funeral celebrant in Maidstone Kent - Marc Lemezma

Funeral Celebrant in Maidstone Kent

Celebrating Life with personalised funeral services and unique tributes

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Funeral Celebrant from Maidstone Kent

Marc Lemezma

Funeral Celebrant in Maidstone Marc Lemezma - Image of funeral celebrant

Funeral Celebrant Marc Lemezma is a member of and insured through the Association of Independent Celebrants and was trained and certified by the Academy of Professional Celebrants.

Celebrant Kent - AOIC and APC Logo

Remembering Loved Ones & Celebrating Lives

When a loved one passes away, it is important to find the right way to commemorate and celebrate their life.

With years of experience in delivering funeral services, Marc Lemezma is dedicated to helping families, and loved ones celebrate the life of their departed with dignity, grace, and beauty.

At a time of loss, planning a funeral can be overwhelming and stressful. Marc offers personalised and compassionate services that reflect your needs and preferences. Whether you’re looking for a traditional funeral service or a unique celebration of life, Marc will work with you to create a ceremony that honours the life of your loved one and reflects their spirit and personality.

As a skilled and experienced funeral celebrant, he delivers beautiful and heartfelt eulogies that capture the essence of your loved one’s life. Every life is worth celebrating, and Marc is committed to helping you create a service that celebrates your loved one’s life beautifully.

Based in Maidstone, Kent, Marc offers his services to families and individuals across the county. Whether you’re looking for a funeral celebrant in Maidstone, Ashford, Gravesend, Tonbridge, Sevenoaks, or any of the surrounding areas, he is here to help.

With his experience, expertise, and dedication, Marc is here to help you celebrate the life of your loved one beautifully.

 


Creating and delivering a tribute that truly honours and celebrates your loved one’s life is at the heart of what I do; I will take time to get to know the person who has passed on so we can create a truly fitting memorial.

At some funerals, a family member or friend may wish to say a few words; perhaps recite a poem; or read a passage from a book. I will help guide them and be by their side on the day to support, or take over should they need it.

Meeting With You

I will arrange to meet you, either in-person or on-line/phone
so that we can explore what kind of service is appropriate for your loved one, and meets your wishes.

Confirming Arrangements

I will use the information we discuss to draft a service, which I will email for your approval. I’ll also liaise with your funeral arranger as necessary.

On The Day

I will lead and conduct the funeral service for your loved one. I’ll also be ready to assist family members or friends wishing to speak. Following the service, I will send a printed copy of the ceremony.

Other Services

If you are planning to inter or scatter the ashes of your loved one later, I am available to help by saying a few words to mark the occasion. If you are planning a memorial event I can assist too. Simply ask.

Other Support

There are many useful websites offering information on bereavement and practical arrangements following a loved one’s passing. Click here to see some I have found useful.

Celebrant Marc

Celebrating the life of your loved one is at the heart of my work.

Writing and delivering words that move, inspire, motivate and even entertain whilst bringing comfort has been my life for over 20 years.

In 2000, following a globetrotting career in IT, I began a new life writing, performing, speaking and coaching others. Since then, I have written and published eight books; helped hundreds of people through counselling and therapy; spoken at events worldwide; entertained and motivated thousands.

In 2018 I first considered training as a funeral celebrant; when my son Josh was diagnosed with leukaemia, those plans went on hold. I delivered the eulogy at his funeral and was thus inspired to take formal funeral celebrant training.

However you choose to commemorate the life of your loved one, I aim to capture their essence in a personalised tribute.

A tribute that uniquely celebrates and honours their life, one you, your family and friends will remember forever.

It was an honour to speak at Josh’s funeral; now, it is a privilege to help other families find the right way to celebrate and commemorate the lives of their loved ones.

Born and bred in Kent, I have lived with my wife in Maidstone for over 36 years.

Funeral Celebrant in Maidstone Kent Marc Lemezma

Funeral Poetry

One of the key elements of a funeral is the reading of poems.

These help you express feelings and thoughts about your loved one, ideas about life and loss and help you through the grieving process.

To assist you in choosing suitable poems for your loved one’s funeral, Marc has recorded a large selection of different types and styles of poems. Many of these are original and have been written by Marc upon the request of families.

Here you will find his latest poem, but do check the funeral poetry page for many more choices, or visit his YouTube Channel for more.

Making Arrangements

How do you request and book a funeral celebrant?

