The Brigid Project

Connection and care for people facing chronic and terminal illness.

Services we provide

The Brigid Project is a collective of highly skilled and trained volunteers, sharing an interest in staying human and honoring life.

With deep gratitude, we have the honor of serving people and their families during times of transition. Our work facilitates love and connection, where frequently there is fear and isolation.

We serve primarily in the home throughout areas of the North Country, including some parts of Clinton, Essex, and Franklin County.

All of our services are free of charge.

Please note: We do NOT practice medicine, offer nursing or home health aide services.

Touch is the first sense to develop in our bodies, and is an instinctive form of communication. Massage therapy has been proven to ease pain, reduce the side effects of medication, and ease emotional distress, anxiety and depression. Adaptive massage therapy considers and allows variations in factors like positioning and pressure, to meet an individual’s needs. At a time when many people are “handled” throughout the process of medicine, massage therapy can remind us of our inherent loveliness.

Death Doulas may seem like a new or progressive idea, but they are as old as death itself. 

An end-of-life doula is a trained practitioner whose purpose is to guide a person who is transitioning to death, and guide their loved ones through the dying process. An end-of-life doula can work with and complement any systems already in place, offering a calm and steady presence, nonjudgemental listening, and conscious anodyne support. The shape their presence may take is unique for each person and family, and is met by our doulas with precise attention, care and deep compassion.

In-home haircuts and other beauty services allow an individual the opportunity to have a sense of sovereignty over themselves during a time when some may feel a loss of control. In addition to improving their appearance, which many studies have shown can boost mood and overall well being, a fresh haircut or shave may also increase a person’s physical comfort. When people are unable to leave their home, bringing beauty and tonsorial services to them can improve quality of life.

Music, singing, and animal interaction is a deep part of the human experience, and has proven to be very healing. 

Music can soothe, relax, support inward reflection, and bring joy to its listeners. We provide a cappella offerings as well as guitar, mandolin and ukulele performances. 

Human-animal interaction through certified therapy dog visits is an engaging activity that can be both stimulating and relaxing. 

End of life can be an intensely creative time for people wanting to leave behind what they feel is important for people to remember about them. Assisting people in these endeavors, during a time in which physical limitations may be a hindrance, serves to build connection and provide comfort throughout their transition.

Being aware of all of the options for end of life care BEFORE we actually need to decide can be an empowering process. Many cultures practice “keeping death as an advisor,” as a way of staying present to the preciousness of life, at all times.

Offerings include:

Death Over Dinner parties: Participants gather for drinks or a meal, and explore questions about our own death, personal end of life wishes, hopes & fears. Events are expertly facilitated, spontaneous and organic.

Year to Live practice: Participants commit to living the next year of their life as if they knew it was their last. Fears of the dying process, life reviews with the intention of honoring and healing, dealing with unfinished business (literal & metaphorical), and ceremony and rituals around death are a few of the themes to be explored over the course of 12 months. People often find this practice transformative and instrumental in renewing their reverence for life, while gently shaking themselves from the day to day complacency that we may all experience at different times.

Compassionate Care Partners workshop: This workshop shares essential and simple ways we can care for our loved ones, and ourselves through serious illness and end of life. Providing non-medical palliative care to individuals can be a profoundly healing practice for individuals and families during times that can be isolating, exhausting, and fraught with the fear of the unknown. By making a conscious choice to enter into this mutual journey as a compassion-centered, healing partnership, we can navigate this process with more internal resources, resilience, and practical tools.

To learn more about how to participate in or host an event, call (518) 578-9712.

The Brigid Project is a collective of highly skilled and trained volunteers, sharing an interest in staying human and honoring life.

With deep gratitude, we have the honor of serving people and their families during times of transition. Our work facilitates love and connection, where frequently there is fear and isolation.

We serve primarily in the home throughout areas of the North Country, including some parts of Clinton, Essex, and Franklin County.

All of our services are free of charge.

Please note: We do NOT practice medicine, offer nursing or home health aide services.

Touch is the first sense to develop in our bodies, and is an instinctive form of communication. Massage therapy has been proven to ease pain, reduce the side effects of medication, and ease emotional distress, anxiety and depression. Adaptive massage therapy considers and allows variations in factors like positioning and pressure, to meet an individual’s needs. At a time when many people are “handled” throughout the process of medicine, massage therapy can remind us of our inherent loveliness.

Death Doulas may seem like a new or progressive idea, but they are as old as death itself. 

