Meeting up

When we meet for the first time we are often understandably nervous. So let me spill the beans about the kind of things we might do.

Meeting face to face is always best so if you live in the Cheltenham or Gloucester area I would usually visit you at your home, or you can come to mine. If that’s not convenient we’ll choose another venue – even a coffee shop is OK. If you live a long distance away I’m content to do this over the phone or on a digital platform like Zoom, Facebook messenger or MS Teams.

First of all I’ll ask you to tell me about the person who has died and hear your story of what happened. I can tell you a little of my story too if you want to hear it. A little admin is inevitable and we’ll exchange any contact details we haven’t yet obtained from each other. I will ask you about your funeral director and later on make contact with him or her so we can work together.

We’ll also talk about the service and discuss your preferences for the elements which make up the celebration. Your loved one may already have left instructions or preferences which we can incorporate. We will talk about readings, music, prayers and how to handle the moment of committal. So if you already have some ideas, please bring them with you. The needs of a church and the crematorium are different and we will talk that through at the time.

If you or members of your family are going to bring a tribute or eulogy we can talk about how to go about it and what it might contain. We’ll also have a brief chat about practicalities such as flowers and dress code.

If I’m going to do the graphic design of a funeral leaflet it would help to have a photo or two to include (emailing some .jpegs is fine) and to look at a sample of the kind of printing I can offer you.

Doing all this typically takes over an hour and there will inevitably be loose ends to tie up later. We will be in fairly regular phone or email contact over the following few days as we settle on the final shape of your service. If you have doubts or questions you can contact me at any time.