Testimonials
Some kind words I have received from families:
'I am so pleased to have found Helen. She arrived promptly for our initial visit - although my house is quite difficult to find. From the moment she entered my house she put me at ease. During this difficult time I felt it was important to trust her, which I did. She has a calm manner and doesn’t ever hurry you in providing family information. Following this home visit Helen provided me with a draft copy of the service via email. We needed a few tweaks here and there which she saw to promptly and efficiently. On the actual day I felt relieved to see Helen at the Crematorium. I knew the service was in good hands. Despite a minor setback with someone providing her with information far too late to be included within the timescale- Helen was able to accommodate this information appropriately. I would have no hesitation in recommending Helen to anyone looking for a kind, caring and compassionate Humanist Celebrant.'
Rebecca
'Many, many good memories brought back to life for all of us, family and friends, by your wonderful eulogy. Once again Helen, from J and I, many many thanks. It summed him and his life up perfectly and if the daft old bugger could have heard it I think it would have made him chuckle too!!!'
Jason
'On the sad loss of our father we were put in touch with Helen as a celebrant. On meeting Helen for the first time she very quickly put us at ease and the care and compassion was clear to see. We cannot thank Helen enough for all she has done for us and for our dad.
She captured dad perfectly and the ceremony was just wonderful. She helped make a very sad day into a celebration of dad's life. Helen made the whole experience a lot less stressful with her soothing words and the positive, loving energy she brings. It actually felt like a family friend was conducting the ceremony. It felt like she had known dad and his family.
We are extremely grateful to have had this beautiful soul as our celebrant.
Thank you Helen.'
Kirstie, Sadie and Alexis
'I want to thank you from the bottom of my heart for the wonderful way you put together a celebration of my dear G’s life. I have had numerous praises from those who attended. It was a beautifully poignant and gentle celebration which encapsulated G the man and what he achieved and for the values he held all his life. Once again, thank you'
Paula
'Thank you so much for everything you did to ensure mums funeral was a beautiful tribute to her and all ran smoothly.
There was nothing that I felt should have been done differently and at no point did I worry about any of the organisation - what was happening when etc - which is due to the professionalism and skill of you. Before this I had not appreciated just how much is involved in the role of the celebrant.
Again thank you for your compassion and empathy throughout. I’m really glad it was you who helped us through that part of this journey.'
Nic
'I'd just like to thank you so much for doing such an amazing job. It was a weirdly, beautiful day. You certainly played a large role in that. Thank you for your professionalism, understanding, warmth and smiles. All of which helped me/us thru a difficult day.
With much fondness'
Sally
‘When Dad passed away we were keen to have a Humanist ceremony to celebrate his life. Having consulted the Humanist’s website we found Helen, who was local, and looked her up. The first thing we noted was the quality of her web site which gives you a rich insight into Helen as a person as well as lots of information, including readings and poems that can be used at funeral ceremonies. When I called her, it was an easy and comfortable conversation and we set up a time for her to come and meet the family. Helen used that meeting to find out all she could about Dad and us as a family. She is extremely engaging, respectful and offered great advice while all the time reassuring us that this was our time to celebrate Dad and that there are no rules. Helen is one of the most talented listeners I have ever met. When she got back to us with a draft of the life story she was planning to use at the funeral we were hard pushed to find anything that we didn’t like or disagree with… in other words she got it pretty much spot on! This gave us huge confidence that we were in the hands of a compassionate and thoughtful celebrant, confidence that was confirmed on the day when Helen took us through the ceremony with tenderness and skill. I would recommend Helen to anyone who is looking for someone to guide them through a caring, non-religious funeral for their loved one.'
Steve
'This is a huge ‘thank you’ for your time, patience, understanding, kindness and above all smiley face which lit up our day. Mum’s ‘on-your-way’ went beautifully without hitch and in the main thanks to you, your skill at dealing with difficult situations and at times impossible family differences. You were amazing. Humanist ceremonies are the way forward for us. You truly are a great ambassador for this kind of celebration.’
Ruthie & David xx
‘I would just like to say a huge thank you for your wonderful service today. So many people came to us afterwards who had never been to a humanist celebrant led service and said to us that after today they have decided that it’s what they would want for themselves. Today was a perfect reflection of the person that Dad was. So thank you for helping us all to send Dad off today in such a wonderful way. Lots of love Helen.’
Deb xx
‘Dear Helen, I just wanted to say a huge thank you to you for the amazing job you made of my Mum’s memorial celebration and burial. It really stands out in my memory as a lovely day and a true celebration of her life. I have had lots of positive feedback from those who attended. Your calm presence and attention to detail made it all seem pretty seamless, and the burial was especially moving. I can highly recommend you to others. Thank you so much, again.’
