Losing a loved one, is a devastating blow whether expected or completely out of the blue. I can help create loving and personal funeral ceremonies that will go some way to making the last goodbye a less painful one.

As a qualified celebrant, I am trained to compassionately coax details about your loved one that you may not have thought about for a long time. Creating a funeral ceremony that will befit the deceased and allow the family and friends to say goodbye in a personal way, is the skill required by a professional celebrant.

I will spend as long as it takes with a family to get to know the person they love. We’ll talk about them, chat about their relationship with the family and their friends. If you need help I can suggest music, poetry or readings, to provide smooth transitions to each part of the ceremony.

At each stage of the process, you will be informed as to the progress of the ceremony and will obviously have the final say on how the ceremony will be delivered.

If you would like to read the Eulogy yourself or have another family member or friend do it on your behalf, this is absolutely acceptable and positively encouraged.  

Many funeral ceremonies these days have no religious content at all and that will be entirely up to you. However, if you would like a short reading or blessing or wish to recite The Lord’s Prayer, that can also be included.

Funeral ceremonies should be personal. If time permits, you may wish to add a personal symbolic action to the ceremony, and there are some beautiful ways to do this.  A Memory Tree – where each person present shares a memory or a photo.  You will have all the time you need to read the messages and look at the photographs after the ceremony. 

If your loved-one has left specific instructions or discussed with you some details about the type ceremony chosen, these will be included.  This will help you to make appropriate decisions in the knowledge that you are following their wishes. 

It is becoming ever more popular to find new ways to care for our earth, environmentally friendly burials and funeral ceremonies help to protect and preserve our planet when our loved ones pass on.

A natural burial will do everything to assist this.

It prefers an unspoilt landscape to that of a regimented conventional cemetery therefore a Green (Natural) Funeral is all about having as little impact on the earth as possible. So what changes can you make to affect a natural burial?

Green caskets

A ‘green’ casket made from sustainable products that are biodegradable. These can be bamboo, cork, organic cotton, seagrass or recycled cardboards. All these products decompose much quicker and have less of an impact on the environment as they don’t release toxic chemicals into the soil.

Shrouds

A shroud is a long piece of cloth which is wrapped around the body and made from natural materials such as cotton or linen which decomposes with little impact. By using a shroud, you are minimalizing the amount of material being put into the ground offering a more natural burial. Shrouds have been around for hundreds of years and using shrouds in your green funerals is a simplistic way to get back to those roots whilst being respectful of mother nature.

Green Cemetery

A green headstone is an alternative option to the commercial concrete or stone grave marker. You can use trees, plants or shrubs to mark the place of your loved ones. This can be a beautiful way to symbolise their connection with the earth while keeping in touch with the natural environment.

Some cemeteries engage in greener practices such as greener caskets and headstones, whereas some are far more stricter. There are places that won’t allow a grave marking at all which can sometimes be hard for family and friends who want to revisit the exact site of their loved ones.

However, the beauty of some of these green cemeteries can be wonderful unspoilt landscapes which can be a peaceful and fitting resting place for our loved ones to get back to nature.

Green Funerals are becoming increasingly popular, it’s a celebration of a life and if protecting the planet was important to your loved one, then these are great alternatives you can incorporate into your service.

Get in touch using the form below, I’d love to help with making sure you, your family and friends can say the perfect goodbye.