Junia Reyes Memorial Planning

How I began

I planned corporate conferences for nine years. Then my father died and I discovered that the only thing I could do that week was make a spreadsheet, and that everyone around me was grateful for it. Four families from my parish asked me the following year.

Why families choose me

Planning a memorial is about forty decisions, and grief makes every one of them heavier than it should be. My job is to carry as many as you will let me: the venue, the food, the flowers, the order of the day, who speaks and for how long, and the phone calls to people you cannot face calling. I work in Spanish and English, often in the same room and sometimes in the same sentence, which matters when the grandchildren and the grandparents want different things from the day. I take a fee and I take no commission from any vendor, so when I tell you a caterer is the right one, that is the only reason I am saying it. I will also tell you when you do not need me — a service for twenty in a back garden rarely does.

Ownership