CELEBRANT IN TRAINING
Hi, I'm Marion!
I’ve had what might be called a squiggly career that began in academic research, then continued into clinical research in the pharmaceutical industry. When my children were small, I decided to leap out of the private sector into local government, where I worked in children’s services for 12 years, including a 4-year secondment as a professional advisor to the Scottish Government. From there I stayed in the world of children and young people’s services, but moved into the not-for-profit sector, with a strategic role in a Scottish charity, then leading the UK, Republic of Ireland and Australia operations of a US-based charity. In 2024, after much soul searching, I decided to step away from full-time employment to pursue my personal goal of becoming a celebrant.
My Story, My Beliefs
​​It’s fair to say that my career has been varied, but the thread running through every single role I’ve had has been a genuine desire to contribute to the improvement of people’s lives.
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I was brought up in Bo’ness, West Lothian, in a loving working class family. After leaving home to study in Aberdeen and Edinburgh, I returned home to Bo’ness to marry my teenage sweetheart Paddy, and we moved to Grangemouth in 1998 to bring up our children, Kate and Patrick, in what we hoped would be our forever family home. We’re still here, and now have 2 gorgeous granddaughters, Holly and Ruby, who bring us joy every day. Life hasn’t always been plain sailing – there have been plenty of choppy waters along the way, but I’ve been fortunate to experience lots of calm seas too, and the combination has made me the person I am today.
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My spirituality is grounded in my values – kindness, honesty, trust and integrity – and my belief that love is the most important human emotion. I believe that spirituality is deeply personal, it’s not constant, and it means different things to different people. Like many people, I’ve been pondering the meaning of life increasingly as I’ve grown older, and inevitably, over the years I’ve attended more and more of life’s ceremonies for and with family and friends. The best ceremonies were conducted by celebrants and officiants who had taken the time and made every effort to tailor the ceremony to the individual or couple involved. Every time I’ve been moved by a ceremony, I’ve thought to myself ‘what an amazing skill, to be able to capture the right emotion, and use words that are meaningful and memorable.’ Over time, that thought developed into ‘I’d love to do that.’ Eventually I realised that there was no point in thinking I’d love to be a celebrant, and doing nothing about it, and so I have embarked on the next, hopefully the last, squiggle in my squiggly career.
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It’s an absolute privilege to be part of the Rites and Rituals Scotland community. While I bring rich life experience and maturity to my role as a celebrant, my personal and professional development will always be a work in progress. I strive to create ceremonies that are meaningful, reflecting the personality, lifestyle and beliefs of each person, couple or family, and learning from them every day.
Contact
If you are interested in co-creating a ceremony, please reach out.
07939 865775