Funerals


cherish-P11Losing someone dear to you is a difficult and emotional time. At Cherish Ceremonies, our approach to funerals is to acknowledge and respect the grief, whilst writing the service to celebrate the life of the person who has passed away, rather than mourn the death.
We will visit you at your home, or at a relative’s home, to discuss with you sensitively and with care, the life of the deceased, and help you create the ceremony to enable you to say your goodbyes.

We take all those details and precious memories and write a service that truly reflects them and the life they have lived.  We can help write the eulogy, or we can incorporate tributes from family and friends.

We can propose or select suitable readings and prayers.  Any religion or no religion is catered for – it is about your beliefs, not ours.
Once the service is written, we send it to you by email, so that you can check it through for accuracy and completeness before the funeral.

We also print out a copy of the full script of the funeral ceremony for you to keep.

On the day of the service, we will meet you at the crematorium or burial ground. We will have copies of the readings, if you have family members or friends who wish to contribute to the service. Sometimes, the emotion of the day means occasionally – and understandably – people cannot carry out the reading. If this happens, we will be on hand to help by stepping in and reading it on their behalf.    Our long experience means that we have suitable readings for all scenarios

Our funeral services are written with sensitivity and respect, and are approved in advance by you, to honour and celebrate the life lived.

If there are relatives living abroad who cannot make the ceremony, you can always ask about videoing the service, and we can help you with this.

If you would like symbolism such as a balloon release, or doves, or live music such as a Bagpiper, or a String Quartet,  we can suggest musicians to you.   But if you would like a grandchild to play their recorder, then that is fine too.

Contact us for details.

‘The Life That I Have’ by Leo Marks
The life that I have
Is all that I have
And the life that I have
Is yours.

The love that I have
Of the life that I have
Is yours and yours and yours.

A sleep I shall have
A rest I shall have
Yet death will be but a pause
For the peace of my years
In the long green grass
Will be yours and yours and yours.

People may be concerned about having the whole funeral service at a Crematorium. Please be reassured that there are many with beautiful peaceful chapels, and the services there can be truly sublime, worthy of the fitting send-off and tribute that your loved one deserves.

Alternatively, you could have a funeral ceremony to celebrate the life of your loved one anywhere you choose – at home, in a meadow, or woodland… with all friends and family, with photographs, with candles, fireworks, or balloons (with a marching band if that is what the deceased loved best!) and then follow it with a private committal for family only.

In short, you only get one chance for a good funeral.   I will help you to achieve this.