Dying Well in Daylesford
Thursday, 16 July, 6 – 8, 113 Main Road, Hepburn Springs
This is a free event, but please register to help with planning of seating and refreshments.
It is no secret that everyone dies, but some deaths are better than others. Most of us will know when our death is imminent, and we will then have choices about how we are cared for as we die. That includes choices about where we want to die, the type of treatment we want and don’t want when we are dying, whether we want to choose assistance to die, how we want our death to be commemorated, and how we want to arrange our affairs before we die. This Conversation will explore what we know about the process of dying well.
Hal Swerissen is Emeritus Professor of Public Health at La Trobe University. He was previously Pro Vice Chancellor and Dean of Health Science, and while he was a Fellow at the Grattan Institute, he led the publication of the influential report ‘Dying Well’. He served as the Minister’s Special Advisor for the Task Force that developed a framework for the Victorian legislation on Voluntary Assisted Dying. Join Hal in conversation about dying well.
Verey Funeral Directors has been part of the Daylesford community since 1864, with a long history of caring for local families and their loved ones, and providing respectful care at every stage of the funeral process. Offering an individual and personal approach that is thoughtful and supportive during difficult times.
Alicia Kay along with the support of a dedicated and compassionate team, has owned and operated Verey Funeral Directors since June 2015. In 2019, the business expanded by opening an office in Creswick. She is committed to working with local businesses wherever possible, supporting local clubs and community groups and maintaining a strong connection with families across Daylesford, Creswick and surrounding areas.
Morbid curiosity -What Margaret Graham’s murder can tell us
Thursday, 20 August, 6 – 8, 113 Main Road, Hepburn Springs
This is a free event, but please register to help with planning of seating and refreshments.
From Lindy Chamberlain to the Mushroom Murders, there seems to be no end to our obsession with true crime. A flood of books, documentaries and podcasts testifies to this demand. Yet this isn’t a recent phenomenon. For centuries, we’ve been fascinated by crime – as a notorious Daylesford case demonstrates.
In December 1864, a young woman named Margaret Graham was murdered in her Albert Street cottage. The brutality of the crime horrified Victoria, but it also caused a sensation that enthralled the public. The colonial press disapprovingly called this appetite ‘morbid curiosity’: large crowds flocked to courthouses, sightseers trampled the crime scene, and waxwork exhibits of the murder toured the colony. But while some of the forms may have altered, many remain familiar to us today. This Conversation will examine what’s changed (and what hasn’t) when it comes to our true crime obsession.
This conversation’s speaker is Dr Paige Mahoney. Dr Mahoney is a historian of colonial Australian crime, with a particular focus on how crime was covered by the press and experienced by the public. Her previous research has explored the complex intersections between history and fiction, gender and memory, and regional and national identities. Paige is also a higher education researcher at Deakin University’s Centre for Research in Assessment and Digital Learning.
