Humble, yet proud!
You have no idea how gratifying it is to receive a testimonial like this! Michael led the funeral service for my late husband and his care, compassion, and professionalism were evident all the way through the process. He took time to get to know us as a family unit, paying meticulous attention to detail to […]
Signing Off
It is hard enough to write a blog about death once in a while. Doing so regularly is almost impossible, in my view. So I only post very occasionally – when I feel particularly motivated to. I did want to wish anyone who reads this a very good New Year, but kept putting it off. […]
Favourite Funeral?!
I’m often asked about memorable ceremonies that I’ve conducted. It’s very difficult to pick one out, because by their nature they are all different. They may stand out for the wrong reasons or for the best, but they are all special. In my early days, at one funeral, the chapel attendant completely forgot to put […]
Are you saying RIP to your money or to your loved one?
The funeral industry took quite a bashing in Hannah Betts’ article in ‘The Telegraph Magazine’ on 1st February (with statistics provided by Sunlife). It wasn’t all bad news, but much of it was probably quite eye-opening. In England in the last couple of years, there were over 500,000 deaths/year, and this is expected to increase […]
The Funeral Process
What happens when a loved one dies? Many of us will have to face the death of a loved one, which is hard enough to bear emotionally. In addition, though, you may be executor or next-of-kin and have to deal with the funeral process. This means, essentially, obtaining the medical certificate (from the doctor or […]
Perks for a Funeral Celebrant
As a funeral celebrant, there aren’t any “perks” of the job, although I did get to ride in a hearse once, which was rather exciting! I meet some wonderful and interesting people as part of my work, so I’m not complaining too much. The truth is that I love my job and am not bothered, […]
What may put you off about Funerals
As a celebrant, I have worked with families on funeral Orders of Service for quite a long time. In fact, I have performed over 150 funerals to date. So I have reasonable experience of putting bespoke ceremonies together. When it comes to putting a funeral together, each family is likely to have one element (at […]
The Perfect Funeral
I doubt if such a thing exists as a “perfect” funeral. However, I know that Funeral Directors and celebrants like myself normally do their utmost to satisfy needs and desires. I ought to point out that, as a civil celebrant, my comments here refer to secular or part-religious ceremonies only. Problems A difficulty arises if […]
It’s your funeral!
You don’t expect things to go wrong at a funeral, do you? After all, everybody goes to great lengths to ensure that things go smoothly. Funeral Directors put themselves out to ensure that needs are met. The staff they use (celebrants, crematorium staff, etc.) are professional, dedicated people. So you have every right to expect […]
Organise your own Funeral Service
Has it occurred to you that you can arrange your funeral service in your lifetime? I realise that that may not be your cup of tea – and that’s fine. But, more likely, you’re not even aware that you can do this. This is actually an option that is available to anyone. And even if […]