FUNERALS & MEMORIAL SERVICES
Some individuals will have had the foresight to really think about how they would like their funeral to be, what rituals they would like and how they would ideally like to be honoured and remembered. In many cases though, it is left to family members or friends, in the early stages of grief and shock and overwhelm to try to from this space make sensitive choices and figure out how best to remember their person. The funeral industry and how we can choose to honour and remember those that have died, are changing. This has been reflected in the industry, with the emergence of more forward-thinking Funeral Directors being more transparent around possible choices, costs involved and the types of rituals and personal touches that can be accommodated. This is where a celebrant can be an empathetic and neutral guide, who is able to listen attentively to the needs of the bereaved, liaise with industry professionals on behalf of the family and sensitively collaborate with family and friends, to put together a ceremony that feels befitting and reflects their person’s life, not just their death.
How would we work together?
We would start with a short phone call, just for you to get a sense whether you feel I would be the right fit to work with you to co create the content for the funeral or memorial service.
In this initial chat, I would ask you a little bit about your person you will be remembering and the overall style of ceremony you may have in mind. If you decide you wish to use me as your celebrant, we would then arrange a time for a longer meeting, ideally in person or over zoom if needed.
Before I meet you, I would send you an idea of a possible structure for a ceremony and also send you a questionnaire with some prompts in terms of the personality traits, life, hobbies, loved ones, any small stories or perhaps funny things you remember about them, how they made people feel, that would provide the material that would create the eulogy and other tributes on the day.
I would then draft the eulogy and send it to you for your review, we would then decide if you wanted to deliver it, or if you wanted me to deliver it. Even if you feel you wanted to deliver it, but as the day approached change your mind, I would be on hand to take over. It is essentially a non-religious ceremony in its format, but some religious content can be woven in.
When grief is more complicated.
Sometimes the death of someone can bring up more than just feelings of sadness. I make no assumptions or judgements around this. Life and some of our relationships can be challenging. If a relationship is complicated in life, so too in death. It can feel difficult to find an authentic way to reflect this in a ceremony. We can work together to find a way that respects the person who has died and also your feelings about them and their death.
Death of children and babies.
Alongside celebrant work, I have worked for over 15 years as a yoga teacher, specialising in Pregnancy yoga and Fertility yoga. I have a lot of experience and compassion for holding a tender space for couples who have lost babies. I also work as a volunteer with a Mum and Baby refugee charity.
Supporting women and couples who have lost babies is very close to my heart and I would take every care possible to work with you to create a tender ceremony, with compassionate rituals and readings, that honour your baby or child’s life and you as their parents.
