The Dark River Shelter
The Dark River Shelter sits at the thresholds of grief, loss, and transitions – place of safety for life to endure.
Companioning journeys in grief and transitions
Community and systems level experiments
Art, design, and writing projects
Matthew Morales is its Caretaker » tsi Tkaronto (located in Toronto, Ontario)
About its Caretaker
Hello!My name is Matthew Morales (he/they) and I started the Dark River Shelter as a place I needed for myself with the hopes that it becomes a place for others who have also felt lost in grief and transition.While my journey into formal grief work has only begun, it has been carved by the tributary rivers of my life – the belonging and estrangement from faith communities, a meandering career and education, and my own apprenticeship with sorrow and loss.Thank you for finding your way here; may we endure.With care,
Matthew Morales (Summer 2026)
On Career
Matthew continues to practice as a social researcher, designer, and facilitator supporting social impact organizations and communities in making better-informed decisions in their policies and initiatives.He has worked as part of and with organizations across multiple sectors:
UNICEF Canada
UN Global Compact Network Canada
Oxfam International
Human Rights Research and Education Centre at UOttawa
Research Institute for Aging
Ministry of Forests (Province of BC)
... and more.
On Education
He holds an Honours Bachelors of Arts from University of Toronto where he learned how to create and communicate meaning through visuality and language.He holds a Masters of Peace and Conflict Studies from Conrad Grebel University College where he learned to find the openings in personal and societal conflict.Most recently, he completed End-of-life Doula training at Douglas College where he learned more deeply what it means to be with people as they transition in death.
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