If, after visiting my website or having seen me lead a funeral service, you feel that I would deliver a suitable tribute for your loved one, make contact by email or telephone on 07904 262138 so that we can discuss arrangements. I will work closely with your Funeral Director “behind the scenes” to create a fitting service that truly celebrates the deceased person’s life.

Alternatively, the Arranger at your Funeral Director or Undertaker can contact me to engage me for your loved one’s funeral. They will collect my fee from you and pay me in due course. If you choose to book me directly, we will agree a fee based on your requirement. This covers meeting with you, writing the service and conducting it on the day. I’ll also provide a permanent copy you may keep as a memento.

Please contact me to discuss any other services you may require.

Planning The Perfect Tribute

Once the date for your loved one’s funeral has been confirmed, I will contact you to arrange a meeting with you and other family members. Currently, this meeting will be by telephone or online using Zoom.

This is an opportunity for me to learn about their character, the key people, and events that made their lives. We can also discuss any wishes for the funeral style and theme; this could include any music choice, readings, and if appropriate prayers. If family members or friends wish to speak, I can advise on appropriate words so that we can create a fitting tribute.

Usually, this meeting will last about an hour and is very informal and relaxed.

Funeral celebrant Marc meeting with you to discuss arrangements

Bereavement Support

When we lose someone, there is a natural cycle of grief which we tend to follow. It is something we experience in our own unique way. Occasionally some of us may need a little help to see a path through.

You can find lots of help with bereavement and grief online. Often, simply talking to a friend helps the healing process. The NHS has lots of resources, talking to your GP or Nurse is a good start. The most important thing is to ask!

If your loved one was cared for by a hospice, they will have support. If they suffered from a particular disease, you might find a specific charity related to that illness who can help.

Here are some other resources you might find useful.

What to do when Someone Dies

The UK Government has a very useful page guiding you through what to do when someone in your family dies.

Bereavement Advice Centre
Over and above dealing with the shock of bereavement, there are many practical matters to deal with.  Everything from notifying friends and relatives, to dealing with probate and financial arrangements. The BAC website has lots of very useful information and guidance to help you through a difficult time.
Anthony Nolan Bereavement Insight
The advice on this website has a special resonance for me. In 2020 I lost my son Josh to leukaemia, he was just 27. Understanding why his transplant was not successful was a key part of dealing with my grief. Over and above the support they offer, Anthony Nolan are an amazing charity, well worth your attention.

After the Funeral?

Your celebrant has another role to play.

A few days after a cremation service has taken place, you will be able to collect the remains or ashes of your loved one from the Funeral Director.

You then have many choices; you can keep them with you at home, or perhaps you would like to scatter them at a special place or inter them in a vault or the garden of remembrance.

Many families wish to have a small ceremony to mark the scattering or interment of ashes. I can assist by helping create a short service and attending to say a few words to help make the event a positive special memory and to create more of a sense of occasion.

If I had the privilege of conducting your loved one’s funeral service, I am happy to attend locally to say a few words at no additional cost.

If you’d like a longer memorial piece (or I was not at their funeral), I will create a small service to make that important day feel more memorable and unique.

I’ll include a memento copy of the service in a keepsake folder.
Ask for more details
Interment of ashes ceremony

Testimonials & Feedback

For Funeral Celebrant Marc

Hi Marc, I just wanted to say a massive thank you for such a beautiful service all family and friends commented on how beautiful the service was. As you know more than I do these things are very difficult but the way you captured my sisters life and your compassion made a difficult day much easier

KM – Sellindge

‘Marc, just wanted to say thank you once again for Mums ceremony today. It was beautiful and I’m sure she would have been so pleased with it. The family all said how lovely it was, so thank you for mums lovely send off. 

Testimonial for Funeral Celebrant Marc from

LR – Chatham

Marc, I wanted to thank you for all of your help with Dad’s funeral. Your support in advance of the service and your delivery of the service was fantastic and sympathetic throughout.

During the afternoon, we received so much feedback from friends and family about how perfect the service was. One particular piece of unsolicited feedback that I wanted to share with you is that it didn’t feel like you were a stranger telling us about Dad from a third party perspective, but rather that it felt like you were one of us, helping to lead the storytelling and celebration.

Testimonial for Funeral Celebrant Marc from

SH – Maidstone

Dear Marc, Thank you for all your help and guidance in arranging Dad’s funeral, both before and on the day. Your calm presence was so reassuring and helped us to get through a very difficult time.

