Most of my working life has been spent teaching French and Spanish in secondary schools in Bournemouth. After 20 or so years I ended up as an Assistant Headteacher in a local school. In 2007 my wife and I saw a gap in the market and set up a supply teaching agency called ‘Bourne Teachers Ltd’ and spent almost 10 years supplying ‘local teachers to local schools’ which was our business slogan. In 2016 we wound up the business and downsized when our children left home. This left us at a bit of a loose end and after about a year of refurbishing and redecorating our new house we decided it was time for something new. After a few false starts, it was down to a chance meeting at a friend’s house for dinner that I heard about funeral celebrancy as a potential job. It seemed to fit everything that I was looking for and that I’d been doing all my life; meeting & talking to people, writing, standing in front of groups of people and speaking. I booked myself onto a course and soon after did my first funeral. It was and has been ever since, everything I thought it would be and more. I can honestly say that this is a job that I am passionate about; helping families in their time of need and creating memories in the service that reflect their loved one is an absolute privilege and I hope that I can continue doing this for as long as possible.