 Many thanks to Meg for providing her profile.
Meg L'Estrange Melbourne Civil Celebrant since 1998
Authorised Marriage Celebrant - Appointed September 200
I am Meg L'Estrange, a celebrant for all occasions, a former teacher and school counsellor, and a family woman with three adult sons.
While I was teaching I experienced the death of my mother. When my dad had died two years earlier, she was so distressed by the funeral he was given, which was totally inappropriate for him, that she said, 'Let no man of the cloth come near me when I die!' The only alternative I could come up with was to conduct her funeral ceremony myself. Her friends were very moved by this and I found the experience quite cathartic. I realised there was a need for non-religious celebrants to provide ceremonies that really acknowledged the deceased with dignity and respect.
That was in the mid-seventies. Since then the community has embraced the role of civil celebrants and I was there, ready to enrol, when a graduate diploma course for celebrants was initiated. I was in the first batch of graduates from Monash University in 1998 and i have been delighted with my challenging but rewarding career change ever since. My focus has broadened greatly from funerals since I have seen the huge potential, indeed need, out there for more celebration of people's milestones and achievements.
I have cherished being there for people close to me, to be a significant part of their celebrations of life and death. This gives me insight into the emotional impact of these events for members of the wider community who seek my services.
 I recall as particularly rewarding one of my first ceremonies, a memorial service held at my former school for a student I had taught who had been killed in a car accident., then a later a garden dedication ceremony at my children's school in honour of students and ataff who had died while members of that school community.I was excited at realising that a marriage in a quiet corner of a restaurant at a table for the couple, their two witnesses and myself could be just as joyous as at a venue with 100 guests.
I have ventured into learning phrases, particularly the words of welcome, in other lanuages to use in ceremonies where there is a strong presence of a particular nationality. I have tackled Japanese, Chinese, Hebrew, German, Danish, French. A recent highlight was to have a visual and sound link to the bride's family in Russia. When I asked her mother, in Russian, whether she presented her daughter to be married to the groom, her smile adorned the screen as she answered with an emphatic 'I do' and the guests in the chapel cheered.
I love meeting people and discussing what they want then drafting a ceremony to fulfill their needs and desires. I am good with ideas and suggesting readings to suit their circumstances and they usually come with ideas too, so we toss them around until we come up with something to suit..
This means that every ceremony I do is different, being individually crafted.
Meg L'Estrange CMC
Civil Marriage Celebrant
Eltham North Victoria
More about Meg: http://meglestrange.com.au
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