Testimonial for Funeral Celebrant Marc from

LB – Bearsted

Marc very kindly took the time to listen to my family’s comments on how the celebration should be, made notes and checked with us all that we were happy.
On the Day Marc delivered in fine style, my Father would have been Proud of his Celebration of LIFE!

Testimonial for Funeral Celebrant Marc from

DV – London

Marc, thank you so very much for being our Celebrant.

You were absolutely amazing.

Everybody who attended said how you managed to talk about Dad as if you’d known him for years and how when you were talking about him they were nodding in agreement.

Thank you so much. If a funeral could be a happy time then Dad would have loved it all.

Testimonial for Funeral Celebrant Marc from

CD – Gillingham Kent

Marc, I want to express our thanks and gratitude to you for the truly wonderful service and tribute to dad.

We were not looking forward to the service at all, however, in the end, it went extremely well and I felt proud rather than sad. Many people have commented on how perfect the tribute to dad was.

Expressed in your words and format, it was indeed, a real tribute to my dad.

Thanks again Marc, for all that you have done to allow us to remember my dad in the best way possible.

Testimonial to Funeral Celebrant Marc from

IW – Purley, Surrey

To Marc, what a great guy.
Everybody said, “how did I do it?”, with a lot of help from Marc.
From the first time the family met you, I knew things were going to go better. Better to make what is a very sad day into “Tony’s Day. How he and we would have wanted it.
Thank you, for being you in all you say & do.

Testimonial to Funeral Celebrant Marc from

MP – Maidstone

 

Thank you very much for leading my Father’s funeral service today. Everybody commented on how lovely the service was and I was asked if you knew Dad, so you captured him very well. The service was seamless and full of lovely little touching moments, especially acknowledging the webcam when you mentioned our overseas family.

Testimonial to Funeral Celebrant Marc from

AS – Beckenham

Dear Marc – I just wanted to say a big thank you for the lovely memorial service you gave for my father  today. When you spoke of him it was if you knew him personally. You really captured my father’s personality.  Also, thank you for the copy of the tribute, such a nice thing to be able to treasure. Thank you again.

Testimonial to Funeral Celebrant Marc from

DM – Burham

Having to make a short speech at my Mother’s funeral was daunting. Marc was extremely supportive giving me sound advice and guidance. He helped me work out not just what to say but how to say it with meaning and how to keep some control over my emotions too. Thanks Marc we were able to give Mum a great send-off.

Testimonial to Funeral Celebrant Marc from

BG – Sevenoaks

Marc, can’t thank you enough for today at my Dad’s service,  you were excellent.  Just wish you had done my mum’s service before,  it felt so rushed compared to your superb showing today. You are a really caring gentleman, highly recommended.

Testimonial to Funeral Celebrant Marc from

TT – Maidstone

Marc, many thanks for all you have done for me and W’s children to help us get through the last few weeks and to celebrate his life.

Many family and friends commented on how wonderfully well you spoke and we were very grateful you were there to speak for us.

Bless you. Thank you! X

Testimonial to Funeral Celebrant Marc from

AB – France

Marc I just wanted to say a big THANK YOU!

Everyone commented on what was a really lovely service you gave for dad yesterday. You read it so well with a bit of humour and it was a heart-warming ceremony. We are all very grateful to you and I am sure he was looking down and thinking to himself ” They chose the best man for the job!”

Testimonial to Funeral Celebrant Marc from

TS – Hollingbourne

Hi Marc, we just wanted to thank you for making the service so special, just how Mum and we wanted it to be.

Everyone who attended said how brilliant you were and lots of people thought you knew Mum!
Those who watched online said how nice it was to still be a part of the day. Thanks so much again!
 

Testimonial to Funeral Celebrant Marc from

PJ  – Petts Wood

Marc delivers and truly professional but also personal service. He worked closely with us to create a service that really encapsulated the our Dad’s life.

His attention to detail meant that the nuances of Dad’s life were not lost in a chronology of achievements or important dates, but still managed to touch upon the key events in their life.

Marc’s delivery is clear, but natural, with a rhythm and dynamic that feels more conversational and personal than it does a rehearsed speech.
Added to this Marc is punctual, organised and easy to work with – all ideas were listened to but advice and guidance given where it was needed.

Testimonial to Funeral Celebrant Marc from

CW – Durham

Hi Marc, I just wanted to say thank you for today. As sad as it was, you helped make it a nice memory. You are an excellent speaker and really get the story across to your audience.
 
