Mary Alden, a Bay Area native, brings over 35 years of experience working with older adults across all stages of life, as well as consulting for businesses serving the Baby Boomer generation. Her deep expertise spans senior housing, care communities, senior Centers, adult day centers, senior nutrition and education programs, and now includes personalized late-life transition and grief support for individuals and families. She also offers business insights in organizational leadership, program development, marketing, community engagement, and nonprofit fundraising.
Mary’s personal journey and professional experience have deepened her compassion and insight, especially in the areas of advanced aging, family dynamics, and the multidimensional nature of death and dying. In 2019, she became a certified End-of-Life Doula and Dementia Care Practitioner and expanded her services to include grief coaching, healthcare advocacy, and end-of-life education and planning.
Today, Mary identifies as a Life-Transition Specialist, offering holistic support to individuals and families—regardless of age or health status. She created Beacon Light Doulas (BLD) as a natural next step in her lifelong calling to care for others. Through birth, life, and death, BLD partners with families, communities, professionals, and care teams to guide meaningful conversations, document personal wishes, and support both the living and dying with more understanding and less fear.
At Beacon Light Doulas, we are dedicated to walking beside individuals and families during life’s most tender transitions, specializing in aging, serious illness, and end-of-life.
We provide:
Personalized guidance and resources
Patient-centered healthcare advocacy
Compassionate support through complex decisions and emotions
From navigating family dynamics and healthcare choices to downsizing or transitioning into assisted living, we help ease the path. Our experienced doulas offer emotional grounding, practical tools, and consistent support every step of the way.
We believe that no one should have to walk this path alone. With thoughtful care, we help bring clarity, peace, and dignity to every stage of the journey.
Beacon Light Doulas began as the shared vision of three passionate women—Mary Alden, Erica Falk, and Elizabeth Wong—bringing together over 70 years of collective experience in serving individuals, families, and care communities through life’s most pivotal moments.
Like many of the people we serve, our company has evolved through its own beautiful transitions:
Erica Falk now offers nurturing care to expectant mothers through her bodywork practice at Calming Seas Healing.
Elizabeth Wong has stepped back to focus on spending cherished time with her aging mother.
Mary Alden now leads Beacon Light Doulas with unshakable dedication—offering individual guidance, speaking at senior fairs, training staff in care communities, and continuing to provide one-on-one support for families facing late-life changes.
Whether she's holding a daughter’s hand in a care planning session or speaking at a community event, Mary remains committed to expanding access to compassionate, end-of-life care and education.
Are you a compassionate caregiver curious about becoming an end-of-life doula or adding late-life transition support to your work?
We’d love to hear from you. Whether you’re exploring this path for the first time or seeking professional training or partnership, Beacon Light Doulas is here to support your next step in this meaningful field.
Let’s shape a future where no one fears the journey, and every transition is met with love, presence, and dignity.
We compassionately support families and friends as they navigate the stages of planning, honoring, and caring for their most cherished loved ones through life’s greatest transitions.
Beacon Light Doulas provides compassionate end-of-life care, death doula services, and grief support for terminal illness and death at home.
We are SF Bay Area death doulas servicing San Jose, San Francisco, Pacifica, Santa Clara County, San Mateo County, Alameda County, Contra Costa County, Marin and San Francisco County