Jo
‘Having never been part of organising a funeral, I really wasn’t sure what to expect and attended the meetings mainly to support my Mum. Thank you for making the process somehow positive and enabling us the remember the good and funny times, and for supporting my Mum through it. I know she really appreciated the time and care you took to really capture what A was like. It was a beautiful service – so many people commented on it. Thank you.’
Tamsyn
'I just wanted to say thank you so much for your help to give C the send off she deserved. For listening to our emotionally charged outpourings on the first meeting and then giving us a framework for us to build upon and also appreciated how flexible and receptive you were to our ideas. Friends and family have commented on how genuine and sincere you sounded whilst talking about C. Respectful and compassionate from the outset, Helen, thank you for everything'. Alison
‘Dear Helen, Wow the script is wonderful, the family will treasure it in the memory of B. Thank you for all the hard work and beautiful service you did on our behalf. It’s been wonderful to meet you and you made a hard job so much easier, keep doing what you do for all the families at these sad times in their lives, We were very lucky as a family and a privilege to have such a wonderful, warm caring person to be there for us to make B’s final journey so much easier to bare. Many thanks’.
Amanda
‘I thought you should be the first person on my thank you list. Everyone at the funeral thought everything went beautifully and loved your presentation. I’ve already had some feedback from the ‘virtual’ mourners, D’s cousin in France said 'We really felt we were with you yesterday the picture and sound were so good. The whole service was so dignified, all helped by the lady who had such a lovely voice.''
Stephanie
‘Helen was fantastic in pulling together the ceremony, just holding it all together. Her support throughout was beyond anything we expected. And her calm, speaking voice was a revelation. So many people said how great the ceremony was – we were so lucky to get her. The service was such a wonderful tribute to the life of our mother. Thanks Helen.’
Kevin
‘I thought the way you led the Ceremony was wonderful and enabled me to feel that the script you had prepared and we agreed, presented S and her life in the best possible way. I have had so many people say that the Ceremony you conducted was an excellent representation of S and that your delivery and timing was carefully measured and highlighted the important things in her life. This observation came from both people who attended and others who watched via webcast.
Having met you once prior to the Ceremony, I found your approach very professional, sympathetic and showing great empathy and understanding, which was extremely helpful to me at a difficult time. Your guidance regarding readings and poems was greatly appreciated and made some difficult decisions far easier for me.
Having chosen to have a Humanist Ceremony I can confirm that because of your efforts and approach, the Ceremony was everything I could have wanted and I am pleased that I had taken that decision.
Once again thank you for a wonderful Ceremony.’
Chris
‘Thank you for your extraordinary thoroughness in taking time to talk to the family and conducting a heartfelt ceremony yesterday.
With such a small gathering the mourning and grief of those present is amplified making the occasion even sadder. Thanks for the prompt delivery of the Presentation Script which I’m sure the family will treasure. Warm Regards’
Tony
‘On behalf of the three of us I would like to thank you for a job very well done yesterday. We were very pleased with the outcome and I know C would have felt we did her proud. Your careful planning and attention to detail really contributed to a successful outcome and the way you collaborated with the three of us when planning the day made the whole experience as enjoyable as such an event could ever be. Kind regards’
John Anna and George
‘Thank you so much for conducting our farewell to dad yesterday, your care, support and kindness meant so much to us all and your guidance and attention to detail helped us through the occasion and was very much appreciated.
Everyone I spoke to following the service remarked on how fitting it was and my mum’s family said that they have now changed their minds about their own funeral plans because they were so impressed, this is even more surprising because they all have staunch catholic beliefs!
Hopefully we will not be requiring any funeral services in the near future but, if we do you and your very capable hands are top of our list.’
Fae
‘Thank you so much for your help at Mum’s celebration of life. Thank you also for the help and support that you gave my family and I in the preparation for the event and providing us with structure and focus prior to and on the day. The amount of work you put into getting it right for Mum was impressive and paid off. I feel that the event was a fitting tribute and I had so many positive comments on the day about how interesting, different and uplifting it was. People particularly enjoyed the emphasis on Mums life and it felt like a proper celebration; you made that possible for us.
Please feel free to use any of these comments in your marketing information. I would like others to know how sensitively you perform this service and how well you get the balance of personal and professional right.’
Linda
‘Thank you so much for today. Lots of people said to me that they thought you conducted the ceremony with dignity and grace. I thought your tone was perfect and I was very pleased with the way you read my tribute. It was just what I wanted. Thank you very much indeed.’
Isobel
‘Thanks Helen, it was a lovely service and quite a few people have sent messages to say they saw the ceremony on the video link and how lovely it was. Thank you for all the time you put into it. It was a pleasure to work through it with you over the last few weeks and we all appreciated your experience. Thank you again.’
Stuart