My Story
I lost my dad when I was in my early 20's. I can still remember it as if it were yesterday. The pain. The hurt. The anger. The overwhelming sense of loss.
I remember, too, with great clarity, my dad's funeral - a faith ceremony reflecting his beliefs and wishes - and how cold it was. Impersonal. My dad, the most kind hearted, loving, caring man you could meet, had somehow got lost among all the prayers and the preaching. And I just felt so terribly sad about that.
It is from this painful experience that I came to understand that a funeral ceremony should have life - not death - at its core. What matters is not that a person has died but that they lived.
The funeral ceremonies I lead reflect the person whose life we are celebrating and whose death we are mourning, in a way that affirms their humanity, individuality, and personality, while bringing comfort to the loved ones they are leaving behind. As a Funeral Celebrant, this is my pledge to you, and I make it in memory of my dad.
What I Offer
A ceremony led with warmth, reflecting the life of your loved one, the fun times you had, and the memories you share.
When you choose me to lead the ceremony of a loved one, I will work closely with your chosen funeral director to ensure a service of the highest quality. By working together, we will ensure your needs and wishes are met in a manner which is caring and compassionate.
I will arrange to meet with you, and other family and friends if you want that, to get to know you and to find out about the life and personality of your loved one, as well as the kind of ceremony you want.
I can also offer advice on any poems, readings or music that you may want included in the ceremony.
From this, I will create a eulogy for the ceremony, the initial draft of which I will email to you for your thoughts. You have full editorial control of this and can change as much, or as little, of it as you wish. The important thing is that the eulogy reflects the life and personality of your loved one with warmth, sincerity, and maybe even some humour, if that is to your taste.
Once you have had a chance to read it, you can advise me of any changes which I will make before sending it back to you for final approval.
The important thing to note is that you can contact me by phone, text or email at any time during this process; I will always make myself available to have a chat about any aspect of the ceremony, as I know how important it is for it to go well, and for you and your family to leave the service knowing that it was the best send off that you could have given.
As a keepsake, I will also give you a commemorative hard copy of the ceremony script.
