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Sue Sowerby - Celebrant - 'To Honour A Life'
Hello, and thank you for visiting my profile.
I am an experienced Funeral & Memorial Celebrant, covering Essex, Hertfordshire, London and many of the surrounding Home Counties. I work closely with families and a wide range of Funeral Directors, supporting you from the time we first meet, throughout the planning of the service and, of course, on the day itself.
With a professional background in Marketing and Communications, my many years of creative writing, storytelling and public speaking provided a natural springboard for my work as a Celebrant. For more than seven years, I have had the privilege of supporting families through one of the most difficult times in their lives, helping them to create a meaningful and truly personal farewell for someone they love.
I believe that every life has a unique story that deserves to be told with warmth, dignity and sincerity.
By taking the time to listen carefully to families, gathering the memories, stories and little details that made their loved one so special, I create and deliver heartfelt, highly personalised services that genuinely reflect the life, character and personality of the person we are remembering.
To Honour a Life. To Tell Their Story. To Remember Them Well.
That sentiment is at the very heart of what I do and is why I chose ‘To Honour a Life’ as the name of my Celebrant business.
I officiate at Celebrations of Life and services can include elements of faith or be completely non-religious – the choice is entirely yours.
When we meet, we will talk about your loved one and the life they lived. Together, we can discuss the content for their Tribute, your choice of music, poems, readings or prayers, the Order of Service and those all-important personal touches that can make a funeral feel so individual and meaningful.
Nothing is too much trouble when it comes to helping you create the right farewell for your loved one.
As an independent Celebrant, I work with many Funeral Directors and many choose me because I am the 'right fit' for their family they are supporting. If you already have a particular Funeral Director in mind and would like me to officiate your loved one’s service, simply let them know that you would like Sue from ‘To Honour a Life’ to be your Celebrant.
Please do visit my website, where you can read the wonderful reviews and kind words shared by families I have had the privilege of supporting over the past seven years.
It would be an honour to support you and your family, and I would be proud to be your Celebrant.
To Honour a Life – with respect, with dignity and with honour.
Sue x
- Location
- Theydon Bois, Epping, Essex
- Services provided within a 40 mile radius
- Contact
- Sue Sowerby
- Website
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https://funeralcelebrantsue.co.uk
Website is verified
- Mobile number
- 07787 989794
- Gallery
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- Memberships
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Not Verified
Updated: 1 hour ago •
Articles
"Retrain", he said
Published 4 years ago
Running my own business for 30 years does not mean I don’t listen and take on board sound advice. Of course I do! So, to Mr Sunak, I took your advice. Firstly to all of my clients, my business contacts and my friends and family, I am giving up The Sowerby Group business where, with my amazing, talented teams, we have created something special in the recruitment, digital marketing and creative communications sector.
This is a business that has been built on referral, recommendation, trust, longevity and in many cases, where clients have become friends. And I am so proud of everything we have achieved together." But there have been times when I’ve thought about the skills I possess and how they can be channelled into something different and more ‘spiritual’. A place where I can still add true value to those who will benefit most.
Many will already know for a number of reasons. I am a biographer, a storyteller, a counsellor. I have a strong voice on issues where I have a true passion. I am an avid supporter of our hospice’s bereavement café. I am someone who listens. I love to hear other people’s stories. I have a very enquiring mind. And I ask lots of questions – often crossing the boundaries of the ‘whys and wherefores” !
Putting all those skills into a big melting pot, I started my journey to train as a Funeral Celebrant to include Memorials. It wasn’t just a lightbulb moment either. You see, I have been to many funerals and have listened intently to the Celebrant – some very good ones too! And in the back of my mind I would think “I would like to do that”. I even spoke at my father’s funeral many years ago – and I have never, ever got over the emotional rollercoaster of losing my father, my friend and someone who was a strong confidante and who was taken far too soon. My grief is still raw but I am in a much better place.
