Janine Cuthbertson is a celebrant of life’s milestones and holidays who enjoys teenagers, friends, and family filling her kitchen. As a mother, she is embracing becoming a “bird launcher” instead of an empty nester and exploring how she will shape her new life phase. You will always find a golden retriever or two in her home, along with a paddleboard ready for any body of water. Traveling, sunsets, and the ocean feed her soul.
“Embracing my grief after my father died in 2018, books on the subject of dying brought me comfort. Caring for the Dying by Henry Fersko-Weiss spoke to my personal caregiving experience with my father and led me to discover INELDA. I felt a kindred spirit in the organization, attending webinars and workshops, meeting others who also felt this unique and sacred calling to support people at end of life. When my mother chose to use MAiD in 2021, I was her advocate and bedside caregiver. Through my—and from my—fear and anxiety from the acute lack of support, communication, and education from my mother’s medical team and strict red tape from her hospice, I vowed to not let others go through the same. It was in my moment of greatest need that an end-of-life doula, Thalia DeWolf, came to our side and transformed our MAiD and dying experience into a profoundly confident and serene one. This prompted me to follow my curiosity to serve in the role of doula and train with INELDA. Feeling isolated after training fueled my desire to connect and build community with others in the end-of-life space. I am honored to be a part of this team to foster the gift of community for INELDA’s members, doulas, and supporters of this growing end-of-life movement.”
Janine has dedicated her career and passion to building in-person and online communities to help people connect, inform, support, and inspire one another, for communities including inner-city youth, mothers, and educators. She trained with INELDA in 2023 and currently serves as the organization’s membership program coordinator. Janine holds a proficiency badge with the National End-of-Life Doula Alliance and is MAiD-certified as an end-of-life doula through the American Clinicians Academy on Medical Aid in Dying. At home on Maui, she volunteers with her local hospice.