Jump to Secular and Humanist Funeral Officiants

Jump to Secular Funerals and Memorials: Information and Sample Ceremonies

Professional Grief Therapy or Counseling

The Secular Therapist Project
If you are seeking professional grief support, we recommend The Secular Therapist Project.  This project, which provides confidential online referrals to professional counselors and therapists, many of whom are trained and experienced in grief, trauma, and other related fields.  While the project may not have a therapist listed in your area, many of the professionals listed will make phone appointments as well as office appointments.  All of these professionals are committed to providing purely secular services to the clients referred to them by the Secular Therapist Project.

Recommendations for Theist Chaplainson Providing Secular Grief Counseling for Nontheists
The Military Association of Atheists and Freethinkers, in collaboration in consultation with Grief Beyond Belief, provides these brief recommendations for chaplains providing counseling for non theists who are experiencing grief or trauma.  If chaplaincy is being made available to you but there is no Humanist chaplain available, please consider giving your chaplain this set of recommendations.

Secular and Humanist Funeral Officiants

International

Celebrant Foundation and Institute: Celebrant Locator
Listing of celebrants trained to create individualized funeral and memorial ceremonies.  While the celebrants themselves are not necessarily secular, their code of ethics requires that their own beliefs not play a role in the ceremonies they lead.

Canada

Ontario Humanist Society Officiants
Directory of Humanist officiants in the province of Ontario, organized by region.

Humanist Association of Toronto: Humanist Ceremonies
List of Humanist officiants affiliated with the Humanist Association of Toronto.

Cathy Oliver
email: cathydoliver@gmail.com
phone: 705-888-8239
website: www.humanistcelebrations.ca

New Zealand

Lynda Hannah
email: info@livinglegacies.co.nz
phone: 03 528 5220
website: livinglegacies.co.nz

United Kingdom

British Humanist Association: Find a Celebrant
For those in the UK, the British Humanist Society offers a geographic directory of Humanist funeral celebrants.

Steve Emmett, Humanist Celebrant
British Humanist Association
North and East Yorkshire, The Humber
email: celebrant@humanistfunerals.org
phone: 01653 658799 / 07804450742
website: humanistfunerals.org/

United States

Center for Inquiry: Find a Secular Celebrant
Listing of trained Secular Celebrants organized by state.

Humanist Society: Humanist Celebrant State Listing
Humanist Celebrant State Listing organized geographically.

Arkansas

Jaime Goswick, Humanist Clergy Member
Northwest Arkansas
email: imaginevows@gmail.com
phone: 479-414-1413

California

Jonathan Figdor, Humanist Chaplain
The Humanist Community at Stanford
Palo Alto
email: jfigdor@gmail.com
phone: 914-954-3276

Steven Gibson, CFI Certified Secular Celebrant
Southern California
email: steven@stevengibson.org
phone: 562-900-2834
website: stevengibson.org/Celebrant/

Mark W. Thomas, CFI Certified Secular Celebrant
Mountain View
email: m_w_thomas@sbcglobal.net
phone: 650-906-1095

Colorado

Tim Bailey, Humanist Celebrant
email: info@celebratingtimes.com / tcsgrv@gmail.com
phone: 303-921-0641
website: celebratingtimes.com/funerals.html

District of Columbia

Jason Torpy, Humanist Celebrant
President, Military Association of Atheists & Freethinkers
email: jtorpy@militaryatheists.org
phone: 202-656-6223
website: www.militaryatheists.org
Also serves Delaware, Maryland and Virginia.

Florida

Joe Beck, Humanist Chaplain
Humanists of the Treasure Coast
email: Joebeck@humtc.com
phone: 772-934-6167

Illinois

Rabbi Adam Chalom, PhD
Kol Hadash Humanistic Congregation, Lincolnshire, IL
email: info@kolhadash.com
phone: 847-602-4500
website: kolhadash.com/celebrations/celebrate-life

Indiana

Cheri Harris, CFI Certified Secular Celebrant
Central Indiana
email: cahmyf@gmail.com
phone: 317-255-5881

Reba Boyd Wooden
Director, CFI Secular Celebrant Program
Indianapolis
email: indy@centerforinquiry.net
phone: 317-423-0710
phone: 317-797-5892

Nancy L. Zummack, Life-Cycle Celebrant (certified by the Celebrant Foundation and Institute)
Northern Indiana
email: crafted4u@nancyzummack.com
phone: 260-479-7169
phone: 260-723-6097

Kentucky

John Kiel, CFI Certified Secular Celebrant
Louisville, KY area
email: jkiel77@gmail.com
phone: 317-402-4301

Maryland

Mark Nebo, Humanist Celebrant
email: marknebo@gmail.com
phone: 202-374-6770
website: www.besecular.com
Also serves Northern Virginia and Washington, DC.

