Join the Conversation
Immerse yourself in thought-provoking discussions and interactive exhibits at Death Expo We are back for another year on Saturday, 17 October 2026.
Discover innovative approaches to end-of-life planning and explore the significance of mortality in our lives.
About Death Expo?
Death Expo 2026 is a unique event that brings together experts and the community for a powerful day of learning, connection and conversation.
Through engaging education sessions, Q&A panels, interactive activities, and exhibition booths, you'll explore topics that truly matter.
Connect with professionals from a wide range of fields including palliative care, aged care, health, grief support, paediatrics, death doulas, legal and financial planning, nursing, paramedicine, Wish Ambulance, funeral services and many more.
Expo Highlights
Q&A Panels
We are excited to announce our panels for this year are:
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Many Faiths, Once Farewell: A Cultural Q & A
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Voluntary Assisted Dying & Palliative Care
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Advanced care planning and Wills
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Ask the Experts: Cemetery Options and Planning
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Planning with Care: A Funeral Planning Q & A
Death Cafes
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A Death Café is a relaxed, informal gathering where people come together to talk openly about death and dying. It’s not therapy or a support group—there’s no agenda, objectives, or expected outcomes. Instead, it creates a safe, respectful space for honest conversation, often over tea, coffee, and cake.
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The aim is to increase awareness of death, helping people make the most of their lives by normalising conversations that are often avoided. Discussions can include personal experiences, fears, cultural beliefs, and practical considerations, guided gently by a facilitator to ensure everyone feels heard and respected.
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At its core, a Death Café is about breaking the silence around death and fostering connection through shared human experience.
Exhibitors
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Garden of Remembrance
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Burtows Family Funerals
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Brodribb at Home
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Blue L:ilac
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QVAD
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Arrow Memorial
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Grief Guide
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The Bottom Draw Book
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Blue Care & Loss Programs
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Vital Life and Legacy
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Darling Downs Envigor Home Care
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Palliative Care Qld
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Cancer Council QLD
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Brisbane Grief Counselling
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Dying with Dignity
Ambulance Wish Queensland
Ambulance Wish Queensland is Palliative Care Queensland (PCQ) Signature Program, providing Queenslanders living with a life-limiting illness, access to specialist transport and clinical care required to fulfill their last wish and create memories forever. Inspired by two Hervey Bay paramedics who fulfilled a patient’s wish to visit her favorite beach, AWQ is the first program of its kind in Australia. Launched by PCQ in July 2019, AWQ is modeled after the Netherlands’ charity program, Stichting Ambulance Wens. The program is supported by the Queensland Government and Queensland Ambulance Service, but it relies significantly on donations, sponsorships, fundraising, and in-kind contributions. The program utilises decommissioned, bespoke ambulances donated by Queensland Ambulance Service (QAS) to provide palliative and end-of-life patients with specifically curated wishes. These wishes create lasting memories for patients and their loved ones. Wishes are often simple yet meaningful, such as a trip to the beach or South Bank to enjoy time with family, visiting Australia Zoo to pet a giraffe, or watching a Brisbane Broncos training session. Some patients may request to attend a grandchild’s wedding, while others prefer “on-site wishes,” which involve bringing family, friends, or pets to the patient, organising a pamper day, or arranging a professional photo or video shoot with loved ones.
Olive Express
At the heart of this year’s Death Expo is the idea that every stage of life—right through to the end—can be lived with meaning, connection, and dignity. Experiences like Olive Express in Toowoomba beautifully reflect this philosophy. Olive Express is an immersive, train-themed virtual travel experience designed for aged care residents. In Toowoomba, this concept has been adapted into a permanent “train carriage” room where participants can “travel” to different countries without leaving the facility, using large screens as windows, surround sound, and guided narration. This innovative approach reminds us that even as life changes, opportunities for joy, reflection, and connection remain. Just as Olive Express brings the world to those who can no longer easily access it, the Expo invites our community to come together—to explore, learn, and have meaningful conversations about living well, planning ahead, and supporting one another through life’s final chapter.
