When I was thirteen my mother asked us over dinner:
“What song would you like to be played on your funeral?”

Beep by The Pussycat Dolls was my banger by that time, so that was an easy pick for me. And since then, we on and off talked about our funerals. Not in a weird way, just informal and low-key.

Fast forward eighteen years later. My dad Ed died from Alzheimers after five years living with this terrible disease. During that last period I realized our conversations back then prepared us for this moment in which we had to say goodbye for good.

When I started Your Last Party
It was the morning after my mom called me. In 2024. She told me that my dad's final chapter had started. Because he was getting too weak it wasn't safe anymore to give him food or water. It was a matter of waiting to see how long it would last.

I remember I even googled how long a terminally ill person could live without food or water. Thirteen days. It was a countdown, not knowing where to start counting.

Eventually it turned out we had five last days together which we spent around his bed. Sharing memories, looking at photos, crying and laughing.

That night after the call with my mom I half-wrote my speech for his funeral, I cried, and weirdly enough the name Your Last Party popped up. The idea unfolded in my mind and started to write everything down. I wrote my business plan and knew I wanted to make death a living topic of conversation. My mission was crystal clear, however I didn't know back then how the story would evolve.

Looking back I am so grateful for the last years. My grief for my dad Ed has lead to such special moments, encounters and conversations with family, friends and complete strangers. I can't wait to see where my project will lead to the coming years. And I feel like my dad would be as curious as I am💜