Jo Wheeler | Family & Funeral Celebrant - UK Society of Celebrants

Hi there! My name is Jo Wheeler and I’m a family and funeral celebrant based in Lincolnshire. I was born and brought up in Cheshire but after 20 odd years in this wonderful county, I now consider myself an honorary Yellowbelly. My career has always been focused on communications and I have worked as a presenter, scriptwriter and facilitator, both live and live broadcast. Along the way, I have also collected some eclectic experiences, working in PR and marketing, rewriting Boeing manuals, teaching music and becoming an etiquette consultant. For the past 24 years, I have been a news and weather presenter on Sky News. It’s my belief that anyone who can spend two and half decades finding new ways to talk about rain deserves a medal for inspiration! Indeed, words are my passion and my playground, I delight in crafting scripts that are interesting, fitting and evocative.

As a family celebrant, I can guarantee you a beautiful bespoke wedding ceremony, that reflects your emotions and desires; a truly personalised ceremony that will be unique and memorable. My role as a civil celebrant is to listen to, and work with you, so that your special day is all you wish it to be. Of course the same applies to Baby Naming Ceremonies, Blessings or Renewal of Vows. And I might even be able to suggest some traditional ceremonies that appeal to you, such as handfasting, sand ceremonies or jumping the broom.

I take the responsibility of being a funeral celebrant very seriously indeed. A funeral is a ‘one chance only’ to bid a fitting farewell to loved ones, and an impersonal service, or badly written eulogy can utterly spoil the day. A person-centred ceremony should sympathetically reflect the life of the deceased, with carefully selected readings, verse and music. To achieve this, I spend plenty of time with the family and many hours mirroring their memories and emotions to create an individual and personalised ceremony.

My interest in celebrancy and my desire to train as a civil celebrant began at my own father’s funeral. A lacklustre affair, there was nothing about that ceremony that even remotely reflected the man I knew, and I still feel bitter about that years later.

It is often a lack or ‘loss’ of faith that leads people to seek a civil celebrant but I am as happy to work with any representative of Church, Mosque or Synagogue as I am to work alone.

Indeed, the move away from long accepted rites, (often to more traditional ones), provokes much thought and offers huge potential. It’s my belief that we should all make ‘emotional wills’ offering guidance on our own choice of music, memories and messages alongside the will that deals with our financial interests and assets. When my time comes, I want to be remembered as a wonderful mother of five; any mention of weather forecasts and I might just rise up and smite someone!

Whatever your ceremony, wherever your ceremony and however you wish your ceremony to be, I can be there to help, guide and create. With you and for you. It’s an honour for me to help families in difficult times and my privilege to share in their most joyous occasions. So, if I can assist you, or your family, don’t hesitate to contact me.

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Jo Wheeler | Family & Funeral Celebrant

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