CIVIL FUNERAL SERVICES
"Whilst life will not be the same as it was. It will be enriched by the memories and continuing influences of the deceased."
- Edward Searl.
I realise this is an unusual and difficult time for you and your family – a time of heightened emotion and stress – know you are in caring and competent hands.
My goal is to perform a deeply sensitive and caring ceremony of farewell with a completely personalised ceremony.
You are my personal and a professional priority.
At a time of death, those who grieve need to give voice to their sorrow, and to honour the spirit of the deceased.
It is always a personal honour to be invited into a sacred family space at a sad time.
I'll help you say the words which speak the reality of the event.
It would be my privilege to provide you with compassionate guidance and a heartfelt, dignified service for your loved one. Please ask your funeral director to engage me, or you may contact me directly, just by phoning.
Firstly let me pay tribute to the clergy who have for time in memoriam, traditionally conducted funeral services. But times have changed, and many people and communities, want an alternative way to say 'our farewells.'
The funeral service should have "deep human meaning and give emotional satisfaction" but it should also be more. There are so many possibilities when it comes to celebrating a life, mourning the loss, and celebrating life's final rite of passage … and to meet it all, honestly and spiritually.
The Chapel at the crematorium and gardens is a frequent setting for a funeral service for celebrants, but any appropriate site can be used, a public hall, and outdoor setting, or a private home. The committal can be made grave-side, or cremation. The actual internment after cremation, takes place later, at a time mutually convenient to yourselves and my availability to attend with you. It is briefer than a funeral, and I consider it an integral part of the ceremony, even though it is performed some time later.
As a celebrant, I have nothing to do with the documentation for the deceased. This is all prepared by your funeral director. I do traditionally need to meet with the family, to gather the details needed to create a meaningful ceremony for your loved ones and yourself. It is usually easiest to meet with you at your home or by appointment with your funeral director.
Together we'll create meaningful rituals … lighting candles, presenting single flowers, presenting mementos 'gifts of the heart,' personal tributes, playing music, living tributes and memorials. It is important to do the things that will be meaningful and helpful to you.