Some of you will know just how much work it is to organise a funeral.
--------------------------------------In Loving Memory of Hazel Diane Taylor------------------------------------------
Thankfully, Ben and I have a background in event management, and even so, it was quite a hard task, I can tell you.
In order to give Hazel a proper send off, we had to organise the service. The funeral directors were fantastic, but there were a number of decisions that only the family could make, including:
Hymns
Music
The Eulogy (or Tribute)
Readings
Coffin
Flowers
Donations
Religious or Humanist
Photos
Donations
Cremation or Burial
Announcements
So many details...and yes, we forgot some things! For example, none of us read newspapers anymore, so we all forgot the Obituary. Oops. Luckily, word of mouth and Facebook ensured we managed to get the word out.
Luckily, one of Hazel's oldest friend's - Sheila - offered to read out a poem, and her husband Rodney offered to take care of the Eulogy. I was doubly glad of this, as it gave both Ben and his brother Dan the chance to say goodbye without worrying on how they would keep it together during the funeral.
One of my jobs was to compile and upload the slide show, which would play during the time the piece of music for reflection played. Fittingly, we chose Neil Diamond's America for this, and it worked wonderfully.
Now, I'm not going to share all 25 photos here, so you will have to make do with the last two images from the back of the service sheet.
All in all, it was a lovely service, and it was wonderful to see how many people joined us to say goodbye to Hazel. Moving forward, Planetauto will never be the same again, as there were many times that Hazel joined us in our adventures and road trips, from Goodwood Revival to Silverstone's Lap of Lights - and lots more in between...
Rest In Peace, Hazel. You shall be missed.