About

My Story

In 2017, I took an anti-racism yoga teacher training that opened my mind to new ideas of what could be considered sacred.

In 2020, I left the high-control, fundamentalist, patriarchal white church that I was raised in and started to find my voice.

In 2022, I took a death doula training and discovered that talking about death and grieving in community can offer the best of humanity.

In 2023, I began planning my wishes for my own death and realized that most of the ritual and offerings around death are centered around religion, and I no longer associated with religion.

In early 2024, I attended the funeral service for the mother of a dear friend of mine, who is gay. The service took place at an anti-gay church and the preacher’s sermon and selected Bible verses felt shallow, unaffected, cold, and out of touch. The holiest parts of the ceremony were the speech my friend gave, filled with memories and longing, and the playing of her favorite Celine Dion song.

So in mid-2024, I created the sacred secular to offer what I longed for myself: someone who intends to humbly and genuinely hold space for the grief, celebration, ritual, and collective care of a death without the dogma and traditions of religion limiting what’s possible.

I completed the Center for Inquiry’s Secular Celebrant training in April 2024 and am in the process of pursing their certification. Please feel free to learn more about the Center for Inquiry and ask me any questions!

my values

anti-oppression, anti-racist

I am a white woman who holds many forms of privilege. I am actively seeking to decolonize my beliefs and seek loving accountability for my actions, so that I am continually reducing harm and helping to create a more just, loving world.

power with, not power over

I seek to hold any power I have in a space with great carefulness. My intent as a celebrant is to offer a container for the goodness of community to flourish, not to insert my own beliefs or needs or voice as a space-holder.

humility and gentle honesty

I love the idea of humility as deriving from the word humilitas, “one who is grounded or near to the earth.” I seek to stay grounded and rooted in my connection to others, so that my presence is honest and careful and gentle.