Katrina and Phil loved their winter wedding celebration

Examples of the many cards and emails I have been pleased to receive after previous weddings:

“The moment we met you, we knew that you were exactly the right person to officiate our wedding. Your kindness and warmth are palpable, and you bring a certain gravitas to your words that mark the importance of the ceremony. You took the time to get to know us both, and helped guide us through the process of writing a ceremony that was perfect. There was humour, there was solemnity, and most of all, there was love. We could never have gotten that from anyone but you – you really managed to get the best out of us, and in turn gave the best of yourself. We can’t thank you enough.” Tiff and Rob 

“We wanted to say a big thank you for being our humanist celebrant.  We had such a special and magical ceremony and we were so pleased with how it went.  Many of our guests said it was the most beautiful ceremony they had ever been to!  Thank you so much for helping us bring it all together and for your heartfelt and professional delivery.” Jess and Rich

“Thank you Hilary. Our Renewal of Vows ceremony and the whole day was beautiful and very emotional. You were very good and everyone commented on the fact that you had a lot of emotion and it wasn’t just another ceremony for you.” Nisha and Tom

“We wanted to say thank you so much for making our wedding ceremony so special. We both found it a wonderful experience and enjoyed every minute (nerves aside!). Many of our guests commented on how personal and original the ceremony was, and it apparently brought a few tears to a few eyes!” Alison and Martin

“We cannot thank you enough for making our special day so wonderful. Your energy and enthusiasm during the ceremony made it mean even more to us than we could have dreamed. It really was perfect! Thank you from the bottom of our hearts.”James and Kristen

“Just wanted to say a massive thank you for Sunday. The ceremony was perfect and it was everything we could have hoped for. Thank you for all your hard work and for making our day so, so special.” Michelle and Ryan

“I just wanted to send you a quick note to thank you again for the incredible ceremony on Friday afternoon! We truly appreciated your help and support throughout the planning process and for delivering such a clear and concise ceremony.  We had numerous guests comment on how incredible the ceremony was and how amazing you were at explaining everything throughout the ceremony and leading such an interesting and clear script.  Thank you for the bottom of our hearts for being such an important part of our day, Nick and I will have such amazing memories because of you! Thank you so much again!” Karen and Nick 

Examples of the many cards and emails I have been pleased to receive after previous naming ceremonies:

“We can’t recommend Hilary enough. She was extremely helpful, professional and guided us all the way through from writing our ceremonial speeches to being the most memorable, charming, celebrant on the day of our Son’s naming day.  A joyful soul with a friendly and loving nature, Hilary is just what you need for any Ceremonial occasion.” Aimee and Nick

“Thank you so much for leading the celebration of Olanna’s naming ceremony. It meant a lot to us to have someone so thoughtful and caring celebrate it with us.” Chinwe and Chris 

 “Hilary, you made our naming day for Amy fantastic. We had the flexibility to make the ceremony as unique or as traditional as we wanted, which made the day very special. I would highly recommend you. We will definitely be booking you again if we have another child to hold another naming day in the future”. Dan and Carrie

“We just wanted to thank you once again for leading the ceremony today. It really could not have gone better and the feedback was that it was very special and personal.” Rachel and Bruno

Examples of the many cards and emails I have been honoured to receive after previous funerals:

“Thank you so much for yesterday’s celebration of my “baby” Sister’s life.  The feedback from everyone has been “how very Carol” it was, and delivered by you with warmth.  Your purple suit was perfect! Once again, many, many, thanks.” Trisha

For a great comedian: “Thank you very much, on behalf of all of his family, for the way you handled and conducted the ceremony. We all felt very much represented and considered by your warm and professional manner. I’m glad we managed it as we wanted and hoped it to be, and are pleased at how it all went smoothly and fitted in all our speakers within the time.” David

and: “Thank you so much for such a wonderful send off for my good friend.  I cannot imagine what it was like for you to face that audience – a spectrum of literary and comedy talent in one place! – but you set a beautiful tone and I know that the family were very happy with how you represented their story and how you conducted the ceremony.” Grace

“Hilary, you brought my 111-year-old aunt to life through your warm, sensitive script. It was a pleasure to work with you. The language you used at the very end of the funeral was uplifting in an unsentimental way that Edith would have appreciated. Your presence at the funeral was dignified yet reassuring. Afterwards, I received countless compliments from those who had attended on my choice of celebrant. A hard-of-hearing friend was delighted that, for a change, she could understand every word you spoke.” Vera

“Please may I say how wonderful you were, Hilary. My mother had requested a Humanist Funeral and in the circumstances it was most apt, especially as you were such a great orator and gave a frank, informed and at times amusing celebration of the life of my dear mother. I appreciated that you spent three hours with my husband and I prior to the funeral finding out as much about Molly as was possible. You collated and presented this information to the funeral party as if you actually knew Molly and had been a part of her life too. Thank you once again Hilary for making the end a comfort and a relief. ” Erica

“Thank you Hilary. The celebration of Jan’s life was beautiful, although so sad. I cannot thank you enough for all you did. Coming to see us so promptly, preparing such a beautiful tribute from my distracted thoughts, coping with all our changes. But most of all thank you for your presence on the day. Several people asked me how long Jan and I had known you, and were amazed to find you had never met Jan – a fitting tribute to all your work.” Graham

“Thank you for helping us to make Phil’s farewell celebration such a positively memorable occasion. It has really helped us to deal with the shock  of his sudden loss and to move forward with his love in our hearts.” Jenny

“Thank you very much for creating the beautiful ceremony for Jay yesterday, which you conducted with such sincerity and feeling. It was a great comfort to the family and friends there, and I know it was exactly as Jay would have wished.” Pam

“We just wanted to pass on our sincere thanks to you for the beautiful ceremony for our Dad last Wednesday. Under your guidance it was very uplifting, full of love and laughter. What could have been a very sad occasion was transformed into a true celebration of his life. Thank you again for your professionalism and compassion.” Lisa and Stuart

“Just wanted to say thank you on behalf of my Dad and my family for conducting the ceremony for my Mum last week. It was the first time that I and many of us have experienced a humanist ceremony, and I found it a beautiful experience, so uplifting and comforting, even through all the sadness it helped so much. We have received so many positive messages about the ceremony, so thank you so much” Janice

What I do: humanist, blessing, wedding, unique, celebrant, baby, naming, ceremony, celebrate, life, celebration, event, castle, venue, venues, stately, home, historic, hotel, plan, planner, civil, London, Middx, Herts, Berks, Bucks, Surrey, personal, service, services, order of ceremony, registry, office, register, arrangements, non religious, non-religious, partnership, gay, marriage, same sex, funeral, namings, funerals, weddings, marriages, ceremonies, celebrations, event, events, planning, party, wedding vows, promises, speeches, best man, bridesmaid, bride, groom, brides, bridesmaids, ushers, humanist society, association, humanism, registrar, reading, readings, engagement ring, parties, outdoors, farm, field, creative, minister, independent,  officiant, anniversary, anniversaries, 10, 25, 40, 50, 60, 70, 65, 75, expert, wedding favours, wedding cake, engagement ring, wedding ring, wedding flowers, bouquet, invitations, decorations, place settings, table plan, wedding dress, secular, planner, organiser, leader, areligious, cross cultural, poems, baby names, ideas, celebrity, theme wedding, Jewish, Catholic, Hindu, Christian, Buddhist, Hilary Lighter, humanitarian, humourist, memorial ceremony, memorial service, feminist, lesbian, living funeral