Celebrating EOLONM Volunteers

By Christina Palastanga Gardiner

Some people arrive at this work through intellectual curiosity or professional experience. Scott Plate arrived through his personal experience— shaped by loss, and love for those he lost, and guided by a profound belief that every person deserves to face the end of life with dignity, information, and support.

He spent ten early formative years in Canada, including his time at McGill University in Montreal, before losing his mother, his sister, and his brother to Huntington’s Disease — a grief that would perhaps have defined another person but instead became the foundation of his extraordinary compassion. After his mother’s death, Scott traveled through Europe, settling in Bremen, Germany. When he returned to the United States he channeled his creativity and energy into professional and educational theater in New York.

When his stepmother was diagnosed with terminal cancer and his father suffered a heart attack, Scott stepped up as caregiver to them both. Witnessing his stepmother navigate a serious illness without being fully informed of its gravity left a deep impression on him. He knew, with clarity, that patients deserved better — that they deserved honesty, compassion, and the power to make informed choices about their own journey.

That conviction, along with a move to the Land of Enchantment in 2020, led Scott to train in a shamanic path and as a death doula in 2022. He interned at Mesilla Valley Hospice, bringing his warmth, empathy and knowledge to his work with patients. In 2023, his friend Sally Tilton introduced him to Adrienne Dare, and Scott trained and joined End of Life Options New Mexico as a volunteer. He quickly became an integral part of the Silver City volunteer community, opening his home each month to host the group’s luncheon and meeting — a gesture that speaks volumes about who he is.

Scott brings wisdom, warmth, and genuine care to everything he does for EOLONM, and we are deeply grateful to have him as part of our family.