An end-of-life doula is a trained practitioner whose purpose is to guide a person who is transitioning to death, and guide their loved ones through the dying process. An end-of-life doula can work with and complement any systems already in place, offering a calm and steady presence, nonjudgemental listening, and conscious anodyne support. The shape their presence may take is unique for each person and family, and is met by our doulas with precise attention, care and deep compassion.

In-home haircuts and other beauty services allow an individual the opportunity to have a sense of sovereignty over themselves during a time when some may feel a loss of control. In addition to improving their appearance, which many studies have shown can boost mood and overall well being, a fresh haircut or shave may also increase a person’s physical comfort. When people are unable to leave their home, bringing beauty and tonsorial services to them can improve quality of life.

Music, singing, and animal interaction is a deep part of the human experience, and has proven to be very healing. 

Music can soothe, relax, support inward reflection, and bring joy to its listeners. We provide a cappella offerings as well as guitar, mandolin and ukulele performances. 

Human-animal interaction through certified therapy dog visits is an engaging activity that can be both stimulating and relaxing. 

End of life can be an intensely creative time for people wanting to leave behind what they feel is important for people to remember about them. Assisting people in these endeavors, during a time in which physical limitations may be a hindrance, serves to build connection and provide comfort throughout their transition.

Being aware of all of the options for end of life care BEFORE we actually need to decide can be an empowering process. Many cultures practice “keeping death as an advisor,” as a way of staying present to the preciousness of life, at all times.

Offerings include:

Death Over Dinner parties: Participants gather for drinks or a meal, and explore questions about our own death, personal end of life wishes, hopes & fears. Events are expertly facilitated, spontaneous and organic.

Year to Live practice: Participants commit to living the next year of their life as if they knew it was their last. Fears of the dying process, life reviews with the intention of honoring and healing, dealing with unfinished business (literal & metaphorical), and ceremony and rituals around death are a few of the themes to be explored over the course of 12 months. People often find this practice transformative and instrumental in renewing their reverence for life, while gently shaking themselves from the day to day complacency that we may all experience at different times.

Compassionate Care Partners workshop: This workshop shares essential and simple ways we can care for our loved ones, and ourselves through serious illness and end of life. Providing non-medical palliative care to individuals can be a profoundly healing practice for individuals and families during times that can be isolating, exhausting, and fraught with the fear of the unknown. By making a conscious choice to enter into this mutual journey as a compassion-centered, healing partnership, we can navigate this process with more internal resources, resilience, and practical tools.

To learn more about how to participate in or host an event, call (518) 578-9712.

Every situation and person is unique. Our only way to truly understand if we may be a good fit for your needs, is to have a conversation. If you think we may be of service to you, please call.

(518) 578-9712

Stories from the people we support…

“The Brigid Project had a significant impact on the last weeks of my husband’s life. D. fought cancer in the form of abdominal sarcoma tumors for most of the last three years until there were no more treatment options. When he came home for the last time, the tumors continued to grow making it necessary for him to remain either sitting up or laying on his back. Hoping that massage would be beneficial, I asked Christe Lampman through The Brigid Project to come see him. She was able to shift his body to reach the back and legs, giving him much physical relief. 

The visits turned out to result in much more than physical comfort. She brought emotional comfort as well. By completely accepting and acknowledging the dying process with calmness and respect, Christe and those who work with her, bring calm and emotional support to both patients and caregivers. D. looked forward to her visits. Whether it was an offer to write to those he wanted to contact or her soothing voice, he responded positively each time. 

It was Christe who offered to stay and support me… on a night when I would have been alone. It turned out that each of us held a hand and were trying to help him be more comfortable when his breath left. When I expressed my deep gratitude, she said that it was a privilege to be there. These are some of the gifts that those who work with The Brigid Project bring to those it serves.”   

-R

Support The Brigid Project

All services provided by The Brigid Project are free of charge. 

To do this, we rely on the generosity of individuals, grant funding, and private donors. 

If you would like to help support our work, donations may be sent to:

The Brigid Project
P.O. Box 222

Saranac, New York 12981

As a recognized 501(c)3 non-profit organization, donations to The Brigid Project are tax deductible.

In addition to individual donors, The Brigid Project appreciates support received from the Cloudsplitter Foundation, the Chapel Hill Foundation, and donor advised funds through The Adirondack Foundation. 

Our Volunteers

In their own words…

Christe Lampman, LMT

Founder & Executive Director

Christe Lampman, LMT, founder and executive director of The Brigid Project, maintains a private practice in Plattsburgh, NY where she has offered therapeutic massage, corrective exercise and posture alignment therapy to the North Country since 2000. She has completed thousands of hours of continuing education and is a graduate of The Metta Institute End of Life Practitioner program. With over 15 years of experience in palliative care, she is a firm believer that we can create communities we want to live in, through engaged service and wholehearted intentional living.

