A funeral celebrant, or funeral officiant is a qualified person, usually from a non-clergy background, who officiates funeral services. Funeral celebrants typically help organise and conduct funerals, supporting the bereaved family every step of the way with the aim of celebrating the life of the person who has died.
As a Funeral celebrant, I am independent and am usually contacted by the funeral director on behalf of the family, although I can be contacted directly. I am able to offer a non-religious funeral as well as services with prayers and spiritual themes. I recommend choosing a funeral celebrant to conduct your loved one’s funeral as the service can be custom made to best reflect the wishes of the family and the life of the deceased.
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.
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. To help tell their story, I encourage families and friends to share memories that illustrate the different aspects and interests of their 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.