The Elysian Society works closely with Fellowship ministers to plan and facilitate funeral and memorial services for Fellowship members. We strive to make the services memorable, moving, and beautiful, reflecting the essence of the friend we are remembering, and providing an experience of scale and presence for those attending.
Preparing and presenting a service requires the dedicated help of many volunteers. Immediately after a student dies, Elysian Society members meet with the family and friends to begin the planning process, choose poetry and music, select a eulogist and craft the eulogy.
When the date is chosen more volunteers join the effort. Members connect the sound system, arrange flowers and create the wreaths, clean the Festival Hall and set up the chairs and lectern, iron the lectern cloths, rake the cemetery paths and prepare the gravesite, perform the music, direct the shuttle cars and toll the bells.
This harmonious dance is a gift of love to a departed friend, and every student in the Fellowship receives the same level of effort.
You can find examples of past services here. For funeral planning information, please refer to the End of Life Planning/Personal Arrangement Guide published by the Elysian Society.
