a speaker who we’ve had in the past because new information is being developed in the area of natural funerals. It will be at 1 p.m. at the Methodist Church.
Last year, Karis Meskimen presented the new ideas of green burials, natural burials, human composting and water cremation. Many of the newest ideas were started in other states and then are first presented in Denver and/or suburbs. Meskimen did a great job of sharing new methods of handling bodies that are much better for the environment. She has new information to share with us.
We have not yet spent much important time on Colorado laws that aid a person at the end of life to shorten time of possible great pain or serious discomfort by personally taking a “home-delivered” “cocktail.”
The process needs to be doctor-monitored and must follow our state laws precisely. The doctors involved in this process are very busy and may not be able to meet with us. They will provide information and there will be a presentation and time for all questions on Wednesday, May 13, from 10 to 11:30 a.m. at the Methodist Church. If it is not well attended, we will set another time in the beginning of June.
We hope to see you at these events for an important learning experience and something that you will find to be most helpful.
We almost always realize that we are more capable and stronger than we ever thought we were. We will be learning a great deal at each of these programs and will become better stronger and more complete people.
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