To pass on a few comments: My brother in Spain, said “A beautiful service and the orator was brilliant”, My son in Denmark, said “M had a lovely send-off”, and my cousin emailed to say that it was very interesting hearing about his life. I really felt you captured the essence of Mick and got that across to everyone.
 
Thank you once again for doing my Big Bruv proud!

Testimonial to Funeral Celebrant Marc from

AC – Aylesford

Hi Marc, thank you so much for today and all your help. Everybody said what a lovely service you gave. Also thank you for the booklet of the service you have for my Mum. Once again thank you so much you made the day memorable and I know my dad would be proud.

Testimonial to Funeral Celebrant Marc from

TM – Kent

Dear Marc – Just to say another thanks for today. Everyone from the small party really appreciated your presence in my mum’s life celebration.

There aren’t many people who can do this well, so I feel so fortunate that mum had you to see her off.

It was so right. Just enough recognition of grief mixed with humour. We all headed off with smiles.  And my aunt later said you turned what was a dreaded event into something to remember. Thank you!

Testimonial to Funeral Celebrant Marc from

LJ – London

Thank you for the truly wonderful eulogy you delivered at J’s funeral recently. Everyone felt it was a great tribute to him. You perfectly captured his character and added just the right amount of humour, yet kept it meaningful and emotional. I received so many comments from people who were there or watching online saying how well it summed him up.

Testimonial to Funeral Celebrant Marc from

ES – Maidstone

Hi Marc, we all just want to say a big thank you for making yesterday as perfect as it could have been.

Your tribute to Dad was amazing.

So many people asked whether you actually knew Dad which is the greatest compliment.

Thank you once again.

Testimonial to Funeral Celebrant Marc from

PR – Maidstone

 

 

I would like to express my thanks for your help and advice during a very difficult time. I have had many discussions about the service, and they are unanimous that it was perfect; your part in that was pivotal, so I can only again express my and the rest of the family’s thanks for that.

Testimonial to Funeral Celebrant Marc from

IG – Loose

 

 

Thank you Marc for the wonderful manner in which you handled my wife’s funeral service.

I have received so many compliments from family and friends across the world including Australia.

You should feel justifiably proud.

Testimonial to Funeral Celebrant Marc from

AB – Harrietsham

 

 

Thank you, Marc, for your diligent work in really capturing the essence of our Dad for his funeral service. He was a complex and original character, and you created a service that reflected him exactly.

You took the time to listen to and incorporate the many aspects of his life, family and friends into a perfect service.

We had so many comments from those who both attended in person and those who watched online saying that it really did capture him as a person.

For those who had to watch the webcast, your video on participating online was invaluable; thank you so very much.

Testimonial to Funeral Celebrant Marc from

LF – Greenhithe

 

Thank you very much for yesterday Marc, you were so comforting and reassuring to us. Everyone enjoyed the eulogy , it brought back a few memories for them. I think mum would have loved it! I. We’re all exhausted today so taking it easy. Thank you once again, you have been wonderful to us , lots of love x x

Testimonial to Funeral Celebrant Marc from

JC – Ashford

 

Hi Marc, we would like to thank you for your time and effort you put in re B’s funeral. We truly could not have done it without you. Your commitment and input was way beyond what we could have hoped for. Thank you from the bottom of our hearts. You are a godsend!

Testimonial to Funeral Celebrant Marc from

M&M – Maidstone

Marc, thank you for giving such a beautiful service yesterday. I have received so many texts from his family and friends abroad remarking on how the words you felt so appropriate for him. In particular your poetry seemed to capture his essence perfectly.

Testimonial to Funeral Celebrant Marc from

CM – Maidstone

 

Hi Marc, thank you so much for acting as celebrant for my Mum’s funeral on Monday. Mum would have wanted it to be right, all went well and she would have been pleased.

Testimonial to Funeral Celebrant Marc from

GH – West Malling

 

Marc spoke at the funeral for the son of my friend. A young man who had passed away far too early. He was a cheeky lad not without his problems who was loved by all. Marc took the story of this youngster’s life and made a wonderful tribute full of humour balanced with dignity. It was a proper fitting tribute.

Testimonial to Funeral Celebrant Marc from

PF – Chatham

 

Contact Marc

Please do get in touch to discuss planning a memorial service, or if you have any questions concerning a funeral I am working on for you or your family. I usually aim to respond within half a day during normal working hours.  To email Marc please use the form below or message directly at marc@lemezma.com

 

Email Marc

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