For beautiful
and poignant memorials.
What is a Funeral Celebrant?
As an independent celebrant, I lead funeral and memorial services which may be religious or have no religious context at all. Alternatively they could be spiritual but all would include a mixture of things that were important to the person who died, which may include prayers or favourite hymns and will focus on remembering the life of the deceased. As a funeral celebrant, I will help you to plan an order of service and ensure that it reflects how you want your loved one to be remembered, discussing any funeral poems, readings, songs or hymns you’d like, as well as who you’d like to be involved in the ceremony.
The words shared during a funeral or memorial service are written by myself in collaboration with family relatives or friends and I would meet with them, prior to the service, to discuss a loved one’s wishes. I would then use this information to write a personalised ceremony about the person and their life. This would usually include a eulogy, which would be based around the stories told to me, unless the family would prefer to write their own.
My role as a celebrant includes planning and leading a funeral ceremony that can reflect what the person believed, how they lived, and to celebrate their life. If you’re unfamiliar with what to expect, I will talk you through this and also invite you to share ideas.
Some people are blessed with a long and fulfilling lives, others are taken too soon. Having lost family members myself, I can relate to this loss. Regardless of when we go, I know that we all have a story to tell, and my role is to tell that story with sensitivity but also inject humour where it might be appropriate.
I am able to create a unique ceremony to match the wishes and expectations of the deceased and their loved ones. I can lead cremations, burials and memorial services at any location suited to you and your family.
My role as a funeral celebrant is to:
- Support you from the first meeting to the end of the service
- Ensure that the wishes of the family are carried out
- Guide you through the day of the service, during a difficult and emotional time
- Prepare the eulogy together with the family so it is a genuine reflection of the deceased
- Ensure that the service is time sensitive and is not rushed.
- Serve and support you in what can be a very emotionally distressing time.
Once contacted, I would contact you to arrange a face-to-face meeting. If a meeting is not possible, then phone or video calls can be used. At this meeting, I try to create a comfortable atmosphere in order to encourage open conversation, to understand your wishes and those of the deceased . I will listen carefully to you and consider/gauge how much participation other family and friends of the deceased would like to have in the service.
I will ask you questions about the life of your loved one, their character, their values, and what made them the person they were. It’s okay to get emotional when you are talking about your loved one and planning their funeral – I will listen compassionately and understand. Speaking, reading or singing at a funeral can be upsetting, nerve-wracking or both. A big part of my role is to help you feel reassured and supported on the day. To help tell their story, I encourage families and friends to share memories that illustrate the different aspects and interests of their loved one’s life.
It is my dearest wish that i will:
- Create and lead a fitting ceremony, at an emotional time and in unfamiliar circumstances
- Be flexible and sensitive about the form that a funeral can take
- Listen and empathise with you
- Contribute from experience to create the most suitable, dignified and respectful send off
- Create a suitable atmosphere at this formal occasion, to celebrate a person’s life.
Please contact Rebecca Dunn on 07528637825 should you require a funeral celebrant.
For help with planning a Funeral- Burial or cremation please click the link below.