FREE TO ATTEND
Thursdays in October 2025
6PM – 7PM
Riverdale Park East – meet at St. Matthew’s Clubhouse
450 Broadview Ave, Toronto, ON M4K 2N1
Closest transit stop: Broadview Ave at Langley Ave-Hennick Bridgepoint Hospital
Join Death Doula & Soul Companion, Adrianna Prosser aka Lady Death Doula, for an hour long walk with grief
*in partnership with InTO the Ravines – a Park People and City of Toronto supported event
Autumn is a season when we embrace death and dying as we watch the leaves turn and the weather change, and Mother Nature shows us how to die with grace. Each week learn about metabolizing your grief and how sound, movement, community, and storytelling can alleviate symptoms and build capacity for holding your grief. In the final week we will learn about legacy and build a pop-up community memorial together. Come to share your grief aloud, or come to be quiet and listen to the trees and be with others who understand where you are at in your grief journey.
October 2nd: Storytelling – You are invited to bring a picture of the person, place, pet, or anything that you are grieving. As we walk let’s share who or what they were to us.
October 9: Movement – You are invited to walk in silence, walk’n’talk, listen to your earphones… as we walk together holding space for us and allow the trees help us metabolize our grief through shinrin yoku or “forest bathing”. Special guest James Johnson of Reiki with James who will be able to speak about the healing art of Reiki and be available for mini sessions as we walk.
October 16: Sound – You are invited to share a song that reminds you of your person, place, pet or anything that you are grieving. If you bring a bluetooth capable device to share it with, a speaker will be made available for us all to hear your song. Special guest members from Hard Feelings, low-cost counselling and mental health resources in east end Toronto.
October 23: Community – As we walk through our grief, you are invited to share who or what you have lost and find others in our group to walk with. Walk together even if you walk in silence, walk’n’talk, or walk with the trees holding space for your grief. Community helps us reflect and integrate our grief so we do not feel so alone within it. Special Guest Esné, a clinical hypnotist and intuitive who specialises in integrating and transforming grief, will accompany the group and be available for questions.
October 30: Legacy – As we walk through our grief, you are invited to share how your grief metabolizes into acts of mourning, ritual, or legacy projects – things you do now as an act of love for your person, place, pet, or anything you are grieving now. We will create a communal pop-up memorial together.
This is a peer-led community walk in public space. Please dress appropriately for the weather, bring water, and participate at your own comfort and risk.
Look for new Griefy Giveaways each week to the first ten people who attend:
Week 1: First 10 people will RECEIVE a paperback copy of Aly Bird’s “Grief Ally” an empowering guide gives you solid step-by-step advice on how to support the grief journey
Week 2 + 3: First 10 people will RECEIVE an enamel “I am Grieving” pin by Canadian creator Margaux Wosk
Week 4: First 10 people will RECEIVE a mini 2×3 frame to start their home memorial to remember their decedent.
Thank you to Park People and City of Toronto for supporting this event.
***If there is a 70% chance or higher for rain, or hotter than 25 degrees, inclement weather including tornado watch or hail, the event will be postponed/canceled. Please look to Adrianna’s social media posts for day-of and live updates at: https://www.instagram.com/stories/ladydeathdoula/ or get on her Grief Walks email list by sending her an email:
Please wear appropriate shoes and clothing for outdoor walking, as well as sunscreen and bug repellent. Public washrooms available at the bottom of the hill in Riverdale East Park. Please bring your own water to stay hydrated, umbrella for shade or rain, tissues for happy or sad tears, and anything that would make you feel more at ease.
