Posted by Grant Paice on Dec 25, 2021

ROB THOMPSON - BREATHES LIFE INTO FUNERAL SERVICES

At our meeting last week respected club member Rob Thomson gave us an outline of his career in an entertaining and thought-provoking talk.
 
Rob was ordained as an Anglican minister some 38 years ago and began his ministry as a curate in Ashburton.
 
He soon found that he had a skill in officiating at funerals. This culminated in him deciding to become a full-time civil celebrant.
 
Rob went on to talk about some of the considerations when conducting a funeral and what resources are required including i.e. music, quotes, readings etc.
 
Other considerations are how long will the service be, will there be additional speakers and who is preparing and providing any electronic media (slide shows, etc.).
 
He next shared how funerals are organised and presented under the ever-changing Covid regulations.
 
The future and the core values of funerals will, Rob suggested, remain the same.
 
“Covid regulations, however, have meant that there has been an increase in small family gatherings at a burial or cremation and then a memorial gathering held for a wider group of family and friends later” noted Rob.
 
It was significant to note that questions from the floor continued for some time which showed the value of Rob’s excellent presentation and the high level of interest it generated among members.
 
President Grant thanked Rob for his thorough and informative insight into his valued work.