Massachusetts

Megan Barber, Life-Cycle Celebrant (certified by the Celebrant Foundation and Institute)
Western Massachusetts and beyond
email: meganbarber@gmail.com
phone: 413-320-2975
website: meganbarberceremonies.com/funerals-memorials/ 

Greg M. Epstein
Humanist Chaplain at Harvard University
email: info@harvardhumanist.org
phone: 617-495-5986
website: harvardhumanist.org

Dina Stander, Life-Cycle Celebrant (certified by the Celebrant Foundation and Institute)
email: dina@deanbrook.org
phone: 413-259-9125/413-237-1300
website: dinastander.com/Welcome.html
Available for travel throughout New England.

Michigan

Jeff Falick
Culturally Jewish or fully secular funerals
The Birmingham Temple, Farmington Hills, MI
email: jfalick@yahoo.com
phone: 248-477-1410
website: www.theatheistrabbi.com

Minnesota

Dale Handeen, Humanist Chaplain
Minneapolis/St. Paul
phone: 612-221-8594

Audrey Kingstrom, Humanist Celebrant
Minneapolis/St. Paul
email: akingstrom@comcast.net
phone: 952-924-1039

Missouri

Dr. Annalise Fonza, Humanist Celebrant
phone: 816-237-8793
website: humanist-society.org/humanist-celebrant-state-listing/#Georgia

Nevada

Raúl Martínez, Humanist Celebrant
Las Vegas
phone: 702-807-8343

New Jersey

Dorry Bless, Life-Cycle Celebrant
email: dorry@circleoflifeceremonies.com
phone: 908-962-0642
website: circleoflifeceremonies.com
Also serves metropolitan New York and Eastern Pennsylvania.

Amanda Knief, Humanist Celebrant
email: Aknief@msn.com
phone: 202-495-9974
Also serves New York, Eastern Pennsylvania, Delaware and Iowa.

New Mexico

Marilee Harrison, Humanist Celebrant
Santa Fe
email: CelebrantMarilee@gmail.com
phone: 608-772-5122
website: celebrantmarilee.com

New York

Roy Bates, Humanist Chaplain
Eastern, Western and Northern New York State
email: humanistchaplain@hotmail.com
phone: 315-891-3890

Kim Kirkley, Life-Cycle Celebrant (certified by the Celebrant Foundation and Institute)
New York and beyond
email: Kim@ourelegantceremony.com
phone: 718-753-1993
website: www.lifestoryfuneralnyc.com

Rabbi Peter Schweitzer
The City Congregation for Humanistic Judaism, New York, NY
email: rabbi@citycongregation.org
phone: 212-213-1002
website: secularjewishceremonies.net/funerals.html

Christopher Shelley, Life-Cycle Celebrant (certified by the Celebrant Foundation and Institute)
New York City
email: christopherfrostshelley@gmail.com
phone: 718-222-0110

North Carolina

Han Hills, Humanist Celebrant
North Carolina and South Carolina
email: contact@leapofhumanity.com
phone: 910-297-0321
website: www.leapofhumanity.com

Ohio

August Brunsman, Humanist Celebrant
email: august@lucidcarbon.com
phone: 614-596-7940

Chris Kenney, CFI Certified Secular Celebrant
email: info@secularcelebrant.com
phone: 513-910-8870

Oregon

Paul Andor Nagy, CFI Certified Secular Celebrant
Portland Area
email: paul.andor.nagy@msn.com
phone: 503-775-6186

Pennsylvania

Margaret Downey, CFI Certified Secular Celebrant
email: margaret@ftsociety.org
phone (office): 610-793-2737
phone (cell): 610-357-9432
website: www.secular-celebrations.com/index.php/life-s-end

Tennessee

Aleta Ledendecker, Humanist Celebrant
East Tennessee
email: aledendecker@me.com
website: secularcelebrations.com

Texas

Mike Aus
Houston
phone: 832-493-2174
website: www.secular-celebrations.com/index.php/life-s-end

Victoria Gettman, Humanist Celebrant
San Antonio
email:gettmanv@gmail.com
phone: 443-510-9098

Washington

Rich Lyons, Secular Officiant
Greater Seattle Area
email: rich@livingafterfaith.com

Secular Funerals and Memorials: Information and Sample Ceremonies

Freedom From Religion Foundation: Secular Memorials and Funerals Without God:
Sample service and suggested readings.

Secular Seasons: Secular Funerals and Memorials
Advice on ceremony content and finding a secular celebrant.

Funeral Consumers Alliance
A nonprofit organization dedicated to protecting a consumer’s right to choose a meaningful, dignified, affordable funeral.  The website is full of useful, easily-understood information for helping you plan a funeral and not be taken advantage of while grieving.

Green Cemeteries in the USA and Canada
A list of cemeteries that provide green (no embalming, minimal environmental impact, biodegradable materials) burial.