Today I am a professionally trained civil funeral celebrant, although my career journey started at Nottingham Playhouse, firstly as stage-doorkeeper answering calls and taking messages for members of the company, before being given the opportunity to move into theatre management.
Several years later I took a job at BBC Radio Nottingham in charge of finance and HR matters. It’s a radio station at the heart of the community and I learned a great deal about the people of the city, county and the East Midlands.
In the 1990s, another career move took me into fundraising and communications.
The one constant through my career is my ability to put people at the heart of everything I do. Whether looking after audiences at the pantomime, dealing with personnel matters at the BBC, or helping to raise funds for cancer research, everything has centred around people.
There are three essential skills for celebrants: listening, communicating and understanding. Being able to engage with people sensitively and thoughtfully in a difficult moment makes a difference.
I will offer you these skills and will do my utmost to make the process of creating the funeral ceremony as easy as possible for you.
Above all else, the ceremony we create together will be fitting and appropriate for the person who has died.
