Hi! I'm Helen (she/her), a Humanist Celebrant in Yorkshire
I wasn't always a Humanist or a celebrant (though I have always been from Yorkshire!) so read on to find out a bit more about my journey to becoming a Humanist Celebrant...
Our wedding story:
My husband, Joe, and I got married in West Yorkshire in 2010 and, at the time, we didn’t know anything about Humanist Ceremonies or that there was an alternative option to a registrar ceremony for our wedding.
And so, we had a perfectly practical wedding ceremony with a registrar, we chose our music and had a couple of readings. We exchanged rings and agreed to take each other in marriage.
You might think there was nothing wrong with this and in many ways there wasn’t.
However,
We viewed this as the transactional bit before the fun really started, something we had to do rather than the most meaningful and significant part of the day.
I can’t remember what exactly we said but it certainly wasn’t personal. We hadn’t spoken with the registrar to share our story or why we wanted to be married. Our names were simply inserted into a standard template.
Thankfully we had some pretty awesome speeches that picked up this slack but it did strike me that the ceremony should be the most personal part of the day and it most definitely wasn’t…
The registrar asked us in the moment before the ceremony started if we wanted to use middle names, we hadn’t had chance to discuss this previously as he was essentially a stranger we were meeting for the first time on our wedding day.
I didn’t realise it at the time but my journey to becoming a Humanist celebrant had already begun…
"If you don’t want to look back on your special day with any of these feelings, then a Humanist ceremony could well be right for you."
What is Humanism and what is a Humanist ceremony?
My first introduction to Humanism and Humanist ceremonies was actually through the funeral ceremony of my Husband’s step Grandad several years ago.
I had heard of Humanist ceremonies before but never experienced one personally and I remember being struck by how beautifully personal it was. It felt like it really was all about him and his life and I recall learning things that, even as part of his family, I had never known.
I don’t remember much about what the celebrant leading the proceedings looked or sounded like but I do recall how at ease she made the family feel and how her tone, body language and words were pitched so perfectly. It made me think of one of my favourite quotes:
“People will forget what you said, people will forget what you did, but people will never forget how you made them feel.” Maya Angelou
This is something I now take forward into my own practice. I am all about the feels. I am quite happy to keep out of the limelight- I will always do my best to coordinate with any colour scheme and, wherever possible, I will stand to the side in your ceremony so I never photo bomb those all important shots like the first kiss!
In short, you won’t choose me if you want a strikingly bold or flamboyant celebrant and that’s ok. I do know plenty of celebrants who absolutely rock this look and do a fab job at it and, if this is more your style, I would always be happy to point you towards someone to whom may be better suited with no hard feelings!
What I promise you will get from me is a meaningful and memorable ceremony where all eyes are on you and your celebration.
To hear directly from my couples, check out my 5 star reviews.
My Values &
what is important to me!
After this first encounter with Humanism and Humanist ceremonies, I started to look more into what Humanism was all about and I had a bit of an ‘ah ha’ moment when I realised I share my personal core values with Humanism and I am, in fact, a Humanist. You can find a fun quiz to see how Humanist you are here and find out more about what Humanism is by clicking this link.
My key values of connection and compassion, drive me to foster a sense of belonging for all, ensuring everyone feels welcome and included. This is something you will see in my ceremonies as well as in my own life from the way I raise my two young children to the active role I take in my local community where I live near Leeds, West Yorkshire.
I am also a firm believer that this is the only life we have and so we should enjoy it and live our best lives in the here and now.
For me, there is no better way to do this than by celebrating all the key milestones in life. And doing it in style is where I come in! For a Humanist believing that this is our one and only life also means that we do what is right for best for others and our planet without hope or expectation of a reward in another life.
“Think for yourself, act for everyone.”
Humanism is a belief system, not a religion. That said even though Humanism is non-religious, it is not anti-religious and whether you come from a traditionally religious family or you will have guests at your ceremony with strong religious beliefs, I promise that I will ensure that they feel as equally included, involved and invested in your ceremony.
Everyone is welcome at a Humanist ceremony and a Humanist ceremony celebrates the uniqueness of every love and every family whatever that looks like.
How did I become a Celebrant?
I always thought from that first Humanist ceremony experience, that being a Humanist celebrant would be something I would love to do myself one day and I am now delighted to be living my best life doing just that! I am trained in both Weddings and Namings by Humanists Ceremonies who have a fantastic training programme with incredibly high quality standards. This also means that I am part of a wider network of Humanist Celebrants in Yorkshire and nationally with regular opportunities for continuous professional development including peer observations as well as support should the worst happen and I am not able to lead your ceremony on the day (more on that in my FAQs here).
I pride myself on building up a connection with my couples and families such that I become an extended part of your life and network. I stay in touch with many of my couples and families and have led multiple ceremonies for the same couples/ families which is the best kind of testament to this. Essentially you get me as your friend and Celebrant for life (if you will have me!).
Your Best Life Celebrant is for life not just for one day!
If you want to find out more about Humanism and how it links to living your best life, check out this video below: