As Benjamin Franklin famously observed, there is very little in life that is certain, aside from death and taxes. But while death is certain, it is also the ultimate mystery. It is also final, which is why many people tend to avoid the topic. There’s a fear that if one talks about death, one is inviting death.
That kind of thinking is what the Jewish Assn. for Death Education (JADE) is trying to move past.
“Talking about death won’t kill you,” jokes co-founder Susan Kramer.
Her interest in death education started when she became involved with Kavod v’Nichum, an organization focused on Jewish traditions around death, founded by David Zinner.
She learned about preparing dead bodies for burial, the key work of a chevra kadisha, along with other Jewish rituals around mourning.
Kavod v’Nichum was oriented to businesses and practitioners in the field, says Kramer. As Zinner was reaching retirement, Kramer saw an opportunity: to create a group that provides death education to individuals.
“I didn’t want to do a duplication,” says Kramer, a former Jewish federation head and today a consultant for nonprofits, specifically in the area of fundraising. “I want to work through existing portals.”
She hosted a “Death Yenta” retreat in Denver and focus groups were held in markets across the country such as Atlanta and Chicago, followed by pilots in Richmond and Boulder.
After securing initial funds and incorporating, she approached Jim Cohen of Feldman Mortuary, who helped support a three-year pilot, which is currently entering its third year.
Thus, JADE was born.
The idea is simple: that Jews should learn about and prepare for death long before it happens. Because of fears and taboos around death, people tend to learn about its Jewish rules and rituals only when directly confronted with it. In that moment, with heightened stress and emotion, decision making is difficult and often confusing.
JADE wants to see consumers who are informed about the process — such as burial versus cremation, ethical wills and palliative care — so that thought is invested prior to the moment of decision-making.
That helps the deceased, she says, and the deceased’s family and loved ones.
Enter Hineni, the online learning tool developed for JADE by New Mexico-based educator Rick Light.
Through different tracks — practical, spiritual, emotional and textual — it takes the user through a holistic journey, beginning with visiting the ill through to burial rites and Jewish discussions of the afterlife. The tool is also searchable, so one can navigate directly to a specific topic.
JADE is non-denominational, equally accessible for affiliated and unaffiliated Jews says Kramer. She sees JADE as a tool for community engagement.
The organization doesn’t seek to replace existing sources, such as a funeral director or pastoral counsellor, but to help create a reality that when a person comes to a funeral director or pastoral counsellor, he or she comes with knowledge of the process.
The initial funding for JADE gave the group $100,000 for three years per year beginning in four markets: Denver, Boulder, Portland (Ore.) and Princeton, NJ. Boulder’s lead educator is Evie Cohen.
JADE was looking for mid-size communities that had end-of-life resources.
Each successive year of the pilot, four additional communities are added. Pilots are used to understand what kinds of institutions around death communities have; what institutions can be part of a death education network; what kind of audience is or could be interested in death education; what kinds of institutions JADE can play a role.
The pilot phase, however, does not only include research. In addition to the launch of the Hineni tool, in 2024, JADE hosts monthly webinars and is preparing for onboarding four additional communities to its pilot.
In his introduction to Death and the Dervish, Serbian novelist Mesa Selimovic wrote:
“Death is a certainty, an inevitable realization, the only thing that we know will befall us. There are no exceptions, no surprises: all paths lead to it. Everything we do is a preparation for it, a preparation that we begin at birth . . . ”
For most, the preparation is passive, a clock that starts ticking and continues ticking in the background.
What JADE aims for is active preparation, but not only to create an informed consumer for when the inevitable happens. For Kramer, learning about death infuses meaning in life.
A friend’s suicide created a calling in Kramer — a calling she is sharing with communities across the country, providing guidance and support.
© IJN 2025