Movement in personalized ceremony officiants expands in U.S., Canada with 50 new Celebrants from all walks of life
MONTCLAIR, N.J. — Under a band of multi-colored ribbons and accompanied by live yodeling, fifty graduates received certificates and joined the growing ranks of Celebrants during ceremonies Sunday at the Madison Hotel in Morristown, N.J., it was announced by Celebrant USA Foundation & Institute.
The graduation marked the end of seven-months of extensive study and celebrated the dedication and achievement of the new Celebrants, who will preside over a variety of life events, including personalize weddings, civil unions, funerals, divorces, births and coming of age ceremonies.
“We are proud to have 200 Celebrants throughout North America to help honor their communities as ceremony specialists creating personalized and meaningful ceremonies,” said Charlotte Eulette, the North American Director of the Celebrant USA Foundation & Institute. “Our graduating class of 2007 will join our alumni graduates and venture out into the world to remind folks to ‘live the art of life.'”
The new graduates, who ranged in age from 28 to 64, come from a kaleidoscope of professions and backgrounds, from Fortune 100 executives to blue collar workers, doctors, teachers and psychologists.
Among the graduates Sunday was Victor Oswald, 64, of Chicago. A longtime college recruiter, Oswald said he was considering a new career path in lieu of retirement when he learned about Celebrants in a New York Times article. “I’m looking at this as a whole new life,” said Oswald, who enrolled in the on-line wedding program and will officiate over weddings and civil unions.
Shelley Barlow, 38, of Whittier, North Carolina, a nurse who also graduated with a certificate in weddings. “I thought this was a wonderful idea,” said Barlow, who plans to keep her day job while she builds her business. Barlow also plans to return to take the on-line funeral course next year. “I like the idea that you can give honor through an authentic ceremony to memorialize the deceased,” Barlow said.
Based in Montclair, N.J., the Celebrant USA Foundation & Institute, a 501(c)3 non-profit, was formed in 2001 and now counts Celebrants in 35 states and four Canadian provinces. Registrations for fall classes are now being accepted.
For more information, please visit: http://www.celebrantusa.org
[tags]Celebrant USA Foundation, Celebrants, personalized ceremony officiants, Charlotte Eulette[/tags]