Meet the Speaker
Janice Holstein is a funeral and marriage celebrant and has served as a Justice of the Peace for more than 20 years. Deeply embedded in community life, Janice spent 24 years as a local government councillor in the Lockyer Valley, where she was known for her practical, people-first approach and her commitment to making everyday life better for those around her. Alongside her public service, Janice has long been involved in local organisations, community events and volunteer roles, reflecting a lifetime of connection, service and leadership. In her role as a funeral celebrant, Janice is passionate about helping families navigate death with honesty, warmth and humanity. She believes that open conversations about death can reduce fear, create understanding, and allow people to approach loss with greater confidence and compassion. A wife, mother and devoted grandmother, Janice brings lived experience, empathy and a calm, reassuring presence to every conversation she shares.
Meet the Committee
Nicole Faulkner
Nicole Faulkner is an Accredited Mental Health Social Worker with over 25 years of experience. With a passion for helping individuals navigate life’s challenges, Nicole brings extensive experience in addressing a wide range of mental health concerns, including anxiety, depression, domestic violence, grief and loss, workplace stress, PTSD, and complex trauma. Nicole is the director and practitioner of Mindical Counselling Services in Toowoomba. www.mindicalcounsellingservices.com.au
Eugenie Corbett
Eugenie is the Director of Nursing at the Toowoomba Hospice. Eugenie leads a dedicated team consisting of nurses and personal care assistants trained in palliative care and a enthusiastic trained team of administration staff and volunteers support in the smooth running of the Hospice. www.toowoombahospice.org.au
Toowoomba Regional Cemeteries
Since the first burial at the Drayton and Toowoomba Cemetery in 1866, Toowoomba Regional Council have been ensuring our community members are supported through some of the most difficult times of their lives, by maintaining our Region’s cemeteries as a comforting place to mourn, reflect and reminisce. Toowoomba Regional Council endeavours to offer a range of restful interment options individualised to meet the diverse cultural needs of our beloved community. We are honoured to preserve the rich history of our Region by capturing the stories of our community members laid to rest within our cemeteries. Please contact our dedicated cemeteries team to discuss your requirements.
Lisa Herbert
You can tell a lot about a town from its cemetery. Toowoomba journalist and author Lisa Herbert operates Cemetery Tours where she shares fascinating tales of the dead and their lasting impact on the region’s history. Her quirky and practical guide, The Bottom Drawer Book: The After Death Action Plan, helps you prepare for the inevitable with humour and heart. Packed with useful info and space for personal reflections, it makes planning your final send-off—whether it’s hymns or pop songs, cremation or cake—a little easier for those you leave behind. www.thebottomdrawerbook.com.au
Kerena McDonald
Coordinator Cemetery Services -
Environment Community Services
After eight years working in palliative care, Kerena developed a deep and enduring commitment to supporting individuals and families through some of life’s most challenging moments. Her experience in end-of-life care not only shaped her professional values but also instilled a profound sense of empathy and respect for the journey each person takes. Following a period away from the industry, Kerena embraced a new opportunity as the Coordinator of Cemetery Services with the Toowoomba Regional Council. This role, while different in nature, calls upon the same compassion and sensitivity she brought to her previous work. Now overseeing 25 cemeteries across the Toowoomba Region—19 of which remain operational—Kerena is dedicated to enhancing the quality and accessibility of cemetery services for the community. Driven by a strong desire to educate and engage, Kerena is passionate about helping the public better understand the important role cemeteries play. She actively works to demystify what happens within cemetery grounds, sharing insights into the services offered and fostering a deeper appreciation for these spaces as places of remembrance, history, and connection.
