Hands on funeral for homeless man
Undertaker Rupert Callender in Totnes is appealing to his fellow townspeople to turn out to help carry the coffin of a homeless man, Michael Gething, through the streets to his funeral — and then on to the burying ground at Follaton, just outside the town. Rupert Callender said: “The act of carrying his coffin all […]
Hope for heroes
It’s been quiet for many undertakers and celebrants recently (though not in Scotland, our Caledonian agent tells us). Don’t despair! Hat-tip to Vale
No easy day for Special Force Black
To Hereford for the inaugural meeting of the newly-formed Guild Of Outstanding Funeral Staff, an invitation-only body of elite funeral service professionals dedicated to restoring rigour to funerals. The Guild stands in opposition to what it identifies as the ‘beeline to blandness’ being pursued by funeral directors and celebrants in response to consumer calls for […]
Bunch of boobies?
“These pink blazers show the insidious creep of cause marketing. Chicken buckets, perfume and now your friendly neighborhood funeral director. It will literally follow us to the grave. How soon before we are offered pink granite headstones with a tasteful (and licensed) ribbon symbol replacing the dash between the dates of our births and deaths? […]
Modern life
Q: Alright – so I’ve got a dwarf that I thought was awesome who has died. I want to build a nice memorial to him, but he liked coffins (he really did. he even engraved one in the floor =P) and I’d like to stick him in one of those as well. Is that possible? […]
Quote of the day
“Families come together for weddings, yes. But they come closer together at funerals.” Source
Dying to achieve a lifelike appearance
A lawsuit by a New Jersey mortician stricken with leukemia is casting a spotlight on embalming, a standard practice in the funeral industry. William Moore, 38 claims his illness was caused by exposure to formaldehyde, an ingredient in embalming fluid. He is suing his workplace and several manufacturers of embalming chemicals. Moore was diagnosed with acute […]
Super-sacred
Tina Hurley wants to establish a funeral pyre at her home in Elephant Head, Arizona, inspired by the pyre at Crestone. Hurley said she was inspired to create an alternative funeral approach after attending a traditional service for her favorite aunt at a funeral home where she felt compelled to control her emotions. The family then […]
Off with the blinkers
I’ve got a feeling it’s time for a change of direction here at the blog. It doesn’t cost me a great deal of brainpower to keep it going, but it does cost an awful lot of time scouring the internet, panning for gold. Conscientiousness can play funny tricks with a chap. I sit here feeling […]
I’ll be back, sez Prezza
Cessation is a leading signifier of death — discontinuance, expiration, quietus. Not, it seems, if you are a member of the House of Lords (which, the record shows, you are not, you are a commoner, so there). Speaking after being defeated in his bid to be elected as a police commissioner, John Prescott said: “I’m […]
