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Mandi Zucker

April 2, 2025

Live How You Like, Leave How You Like

Yesterday was the 22nd anniversary of my father’s death. I always laugh a little to think he died on April Fool’s Day. He was not a particularly funny man and I always thought it was his last attempt to make a joke. Clearly, he missed the mark again.

Anyway, I don’t particularly “celebrate” the anniversary of his death. I much prefer to celebrate his birthday in July. Typically, I make a donation to a cause that I think he would support. I make the donation on his birthday in the amount that he would be in age. This July he’d be turning 81.

But this year is a little different. I don’t want to wait until his birthday to make a donation. We are working feverishly to pass the Medical Aid in Dying Act (A.136/S138) before the legislative session goes on break in June. We need every resource we can muster to make this happen now. So this year, I am making an $81 donation to End of Life Choices New York in memory of my dad on the anniversary of his death, in hopes that we can make dying better for everyone by the time his birthday rolls around.

Will you join me? Make an $81 donation today in memory of my dad. Or make a donation in the amount of the person you want to remember. How old would they be today?

Mandi Zucker, LSW
Executive Director

Recent Events & Updates

April Meet-n-Greet Scheduled

Meet-n-Greets are our way to get to know you, and to live our mission of normalizing conversations about death and dying. We encourage EVERYONE to attend one meet-n-greet and introduce yourself to us! We take one hour to share our work, get to know you, hear from people about why we advocate for medical aid in dying, and engage in a short activity that sparks conversation about end of life. It’s a free, inspiring way to get a little more involved with us.

Join us at the next meet-n-greet, April 16 at 12:00 PM. Registration is free but required. Register here.

The Deadly Dish: Interview with Dr. Jeremy Boal

Dr. Boal was a geriatrician when he was diagnosed with ALS and became a patient. Educated on the fatal nature of this disease, and a supporter of the Medical Aid in Dying Act, Dr. Boal has since left his practice and now advocates for himself and others to pass this compassionate law. Hear from him, as both a doctor and a patient facing his own end of life, about why he wants this law passed and the peace it would bring him knowing he has this choice.

Watch the Video

EOLCNY’s Medical Aid in Dying Campaign Update

The medical aid in dying campaign has been busy building up the infrastructure to accomplish its goal. Our goal is to obtain the support of three more senators and we arThe past two weeks have been busy in our campaign to pass the Medical Aid in Dying Act! We have produced digital campaign materials, done more outreach in targeted senate districts, and have planned our first trip to Buffalo.

We interviewed Jeremy Boal, a doctor living in Craryville with ALS, for the first of our projected three video shorts that will be pushed in the digital campaign. The video shoot was done at his home and the final product can be found at this link. Please share this short video on your own social media feeds, or send it in emails to your legislators, friends and family members. We are incredibly thankful to Jeremy for allowing us to capture his story. The digital ad campaign will begin on April 14th. The button ad can be viewed at this link. People who click on the button will be shown the video and at the conclusion of the video, be directed to the campaign website page for the specific senator for whom the person is a constituent. The campaign website is now up at www.MAIDNY.org. Our local newspaper ads will begin appearing in newspapers this week. The ad drafts can be seen at this link. The print ads will be in the Bay Ridge Courier, Manhattan Express, The Bayside Times, and The Flushing Times. The ads will also run on their digital sites and on AMNY.com, Metro.us, BrooklynPaper.com, and QNS.com. Our field organizing efforts are continuing and now that we have printed postcards we are focusing on getting to locations where we can get signatures. We have been doing outreach in Buffalo and intend to be in that city on the April 11th. We are focusing on disease-specific groups as well as political action and advocacy groups. If you are aware of any groups that should receive information from us, please let us know.

Upcoming Trainings

Save the date! The Barbara Swartz Annual Lecture for 2025 is now scheduled for the evening of May 1st. We are excited to offer a virtual program this year featuring two exciting presenters, Thadeus Pope, JD, PhD, HEC-C, a law professor and bioethicist, and Carol Abolafia, the daughter of Barbara Goodfriend (the woman who was featured on the CBS News story several weeks ago). We are closer than ever to passing New York’s MAiD legislation and this would be a great opportunity for the public to have all their questions answered. Want to get a jump on registration? Click here and add it to your calendar!
Our next General Volunteer Training Session is Thursday, May 8th at 7pm. Gather with us to learn the basics of EOLCNY’s healthcare and end of life advocacy, and hear about the specific ways you can join in the work. Scan the QR code or click this link to register and we’ll see you on May 8th!

Ask Us Anything

Q: Do most people know what medical aid in dying is?

A: No. A recent survey found that about half of Americans do not know what medical aid in dying is and were also not sure if it was legal in their own state. For example, only 11% of people surveyed in NJ knew that it is a legal option in that state, exemplifying the need to educate people both before and after the bill is passed.

If you have a question you’d like answered, send it here!

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