Hi, I'm Lynn

Image of Lynn O'Brien

Welcome to my Humanist naming ceremonies page, I hope you have found me because you are planning a memorable and meaningful celebration.

As a Humanist UK accredited celebrant for the last eight years I’ve been privileged to create and deliver inclusive non-religious naming ceremonies for more than 60 children. It has been a honour and a joy to help families, friends and community celebrate the arrival of children. Celebrating milestones is an important ritual, and when children are at the heart of a ceremony there is always love and bucketful's of emotion!

Why Choose a Humanist Naming Ceremony

A Humanist naming ceremony is a special and unique way to celebrate and announce the arrival of your child. Although not religious it’s a personal, family friendly occasion full of joy and laughter and often a few "happy" tears.

The ceremony that I'll create will be specifically for your child, and it might include readings, poetry, singing, music, and parental promises.

Family and friends can be involved and often guideparents (supporting adults) are appointed who also make commitments to the child.

Symbolic gestures or rituals can be included, for example tree planting, lighting candles, sand blending, a book of wishes are a few of many options. This is also a lovely way to engage your guests in the ceremony too.

The ceremony can be in any location you choose at any time of the year. I’ve had the pleasure of delivering ceremonies in gardens, kitchens, front rooms, back rooms, church halls, cafes, restaurants, heritage buildings, cricket clubs, community centres, parks, the options are endless! My work has taken me all over London, Essex, Hertfordshire, Suffolk, Kent and further afield.

Most ceremonies are held on a weekend, but the choice is yours. If you are opting for an outside venue a backup plan for British weather is a good idea!

You may know exactly what you’d like, or you may be looking for ideas and suggestions, whichever way I’ll be very happy to work with you to create a personal ceremony and one that you and your family and friends will remember for years to come.

Please get in touch, let’s chat and see what we can create together.

"From the moment we met Lynn she was attentive and applied, explaining the process clearly and listening to what we wanted from the day. A perfect combination of humanism and humour, she really made our daughter’s naming day super special. Lynn paid careful attention to our family story, noting key points and marrying them with our chosen poems to deliver a beautifully written ceremony. We will always look back on the day with the fondest of memories, and for that we have Lynn to thank."

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"This is the second time we have booked to have a ceremony led by Lynn and she was even more fantastic than the first time. She goes above and beyond to understand our family and made the day really special".

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"If I could mark higher I would. Lynn made our day feel so special, she captured our little story so perfectly and surpassed our expectations.We are over the moon with how our son's naming day went and cannot thank Lynn enough!"

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Image of Lynn O'Brien

Lynn O'Brien

Where I work

I am based in East London and work in all London boroughs, especially Waltham Forest, Hackney, Redbridge, Havering, Haringey, Barking & Dagenham, Enfield, Islington, Newham, Tower Hamlets

Essex

Hertfordshire

Suffolk

Kent

Fees from...

£275

How to contact me
Email

linilondon@hotmail.com

Phone

07957 445979

Website

humanist.org.uk/lynnobrien

HUMANIST CEREMONIES™ is the network of more than 550 celebrants, trained by national charity Humanists UK to a gold standard to provide memorable and meaningful humanist ceremonies to non-religious people. Operating throughout England, Wales, Northern Ireland and the Channel Islands, we deliver authentic, tailor-made and heartfelt ceremonies for life’s key moments. They are always inclusive and welcoming, regardless of the beliefs of those attending.

You can trust Humanist Ceremonies celebrants: We are DBS-checked, fully insured, and regularly peer reviewed for quality assurance. We are committed to a code of conduct, and have a transparent and robust complaints process in the rare case of a problem. We all pay a monthly fee to Humanists UK to further support the work of the charity, and are part of a regional network for like-minded celebrants for support and learning.

Humanist naming ceremonies

A humanist naming ceremony is a joyous event, and the perfect opportunity to gather friends and family to welcome your child into the world, with no reference to religion. It focuses on the child, their future and the circle of love and support around them, offering a sincere and personal alternative to a christening or other religious ceremony.