By: Praise and worship songs for funerals - CHURCHGISTS.COM

Praise and worship songs for funerals - CHURCHGISTS.COM — Thu, 04 Aug 2022 06:21:37 +0000

[…] and more personalized these days… families are swapping out light funeral refreshments for full-on food and beverage stations, and even planning weekend-long memorial celebrations instead of a traditional funeral service! […]

By: Allan Stearns

Allan Stearns — Thu, 25 Aug 2016 13:29:05 +0000

As a Certified Celebrationist, I make every service as personal as possible. I will not do a service unless I have the opportunity to meet personally with as many members of the family as possible. I try to do this on their turf, at their home, in their environment. This allows me to see their surroundings, what they keep on display, what their particular tastes and hobbies are.
I have retired the term “funeral” because of its somber connotation. Everything is a celebration of life, and sometimes a special memorialization.
I try to identify a “takeaway” for each event. Something that the family can take home as a reminder of their loved pone and a reminder of their celebration of life. I often use angels or butterflies or something small that can be displayed in a home. I have also found special poems that relate to the person’s life, that I can then frame and present to the family.
The cookie cutter style event is no longer an option for me. Lastly, I try to keep my events relatively short. 25 – 30 minutes is what the families ask me for. They have seen too many funerals that drone on far too long. Music selections should be appropriate for the honoree’s life. Traditional church hymns are ok if that was their style, but Elvis, Sinatra, and Elton John are very acceptable choices too.
Most of my families request an inclusion of God in the service which I readily accept.

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By: Praise and worship songs for funerals - CHURCHGISTS.COM

By: Allan Stearns