Ep. 12 Transforming Grief into Legacy with Dina Bell-Laroche
In this deeply moving episode of the Legacy Branding Podcast, host Laura Beauparlant welcomes Dina Bell-Laroche—death educator, grief doula, keynote speaker, and author of Grief Unleashed. Dina shares her transformative journey through grief following the loss of her sister Tracy in 2001, and how that experience reshaped her life and career.
Dina discusses balancing her role as a partner at Sports Law with her passion for grief education and advocacy through Grief Unleashed. She reveals how rituals, human connection, and continuing bonds help reimagine our relationship with loss. Her work blends empathy, wisdom, and practical tools to support those navigating life’s most difficult transitions.
Please tune in to discover how grief can be a catalyst for purpose, healing, and creating a lasting legacy for ourselves and the loved ones we honor.
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Dina’s life changed dramatically in 2001 after the death of her youngest sister Tracy. Since then, her journey through grief has inspired her to advocate for a humanistic approach to grief and loss. As a death educator, certified thanatologist, grief doula, keynote speaker, and published author, Dina’s commitment to help the bereaved re-imagine a new relationship with loss is unwavering. She activates this through workshops, speaking engagements, Grief Cafés, her blogs, and her book Grief Unleashed: Moving from the hole in our hearts to whole-hearted (2023).
Dina has held several senior leadership positions through her three decades in Canada’s high performance sport sector including the Canadian Centre for Ethics in Sport, the Canadian Olympic Committee and since 2010, as a Partner with Sport Law, a company devoted to elevating sport. Dina is a certified Integral Master Coach and is an accredited Professional Coach in good standing with the International Coaching Federation. In 2019, she enrolled as a thanatology student at King’s College (University of Western Ontario) where she has immersed herself in topics related to bereavement theory, social justice, trauma, children and adolescent loss, ethical issues in thanatology, and so much more. Throughout her extensive journey, she has discovered many gems that she is inspired to share with others including building classrooms in Nicaragua, and more recently in Northern Ontario on Treaty 3, in honour of her deceased sister. More recently, she is collaborating with the Ottawa Cancer Foundation to bring the first Wind Phone to Ottawa, a way to provide solace to the bereaved.
Dina’s knowledge runs deep. Her teachings are wise. Her practical way of demystifying a taboo topic will leave you feeling more resourced and less isolated. Her hope is to inspire people to re-imagine a new relationship with loss.
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00:00 - Introduction
01:00 - Dina’s background and origin of Grief Unleashed
03:00 - Balancing roles: Sport Law & Grief Advocacy
05:00 - Grief in the world of sport
07:00 - Shifting language around grief and trauma
09:00 - Authentic branding and values alignment
11:00 - Beyond death: identity and relationship losses
13:00 - Meaning of legacy and continuing bonds
15:00 - Honoring Tracy’s legacy through storytelling
17:00 - Companioning vs. therapy
19:00 - Dina’s personal legacy and fulfillment
21:00 - Entrepreneurs and grief: identity & risk
23:00 - Ritual and ceremony in entrepreneurship
25:00 - Conscious completion and micro practices
27:00 - Final thoughts and ways to connect with Dina
29:00 - Outro & invitation to subscribe