In the last few days of the year, let’s celebrate winners – this time the Best Green Funeral Directors award, which went to Gordon and Alison Tulley of Respect Green Burials.
This was awarded by the Association of Green Funeral Directors at the Good Funeral Awards.
We spoke to Gordon and Alison about their award and the work they do.
Q: Why do you think you won the Best Green Funeral Directors award?
We allow our families to be as involved as they wish from choice of coffin, readings, music and graveside ‘furniture’ and even to leading the whole ceremony. We do our utmost to ensure that everything is just right for them on the day. We offer guidance and support without overbearance and this seems to be the way that our families like it to be so that they don’t feel pressured into having a funeral service they don’t want.
Q: Why do you do the job you do?
We feel this job is so fulfilling. Losing someone close is the most terrible thing that can happen and if we can take some of the pressure away and make the families feel safe and secure and feel that they created the funeral service that reflected their loved one then our job is done. The ultimate accolade is to organise, run and deliver a funeral “as if you were not even there” and simply blend in with the congregation.
Q: What are your top 5 tips to help people get the best send-off?
- Listen
- Understand the pressure others are under
- Take care over every aspect
- Be professional
- Show respect
Q: What would be your own ideal send-off?
To leave my friends and family smiling as they leave the park and saying that the service definitely reflected me and my personality.
Funeral wishes
Make sure s0meone knows your funeral wishes. It’s free, easy and fun to do using Final Fling’s Life Planning Tools. Have a go over the Christmas hols. You’ll see what we mean.
Marketplace
Find Respect Green Burials and other Funeral Directors in our Marketplace.
About the Good Funeral Awards
The Good Funeral Awards celebrate the achievements of practitioners who, through a combination of high professionalism and human kindness, enable bereaved people to create great funerals. The awards are conferred by judges appointed by the Good Funeral Guide, a not-for-profit consumer advice and advocacy organisation.
Charles Cowling, director of the Good Funeral Guide, said: “This is where we get to shine a spotlight on those many unsung heroes who work so hard for the bereaved and who can be so easily be overlooked. It’s where we say to them: ‘Thank you for being there for us for the time when we shall need you’. The world needs to know that some of the nicest people in Britain work in the funeral industry, helping to make a sad time so much less of an ordeal. Gordon and Alison Tulley, the AGFD’s Green Funeral Directors of the Year are forward-thinking, groundbreaking, creative people whose commitment to beautiful yet affordable funerals has made them a formidable force for change.”