Meet Adrianna, aka Lady Death Doula
I acknowledge with respect and gratitude that the land that I live and work on is the traditional territory of many nations including the Mississaugas of the Credit, the Anishnabeg, the Chippewa, the Haudenosaunee and the Wendat peoples and is now home to many diverse First Nations, Inuit and Métis peoples. I also acknowledge that Toronto (Tkaronto) is covered by Treaty 13 with the Mississaugas of the Credit, in the Dish With One Spoon Wampum Belt Covenant Territory. Adrianna acknowledges this event takes place on Treaty land, and has made a donation to the local helpers and healers at The Native Women’s Resource Centre of Toronto (NWRCT) find out more: www.nwrct.ca
You might have seen Adrianna on CTV’s The Social as a special guest talking about the Death Positive Movement, or in Canadian Business Magazine as a death industry disruptor, or liked one of her TikTok videos sharing her journey as a Death Doula. Adrianna’s brother Andrew died by suicide in 2010 and his death catipulated her life into death work and mental health advocacy: she became a suicide awareness trainer and interventionist. She toured her one-woman show Everything But the Cat… for 10 years about suicide loss and bereavement, utilizing her storytelling background to create inclusive space to open a dialogue around death and dying. In 2019 Adrianna’s coworker Roberta asked if she wanted to go to Disneyland and South Korea to celebrate getting off chemo for stage four breast cancer; Roberta had a year to live and wanted a companion to get through her bucketlist and of course Adrianna said yes and embraced being a Death Doula for her friend. Holding liminal space and being comfortable in the discomfort has led Adrianna to become a hospice volunteer and grief counselor. She is currently in a fast-tracked Bachelor’s of Social Work to become a grief therapist to complement all the training she has done as a death worker. Her practice is anti-oppressive, radically feminist, and magically authentic to ensure she centers her companions where they are at on their care journey. Join the death positive conversation with her: @LadyDeathDoula on TikTok, Instagram, SubStack.
Meet Park People
Park People connects people and communities with the tools they need to create great parks for everyone. We’re the only national, bilingual organization solely dedicated to championing city parks in Canada. Since 2011, we’ve collaborated with thousands of community leaders, non-profit park organizations, and park professionals to realize the incredible potential of our urban green spaces. Our Vision: We envision a Canada where everyone has access to a vibrant park where people and the rest of nature thrive. Our Mission: Park People works to advance city parks as essential spaces to connect people to each other and the rest of nature.
Find out more and find events near you: https://parkpeople.ca/who-we-are/
Meet Aly Bird
“I believe that grief is worthy of our time & attention. I know that a death in your community can change everything. I’m glad you’re here and I hope I can help you.” Grief Allyship is the act of supporting and advocating for those who are grieving by providing unconditional love, empowerment, and deep reverence for their experience.
Find out more about Aly Bird and her book Grief Ally https://alybird.com/book/
Meet Hard Feelings from east end Toronto:
An innovative registered charity based in Toronto. We support a community of professional counsellors who offer low-cost therapy. Our online shop and in-person storefront offer curated resources that support stronger mental health.
Visit us in-person at 353 Church Street, Toronto.
Monday – Friday | 10am – 5pm
https://www.hardfeelings.org/
Meet Reiki with James
James Johnson offering Reiki, Pre and Post Op Transgender Support, Chakra Balancing and holistic support for anxiety, grief, chronic pain, and end of life.
reiki with james first started working with reiki over 20 years ago. He is excited to come to the hive to share and support healing journeys while he continues to study other energy work and holistic modalities. Reiki is an energy technique that is used for stress and pain reduction and relaxation. These are three vital factors that support the body, mind and spirit, allowing them to heal.
Services will be for all intended wellness such as anxiety, depression chronic pain/illness and end of life support.
Also offered is pre and post op transgender support. In addition to supportive energy work, private makeup lessons James was a professional makeup artist for 25 years) and personal shopper services are also offered.
More about James and his Reiki Share at: https://www.innerartscollective.com/jamesjohnson.html
Meet Esné
Esné is a Certified Clinical & Transpersonal Hypnotist with the Interpersonal Institute of Hypnotherapy with a focus on integrating ‘the shadow’. She is an intuitive and energy healer who offers grounded, practical sessions focused on revealing and healing the subconscious self – otherwise known as the ‘shadow’ self. She guides intuitive and sensitive people to heal old patterns and traumas, and embark on a new chapter of spiritual evolution.
Esné has ongoing training with the Amazonian jungle ‘Master Plants’ within the context of the Shipibo shamanic tradition. Both her healing process and Shipibo Shamanism focuses on the psychological, emotional and psychic root of dis-ease, not the symptom.
More about Esné on her website:
https://www.naturalesne.com/
National Suicide Helpline: Call or Text 9-8-8