Toni Simpson
Toni trained as a Registered Nurse at Goulburn Base Hospital in New South Wales, graduating in 1982. Over the years, she worked across many areas, including Community Health, Aged Care, Women’s Health, Palliative Care, Public Health, and hospitals. Her passion for elder care began early, earning a certificate in gerontology in 1990 and becoming a Nurse Practitioner in Aged Care in 2008. Toni was the first Nurse Practitioner focused on Aged Care and delirium in the acute hospital setting. Her research interests include delirium, dementia, and how staff knowledge of patient-centred care impacts outcomes for hospital patients with dementia. In her final years as a Nurse Practitioner, she led a community-based Dementia Outreach Service on the Gold Coast. After leaving Queensland Health in 2021, she worked as an NDIS Support Worker with people living with younger onset dementia. Since retiring in 2023, Toni continues to advocate for better dementia care and patient-focused healthcare. She is a consumer representative on her local End of Life Care working group and a founding member of a Death Expo planned for October 2025. Outside of her professional work, Toni enjoys walking, reading, and spending time with her five grandchildren.
Darling Downs and West Moreton PHN
Not only are they our Platinum Sponsor but we have had multiple inputs from Staff at PHN have been instrumental in assisting in the Expo. Shout out to: Amy Wilson - Director - Priority Populations Michelle Canning - Commissioning Coordinator Tamara Williams - Design and Communications Coordinator
Our Valued Sponsors
Platinum Sponsor
Darling Downs and West Moreton PHN
Darling Downs and West Moreton PHN is one of 31 primary health networks around Australia. Our role in the health system is to both support primary healthcare - the healthcare people seek first in their community, such as GPs, pharmacies and allied health professionals – as well as work with our partners to ensure the right care is there for those who need it most. While our focus is primary care, we collaborate across the whole system to enable our communities to have access to excellent health care, closer to home.
Gold Sponsor
Toowoomba Garden of Rememberance
As a proud sponsor of this year’s Death Expo, we are honoured to share our commitment to creating spaces of peace, remembrance, and connection. Our long-established perfumed gardens, shady trees and tranquil lakes create a sense of calm, making us a place of reflection for people of all ages, all faiths, and cultures. Here amongst 35 acres of wide and open space, we offer an extensive range of services, including burial and cremation, memorials and plaques, allowing you to select the option that best reflects your family.
Silver Sponsor
Burstow's Funerals
Burstows is the only local family-owned and operated funeral company in Toowoomba, Warwick, Dalby & Gatton. Providing funeral care for over 125 years, this is more than a business to us, it’s a family legacy and a trusted partnership with our community. We are grateful for the opportunity to partner with this initiative as a gold sponsor. Participating in the conversation and always available to help our community understand how vitally important a meaningful funeral experience is to those who grieve.
Silver Sponsor
Heritage Stonecraft and Design
At Heritage Stonecraft and Design, we have been providing expert stonemasonry services throughout Queensland and Northern New South Wales for many years. We are a family-owned and operated business. We are committed to using traditional stonemasonry techniques and the highest-quality materials to ensure that every project we complete is both beautiful and durable. Whether we are restoring existing structures or creating a custom piece of stone art, our goal is to exceed our client’s expectations and create work that will stand the test of time.
Bronze Sponsor
Mindical Counselling Service
Mindical Counselling Services is led by Nicole Faulkner an Accredited Mental Health Social Worker with extensive experience supporting individuals through anxiety, depression, trauma, grief, and workplace stress. The practice provides trauma-informed care, creating a safe and supportive space tailored to each person’s unique journey.
Bronze Sponsor
Dovida
Deciding the best type of in-home care is a big decision. That’s why we want to share our approach to delivering high-quality, person-centered care. Who are we: At the heart of our person-centred approach is the belief that our care should empower you to live the life you want in the comfort of your home. We recognise that no two people are the same and we shape our care to best suit each person’s interests, values, and personality. This is why we carefully match our caregivers to ensure that we deliver more than home care – we create meaningful connections between people. To live up to this promise means not only recognising the individual, but also their circle of care. With our holistic approach, we seek to create synergies between the individual, their families, their social circle, our caregivers, and the broader healthcare community. We are committed to putting our client at the heart of everything we do, by working in partnership with them, their family and their multidisciplinary team to create a Circle of Care. Your caregiver or caregivers will share your values, interests and hobbies, which creates a genuine connection whilst helping to maintain your independence at home. Our person-centred home care creates real connections that enhance the quality of care we provide and empowers you to live your life, your way.