End-of-Life & Financial planning

Dignity Seniors Society (DSS)’s Legal services page lists pro bono legal service providers.

411 Seniors Centre. For non-2SLGBTQIA+ generic seniors’ information such as the Canada Pension Plan and Old Age Security we defer to the amazing work of our partners such as 411 Seniors Centre Society with whom we work closely, trusting that they can provide culturally appropriate services and information.

DSS and 411 Seniors Centre have signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) to work collaboratively.

The Comox Valley Hospice Society, serving the Comox Valley region of British Columbia, provides end-of-life support services including palliative services, caregiver services, grief services, and advance care planning.

The National Resource Centre on 2SLGBTQI Aging (NRCA) is a resource centre focused on the lived experiences of 2SLGBTQI older adults and aging issues in Canada. The site is a storehouse of information, research and resources for 2SLGBTQIA+ older adults, their communities, and for those who provide social service and care to these groups. ... The NRCA is a collaboration between Egale Canada and the National Institute on Ageing at Toronto Metropolitan University (formerly Ryerson University).

Queer Grief Circle 🏳️‍🌈 🏳️‍⚧️ We hold monthly Grief Circles online for folks to talk, process, reflect, grieve, and support one another after experiencing a death loss.
There is no cost to the group but we encourage you to spread the word and invite others to join.

• For 2SLGBTQIA+ folks

• Online 7:00 pm on 4th Wednesday monthly

• No cost

• Registration required

Facilitated by Eliezer Moreno, MSW / RSW
Queer Grief & Loss Counsellor & Registered Social Worker

Simon Fraser University SFU). Making wills, living wills and end-of-life planning: SFU's Department of Gerontology -- headed by Professor Emeritus Dr. Gloria Gutman, Ph.D. with past DSS Board member Robert Beringer -- has done excellent work around 2SLGBTQIA+ Seniors (see their resource page).

Intersecting cultures : create some specific requirements and considerations. We aim to respect these intersections by ensuring we have diverse board members that can connect with communities and give voice to their needs.

The Charlatan (Carleton University), 2025—May-27) Death doulas reshape conversations around dying for 2SLGBTQIA+ seniors [link]
… Death doulas play an important role in end-of-life care – not just in the services they provide to dying patients, but as part of a broader goal of normalizing death. They aim to destigmatize how mortality is discussed in society and with doctors. … Sarah Rodenhizer and Rhonda Garnier, co-leads of the home hospice association’s No Place Like Home program, say they’ve observed a growing trend in 2SLGBTQIA+ residents having to “recloset” themselves in long-term care facilities, fearing discrimination from staff and non-2SLGBTQIA+ residents.

The No Place Like Home program aims to accommodate the needs of 2SLGBTQIA+ seniors by making long-term care facilities and end-of-life care services safer, prioritizing affirming language, respecting chosen families and creating spaces for affection.

“They’re not getting the security or health care they deserve because their past lived experiences have taught them that they’re not safe,” Garnier said.

Part of integrating accommodations includes professional development with long-term care facility staff and using practical tools adapted to be more inclusive, like advanced death planning, Garnier said.

Another part includes working with 2SLGBTQIA+ seniors to understand their lived experiences, which are then relayed to staff. They also determine what accommodations are missing from care, she said. …