Name: Renegade Grief Roadshow: Long Beach
Start: 2025-03-23T13:00:00-07:00
End: 2025-03-23T15:00:00-07:00
Location: Buvons Natural Wine Bar + Shop

Join us in celebrating the publication of Renegade Grief with author, Carla Fernandez, and David Leonard and Brittany Berryman.
About this Event

Join us for an event to bring together the The Dinner Party community and its allies in Long Beach to celebrate the release of Renegade Grief: A Guide to The Wild Ride of Life After Loss by Carla Fernandez.

Joining Carla in conversation is David Leonard, Executive Director of New Hope Grief Support Community and Brittany Berryman, long time friend and owner of Bark City. This event will have a brief reading, a lively discussion on the importance of community care in times of loss, and a chance to connect with fellow grievers in Long Beach. Join us in bringing together The Dinner Party community and its allies, past, present and future.

Note: A general admission ticket DOES NOT include a copy of Renegade Grief, if you would like to pre-order a copy, you must include it as an add-on. General admission tickets include one drink and light bites from Buvons Wine Bar.

Can’t make the event? Purchase a copy of Renegade Grief .

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From grief quests to altar-making, to dinner parties to Dungeons & Dragons, Renegade Grief is a profound and vulnerable exploration of care practices and rituals that empower grievers in a culture that expects us to simply “give it time.”

Shaped by her own experience with the death of her father and her time cofounding The Dinner Party, a leading peer-support organization for people who’ve experienced a major loss, Carla Fernandez pushes back on the death-denying culture we live in. For too long, grief has been treated as something pitiable, simply sad, to be gotten over as soon as possible. But after fifteen years of being in a community with fellow grievers, Carla has witnessed a different side of the story. Grieving a significant loss is hardcore, hardly something to be swept under the rug, but an experience to be held with respect, a creative spirit, and with friends. Through inspiring stories of real grievers, patterns from across history, and fresh science, Renegade Grief enlivens you with the permission and possibility to explore your grief in your own unique way and reminds you that you’re not alone in doing it.

Learn more about Renegade Grief.

Have questions? Please email [email protected]

Carla Fernandez’s work focuses on how circles come together to foster collective care and change culture when a new status quo is called for. She is the cofounder of The Dinner Party, a national network of peer-support circles for young adult grievers, featured in The New York Times, NPR, Oprah Daily, and cited in multiple books. In addition to her work in grief, Carla partners with a range of clients through her community design studio as an impact strategist and facilitator, particularly on initiatives related to climate change, democracy, and the arts. Carla is a senior fellow with USC’s Annenberg School Innovation Lab and a Catherine B. Reynolds Foundation Scholar in Social Entrepreneurship at NYU. She divides her time between the Hudson Valley and Joshua Tree.

David Leonard, Executive Director, New Hope Grief Support Community

With over 20 years of nonprofit experience, David has devoted his career to uplifting the community. His journey began with serving children and families at the YMCA, extending his support to Iraq/Afghanistan War Veterans and their families, and fighting hunger.

David’s personal encounters with loss, particularly the passing of his mother, ignited within him a profound commitment to guiding others through their own grief journeys. After participating in New Hope’s program and serving as a volunteer he knew he was in the right place. As the Executive Director David leads efforts to provide hope and healing to bereaved adults, children, and families through connection and support.

David’s wife Gerty and his son Isaiah are the center of his world, embodying his deepest loves and bringing boundless joy to his life.

Brittany Berryman is owner and operator of Bark City, a dog daycare and boarding facility in Huntington Beach. Since starting the business with her brother 9 years ago, she has been committed to building a community that prioritizes each dog's safety and well-being. She currently lives in Belmont Heights.