About Jo – humanist celebrant
Jo Beddington
Celebrating Lives.
Acknowledging grief.
Sharing memories.
As a humanist I believe we have one life to live, making every life precious, and every life worth celebrating.
It is my pleasure to meet a variety of people, to hear their stories and to be asked to help create ceremonies that uniquely reflect the person who has died. That ceremony might be termed a ‘funeral’, a ‘Farewell Ceremony’ or a’Celebration of Life’, but all allow mourners the opportunity to express grief, to say goodbye to those they have loved and to leave with shared, and lasting, memories.
The current Corona Virus/COVID-19 crisis presents clear challenges, but the need to say farewell and to celebrate a life lived, remain important and can still be accomplished safely.
Some mourners may already be hesitant to attend traditional funerals, and it is likely that, at some point, crematoria or chapels may be closed to the public entirely. Although this is deeply distressing to families, lives can still be marked and celebrated through appropriate ceremony. We can record services and even allow live web casts of the proceedings; you can hold a delayed memorial or arrange an interment of ashes; we can find a way to bring mourners together to reflect on the life of the person who has died, even though they are miles apart.
“In these horrible, horrible times, you really helped facilitate the saddest process in a way that I’m sure Mum would have appreciated. And that is high praise indeed!” K
“I honestly couldn’t have wished for a better experience given the horrible circumstances. You got right to the heart of Dad and what he meant to us all, managing to make the funeral feel like a celebration of who he was. That’s exactly what we wanted for him.” L
Please do get in touch, and we can ensure your loved one is celebrated in a full and fitting way.
I am a northern girl now living in Chiswick, West London with my husband, two children and a dog.
After years in TV post production, I took time out to be a mother and then a carer for my husband, before taking a further degree (PG Dip in English Literature) and a role with ‘Just a Drop’, a water aid charity. I love words, theatre, films, animals and the occasional pub quiz.
I am a BAFTA member, Fellow of the London Zoological Society, Patron of the National History Museum and a member of LGBT Humanists.
<"The service you gave for J was absolutely wonderful, it was so 'him'. It was funny, serious and hit the spot…” JS<
<"Jo made me feel as if she had really known K. She made a sad occasion something quite positive." AC </
“D. would have been so chuffed at how well you got to know her! You were so thorough, calm, responsive and generous to a fault with your time and attention. Everyone was so impressed. We couldn’t possibly have found anyone better.” C<
“It meant so much to us knowing that you were there to hold everything together, which you did beautifully.” RC<
“Just a quick note to thank you once again for doing such a brilliant job. Everybody I spoke to said it was just amazing. It had just the right pitch and, I think, J. would have been pleased.” JR