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The death of a relative or close
friend can be a tough experience for many of us.
The funeral should give family and friends both an
opportunity to celebrate the life that has been
lived, as well as to express and share their
sadness. Each ceremony deserves to be remembered
as an occasion that uniquely and appropriately
honours the person’s life with dignity, respect
and love.
A growing number of people
choose to live their lives without holding any
religious beliefs, and it is important for their
funeral to respect this. Humanist
Funerals are tailored and personalised ceremonies
that make no reference to religious concepts; they
are both inclusive of and acceptable to those
attending for whom religion is part of their
lives. The ceremonies can take place anywhere you
choose (except in religious buildings or sites),
though the majority are still conducted at
Crematoria or Burial Grounds.
In recent times some people choose to have a
simple direct cremation funeral ceremony, followed
by a memorial ceremony - this is a growing trend.
Memorial ceremonies can be rich and full of
wonderful detail and are typically much more
relaxed because they are held in venues where
people feel comfortable – e.g. at home, in a pub
or hotel, a village hall, a school, a college –
even outdoors if the weather is fine.
As a Humanist Celebrant I
have conducted in excess of 1,000 funerals and
memorials of differing style, formality and size.
When planning a funeral
and/or memorial, I usually meet the family and
friends in order to jointly create a ceremony that
is unique and appropriate. Whatever the
circumstances, I am non-judgmental and sensitive
to the wishes of everyone involved.
Content of a ceremony usually
includes music (recorded/live), poems, readings
and tributes (all of which I can advise on).
A typical order of ceremony:
- Music for gathering and entrance
- Welcome and introduction
- Tribute(s) – spoken by Rebecca,
family & friends
- Poems and/or Readings
- Personal Reflection Time – an
opportunity for quiet thought & private
prayer (silent or with background music and
sometimes with a visual tribute)
- Closing words – thankyous and
announcements
- Final Farewell
- Closing music
On the day, I act as the
"mistress of ceremonies" and
coordinate
the whole ceremony. If required I write
tailored pieces, particularly the tribute, and
will also read pieces on behalf of family and
friends.
Some
recent testimonials:
I have
finally found myself ready to read through
this again, almost 2 years on.
You did such a beautiful job of celebrating
Pete’s life, and I want to thank you for
helping us to do the best we could for him
at such a difficult and distressing time.
Reading through it again it truly reflects
who he was and what he would have wanted.
You took so much time and care to understand
that, and I really appreciate it.
Aug 2024
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Hi Rebecca.
Many thanks for all your help on Monday and
for sending us through the final script.
We had lots of feedback from people saying
they thought the service was perfect for mum
(regardless of the rain), which has been
lovely to hear.
Wishing you all the best,
Mar 2024
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May I send a
big thank you for all your help at such a
difficult time. We have had so many lovely
comments about the Memorial Service at
the club and we are especially
grateful to you for helping us
to take the control of the proceedings at
the outset. We would have found that very
difficult without the benefit of your
experience.
We all felt that she had a good send off!
Many thanks,
Mar 2023
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Thank you so
much for conducting mum's service and
travelling so far to do it. I think we gave
her a very good send off.
Thank you the script I will treasure
it along with the programme.
Love to you, take care
Feb 2023
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We are so
pleased that we chose you as celebrant. The
ceremony was exactly as we had hoped it
might be. All the family thought you were
excellent, and I am sure Jean herself would
have been impressed. Interestingly, several
of Jean’s friends told me they had no idea
what to expect but were pleasantly
surprised. Jan
2020
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Dear Rebecca,
our families are extraordinarily grateful
for conducting yesterday’s ceremony to
celebrate Chris’s life. Everything about the
ceremony had just the right touch and the
love flowed like water. We could not ask for
more. Please accept our sincerest thanks for
all the good work, guidance and kindness you
gave us at a time when we were at out lowest
ebbs. Anyone who was there will remember a
truly unforgettable event which showed that
Chris was a very special person who loved
and was loved and whose love will be
remembered for evermore.
Aug 2019
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Thank you.
What a great job you did ! .....
at the crematorium and Rowing Club. It was
almost as though you knew my sister, from
picking up bits of information from family
and friends. The whole occasion was well
co-ordinated by you and had just the right
‘feel’. Thank you
again May 2019
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Thanks for
everything. The day went as I hoped and many
people commented afterwards that they've
never been to a funeral of that style before
and how it was the best they've ever been
to, which is what I wanted. Feb
2019
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Hi Rebecca
Thank you for the script and thank you for
the ceremony you provided. I feel it all
went according to plan. I had a very large
number of people saying how great the
service was, and how much Jonathan would
have been thrilled about it. Jan
2019
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Please get in contact – I will
happily chat with you about any type of
ceremony you might be considering.
Telephone 07968 054299 or email me at rebeccavincent@ceremonies.org.uk
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