So I commenced the journey of an Independent Funeral Celebrant. I researched lots of celebrant courses and before I pressed the button to sign up to one in particular, quite coincidentally I was contacted by the owner of a new Independent Family Funeral Directors in the very place where I live in Essex. This had to be more than coincidence that the owner should ask me to write an article about their new business for our village magazine. And of course I accepted, whilst also asking if they were looking for a Funeral Celebrant. Very kindly, they put me in touch with one of their own Celebrants who has been in the funeral for over 20 years. He is now my Mentor, my Trainer and someone who I have shadowed at funerals, meeting bereaved families and where I have role-played many times to ensure that I am the best that I can be. As part of the Funeral Directors’ team I work with bereaved families and friends to deliver the best and most memorable service to celebrate the life of their loved ones.
Do you ever believe that things happen for a reason? I know I do and this was more than evident on that afternoon when I took the call from Steve and Harry Drew, owners of Drew and Son Funeral Directors. I firmly believe that I am being ‘called’ to follow a particular path. A path where I can continue to help people, to listen, to write eulogies and to deliver a Celebration of Life. It’s a path that I have chosen to follow, and it’s also a path that, I believe, has been chosen for me.
Sue Sowerby, Independent Funeral Celebrant – ‘To Honour a Life’
http://www.sowerbygroup.co.uk/retrain-he-said-find-new-jobs-he-said
This is a business that has been built on referral, recommendation, trust, longevity and in many cases, where clients have become friends. And I am so proud of everything we have achieved together." But there have been times when I’ve thought about the skills I possess and how they can be channelled into something different and more ‘spiritual’. A place where I can still add true value to those who will benefit most.
Many will already know for a number of reasons. I am a biographer, a storyteller, a counsellor. I have a strong voice on issues where I have a true passion. I am an avid supporter of our hospice’s bereavement café. I am someone who listens. I love to hear other people’s stories. I have a very enquiring mind. And I ask lots of questions – often crossing the boundaries of the ‘whys and wherefores” !
Putting all those skills into a big melting pot, I started my journey to train as a Funeral Celebrant to include Memorials. It wasn’t just a lightbulb moment either. You see, I have been to many funerals and have listened intently to the Celebrant – some very good ones too! And in the back of my mind I would think “I would like to do that”. I even spoke at my father’s funeral many years ago – and I have never, ever got over the emotional rollercoaster of losing my father, my friend and someone who was a strong confidante and who was taken far too soon. My grief is still raw but I am in a much better place.
So I commenced the journey of an Independent Funeral Celebrant. I researched lots of celebrant courses and before I pressed the button to sign up to one in particular, quite coincidentally I was contacted by the owner of a new Independent Family Funeral Directors in the very place where I live in Essex. This had to be more than coincidence that the owner should ask me to write an article about their new business for our village magazine. And of course I accepted, whilst also asking if they were looking for a Funeral Celebrant. Very kindly, they put me in touch with one of their own Celebrants who has been in the funeral for over 20 years. He is now my Mentor, my Trainer and someone who I have shadowed at funerals, meeting bereaved families and where I have role-played many times to ensure that I am the best that I can be. As part of the Funeral Directors’ team I work with bereaved families and friends to deliver the best and most memorable service to celebrate the life of their loved ones.
Do you ever believe that things happen for a reason? I know I do and this was more than evident on that afternoon when I took the call from Steve and Harry Drew, owners of Drew and Son Funeral Directors. I firmly believe that I am being ‘called’ to follow a particular path. A path where I can continue to help people, to listen, to write eulogies and to deliver a Celebration of Life. It’s a path that I have chosen to follow, and it’s also a path that, I believe, has been chosen for me.
Sue Sowerby, Independent Funeral Celebrant – ‘To Honour a Life’
http://www.sowerbygroup.co.uk/retrain-he-said-find-new-jobs-he-said
Comments and Feedback
These comments are from people who have used this celebrant's services.
24th October 2026