Linda Tarantelli

Board member and lead volunteer

Linda has had over 40 years experience as a nurse in a pediatric/family practice setting. She volunteered as a childbirth educator and birth doula for many years. She is a certified End of Life Doula. Chronic and terminal illness can be a challenge to everyone involved. Linda enjoys developing a strong connection to clients and family. Quiet listening, problem solving, respecting choices and just being there when needed are foundations of her support to others.

Sarah Brown

Pet Therapy

Sarah Brown grew up and currently lives in the Lake Champlain Region. She holds three degrees and has worked in special education for over two decades. Loving the outdoors, creating art and being with her family brings her much joy. Nurturer of many four legged friends providing Therapy Dog service to a variety of people young and old always makes her feel blessed to have such wonderful insightful dogs.

Elizabeth Boolukos

Beauty & Tonsorial

Elizabeth Boolukos joined The Brigid Project after learning about it from director Christe Lampman. She holds BA’s in Anthropology and Studio Arts and Media in a Cultural Context and has worked as a professional licensed beautician for over 30 years. She has always been a community minded lover of humanity and finds the ability to work in the appearance enhancement world very rewarding; as well as satisfying her needs for connection with others and for being creative.

She has offered home services to longtime clients who can no longer get out to her salon. Becoming involved with The Brigid Project is a beautiful extension of this; it can be comforting and uplifting to have your hairs or skin groomed and refreshed. Many people can no longer manage this for themselves and bringing those services to someone is a delight. She finds it to be a mutual gift to be able to offer her services to those people and their families who have entered an end of life experience and who allow her into this time.

Aimee Defayette

Singing, Legacy work & story recording

Originally from Rochester, New York, Aimee has called the North Country home for over 30 years. Aimee holds several degrees in education and administration; working locally as an Elementary Principal and Special Education Coordinator. Aimee’s passion for working with children and families, and serving others is realized through her devotion to her own three children, her career in education, regional volunteer efforts, and her penchant for vocal performance. She is honored and humbled to serve with The Brigid Project.

Our Volunteers

In their own words…

Christe Lampman, LMT

Founder & Executive Director

Christe Lampman, LMT, founder and executive director of The Brigid Project, maintains a private practice in Plattsburgh, NY where she has offered therapeutic massage, corrective exercise and posture alignment therapy to the North Country since 2000. She has completed thousands of hours of continuing education and is a graduate of The Metta Institute End of Life Practitioner program. With over 15 years of experience in palliative care, she is a firm believer that we can create communities we want to live in, through engaged service and wholehearted intentional living.

Linda Tarantelli

Board member and lead volunteer

Linda has had over 40 years experience as a nurse in a pediatric/family practice setting. She volunteered as a childbirth educator and birth doula for many years. She is a certified End of Life Doula. Chronic and terminal illness can be a challenge to everyone involved. Linda enjoys developing a strong connection to clients and family. Quiet listening, problem solving, respecting choices and just being there when needed are foundations of her support to others.

Sarah Brown

Pet Therapy

Sarah Brown grew up and currently lives in the Lake Champlain Region. She holds three degrees and has worked in special education for over two decades. Loving the outdoors, creating art and being with her family brings her much joy. Nurturer of many four legged friends providing Therapy Dog service to a variety of people young and old always makes her feel blessed to have such wonderful insightful dogs.

Elizabeth Boolukos

Beauty & Tonsorial

Elizabeth Boolukos joined The Brigid Project after learning about it from director Christe Lampman. She holds BA’s in Anthropology and Studio Arts and Media in a Cultural Context and has worked as a professional licensed beautician for over 30 years. She has always been a community minded lover of humanity and finds the ability to work in the appearance enhancement world very rewarding; as well as satisfying her needs for connection with others and for being creative.

She has offered home services to longtime clients who can no longer get out to her salon. Becoming involved with The Brigid Project is a beautiful extension of this; it can be comforting and uplifting to have your hairs or skin groomed and refreshed. Many people can no longer manage this for themselves and bringing those services to someone is a delight. She finds it to be a mutual gift to be able to offer her services to those people and their families who have entered an end of life experience and who allow her into this time.

Aimee Defayette

Singing, Legacy work & story recording

Originally from Rochester, New York, Aimee has called the North Country home for over 30 years. Aimee holds several degrees in education and administration; working locally as an Elementary Principal and Special Education Coordinator. Aimee’s passion for working with children and families, and serving others is realized through her devotion to her own three children, her career in education, regional volunteer efforts, and her penchant for vocal performance. She is honored and humbled to serve with The Brigid Project.