Guy Boyling - Celebrant

County Celebrants Network.

Ceremonies

Each ceremony is individually created to honour and celebrate the person in a dignified and appropriate way, focussing on everything that made them special

and unique. The movement away from the traditional funeral allows friends and relatives to celebrate the life of the loved one the way they, and those left to mourn

would have liked.

The very time people feel at their worst when they have just lost someone they love, is also the time they have to carefully plan a funeral service.

The deceased person or their relatives may or may not feel it appropriate to have the service conducted by a

minister of religion. Traditional funerals in Churches or Chapels provide a service with dignity and sanctity, and a format and venue for readings and hymns. Sometimes the person’s life or beliefs do not match this.

The ceremonies I create are a celebration of the life of the person, positive, uplifting and a fitting way for all to say goodbye in their own way. Where possible I meet the family of the deceased to discuss their preferences and requirements, in order to create the occasion they would like. As part of this meeting, I find out as much as I can about the life of the deceased in order to create an appropriate tribute and if required a eulogy or remembrance.

Family and friends can participate in the service providing readings, poems, live music, songs, or simply their own tributes. Hymns and Psalms can still form a part of many of these services. There are no set rules for these “celebrations of life” and both family and friends can be encouraged to participate in the planning of the day, in order to ensure everybody has a chance to express their own sentiments, and say goodbye in ways significant to themselves and all those present.

Close family, after listening to the wishes of the deceased before they died, or should they feel it relevant, may have a more unusual way or ways of marking the loss, ways that are meaningful to them and their loved one.

To summarize, my aim is to create a service, meaningful and true for you and your beliefs, and to carry it out to ensure a memorable experience.