Death and dying lunch time storytelling at Story Lounge

Bring your lunch down to Centre for Stories’ pop-up in Hay Street Mall and join trained storytellers Cathy Henkel and Anju Sivarajah who will be sharing true and personal stories on the theme of death and dying. Dr Cathy Henkel is the Director of the WA Screen Academy at ECU and has over 30 years’ experience as a documentary director, writer and producer. Her most recent film, Laura’s Choice, is a documentary about her mother’s decision to end her life on her own terms, and screened on ABC in 2021 and is currently on iView. Cathy’s story is about one night when she, as a young nineteen-year-old recently escaped from South Africa, made a decision in a Swish alpine village that changed her entire life.

Anju Sivarajah is a proud Sri Lankan woman; having migrated to Australia when she was a child. She has worked tirelessly in the social service sector for the past 24 years, addressing social disadvantage on the frontline for Aboriginal, refugee and migrant communities nationally and locally. She has extensive experience addressing and challenging family and domestic violence, mental health, homelessness, racism, reconciliation and belonging. She has developed close connections with many diverse people throughout Perth, enabling her to engage with BIPOC communities in Perth. Anju currently works in high schools as an education assistant. Anju’s greatest achievement to date is her 12-year-old daughter, from whom she is challenged by daily but also draws much inspiration from.