Aileen Dockerty | Family & Funeral Celebrant

My name is Aileen Dockerty and I am a Family and Funeral Celebrant certified by United Kingdom Society of Celebrants, and principal of Contemporary Celebrants, Ajax, Ontario. I am also a Wedding Officiant licenced under the Ontario Marriage Act.
I was born and educated in Manchester, England, before moving to Ontario.
After a long legal career, I entered the world of celebrancy. Celebrancy has taken me on a very different path but the journey has been far more rewarding, meaningful and successful than I could have ever imagined.
That success has been evident by the excellent, positive client responses I have received; their feedback has been incredibly inspiring.
However, citizens of Ontario may wonder “what on earth is a Celebrant?”. That is, of course, if they have not had the chance to read through this website. The term “Funeral/Wedding Officiant” is most recognizable here.
Celebrancy is a cultural phenomenon in the English-speaking world and in particular, the United Kingdom, United States, New Zealand, our own British Columbia and the place it all started, Australia. Now celebrancy has arrived in Ontario for all to “discover”.
Quite simply, a Celebrant is a ceremony specialist trained (by the excellent UKSOC in my case) to write and create personal, bespoke, wedding ceremonies, funerals and memorials.
Couples getting married, and families suffering the loss of a loved one, often are unaware that there are Celebrants available who can create a ceremony just for them; a ceremony true to a couple’s journey into marriage together; or, honour a loved one and a life well lived; a ceremony inclusive of family and friends while at the same time encompassing different lifestyles and beliefs.
The ability of a Celebrant to personalize ceremonies is the key to an engaging, relevant and meaningful occasion. The most special part of a ceremony created by a Celebrant is that ceremonies are completely custom written.
Celebrants also are able to meet the increasing demand for non-religious wedding ceremonies, for example, by providing a personal and inclusive ceremony which can be small and intimate or lavishly conducted on a grand scale.
A church setting, for example, is not required to ensure the emotion and beauty of the ceremony. “Fun” is often a word been used by couples to describe the type of ceremony they want and I can definitely deliver that for them as well.
However, hiring a Celebrant for any ceremony does not mean that it cannot include a religious component. Celebrant ceremonies are inclusive of all beliefs and cultures.
Different elements can be added to ceremonies including traditions from diverse ethnicities, cultures, religions and ancient times to make it really special. Celebrant ceremonies can also incorporate a particular theme which is of significance to those being honoured and their idiosyncrasies.
Most importantly, “cookie cutter” ceremonies can be tossed aside!

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Aileen Dockerty | Family & Funeral Celebrant

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