Bringing Death to Life – Free Entry
Saturday 27th August 2011
All Saints Arts and Youth Centre, Friars Walk Lewes BN7 2LE
Doors are open from 12 noon until 6pm
Bringing Death to Life
ARKA Original Funerals of Brighton opened its new office in Lansdown Place, Lewes in July this year, with the ceremonies and celebrant company, Light on Life.
ARKA Original Funerals and Light on Life are recognised leading experts in natural death and green funerals and between them have many years of experience and insight.
Our joint event is a stimulating and vibrant look at death and dying, how it is an integral part of our community and how we all can manage the process with dignity for the families and friends involved and respect to our environment at the same time.
ARKA Original Funerals and Light on Life want to open up the mysterious world of funerals and give people the opportunity to get information, advice and, from this day in particular, take a look at how we can celebrate someone’s life through the empowerment of the friends and family who may be left behind.
On the day we will be running workshops on:
What is a ‘green funeral’?
Cara Mair, Director of ARKA Original Funerals
12.30pm (1 hour approximately)
Cara will be leading a discussion about her work in the alternative / green funeral world. She will be discussing how ARKA developed, the work that it does and most importantly answering any questions about the funeral ‘industry’ that you may have.
Planning a funeral – taking control
Julie Gill from ARKA Original Funerals
1.30pm (1 hour approximately)
Your Perfect Funeral – what would you want?
To be buried under an oak tree?
Have your ashes scattered in your garden?
A string quartet?
Six white horses pulling your coffin in a glass coach?
Take some time to imagine your perfect funeral. There are so many ways to create the funeral that suits you, and more options than you probably ever knew. You can have fun thinking about transport, coffins, your favourite music and your final resting place, and hear about some of the amazing choices other people have made too.
Julie from Arka Original Funerals will be encouraging you to let your imagination flow and to follow your heart in this honest, adventurous and playful session.
Enhancing your experience of living and dying
Hermoine Elliott from Living Well Dying Well
2.30pm (1.5 hours approximately)
How can we maintain our wellbeing and quality of life, up until the end of life? What’s important to us? So few of us take the time to be clear, make choices or be pro-active about our wishes. We will create a safe and supportive environment, working alongside you to show how to create the conditions that would best support you and your loved ones through the journey of life and death.
Celebrating the person who has died
Peter Murphy from Light on Life
4pm (1 hour approximately)
The conversation will cover Preparation for a Ceremony; Decorating a beautiful ceremony space ; Words, choosing poetry and prose and ways of writing the Eulogy; Music, for reflection, the songs we sing. Ritual.
Peter will encourage you to follow your heart to create a ceremony full of meaning for you and your loved one. With the right help and support it can be a wonderful thing to do.
‘A ritual is a journey of the heart, which should lead us into the inner realm of the psyche and ultimately, into that of the soul, the ground of our being. Rituals, if performed with respect passion and devotion, will enhance our desire and strengthen our capacity to live. New rituals will evolve but the ancient rituals and liturgies are also capable of rediscovery as we learn to make them our own…… James- Roose Evans.
To Book Your Place at a Workshop - please email info@arkafunerals.co.uk to book and guarantee your place on any the workshops, or alternatively, turn up as early as you can on the day to book your place and meet experts from the green funeral world who will be on hand to give information and advice.
We will have demonstrations from a leading willow coffin manufacturer and we will also have lovely food and refreshments to buy.
Free Entry and Doors are open from 12 noon until 6pm
Please e-mail us at info@arkafunerals.co.uk for more information and to book a place on any of the workshops
ARKA Original Funerals – Open Days
Our recent Open Day was a fantastic success.
Thank you to everyone who came along to learn more about our unique and original funeral service, to take away information about local woodland burial options, or simply to look at and touch the wide range of natural coffins and urns that we offer.
We are planning more events in the coming months and if you would like to know the dates as they are set, please click here, e-mail your contact details and we’ll add you to our mailing list.
Looking forward to seeing you at our next event!