Clowing at a memorial service

[MercyMe]

SapphireSue,
It sounds like there is some interest in knowing how you would clown at a memorial service. Would you tell us how
you plan to do this? Details! :-D

[saphireSue]

This service is a special service for children coping with grief put on by hospice and I work with Home Health in my other career and was asked to come up with some thing. We do some tradition fun stuff like face painting and balloons, early in the day, but I wrote a skit that deals with the different feelings a person goes through when a love one dies from a child's view. Anger, fear, loneliness, ending by the two caracters making a memory box of the person they lost. Which lead into this activity by the counselers. At the end of the day we released balloon with each persons name inside.

[saphireSue]

I also wanted to add that there are several stories you can use and add balloon scupting to it. type in Waterbug and grief on you search engine. It's a great story for helping people deal with death and while telling the story you can use a bumble bee balloon and a long balloon [160?] and go from a waterbug to a dragon fly. You can use any story about any animal that changes, tad poles become frogs, caterpillers become butterflies ect.

[claratheclown]

wow that sounds so nice, i never heard of stuff like that, it must be so hard for those kids to go through losing a loved one, its hard enough as an adult, but i can not imagine dealing with such terrible losses as a child. I hope to do a memmorial service for people who need it someday.

[saphireSue]

Well this year's going to be different and it coming up this saturday. I now working with kids 9-12, so they're going to just do silly skits [which well hopefully lead to the older childre doing some type of skit activity later], I'll take Crystal [she's my older puppet that's about 12 yrs old] and we're going to discuss what's in her memory box and her feeling[ there are some joke to laugh at but the message is there] and they will make memory boxes later in the day. This year most of the children [so far about 35 have enrolled ]have lost a parent due to tramatic events ie car wreck, where as in the past it's been usuually illness ie cancer. One of my young clown's dad killed himself so I hope this will also allow her.

[saphireSue]

This year's Carecamp by Hospice was wonderful.

It was held at Andrew Jackson State Park, outside. Hay bales had been lined up to make our arrena. We did our show earlier in the morning then help the children make, memory neclaces[braclets, key chain] with beads, then my group left, I got out of costume to help, be an extra pair of hands we had over 50 children not to count older siblings and parents. The children then got into smaller age groups to talk with peers about the loved one they lost and make memory boxes, Another contemp. christan group provided music then we ended by releasing balloons with messages written by the children. close call with this as the director had blew them up earlier and left in the car and wtih the temp changes some started going flat. Looking forward to next year.

[BananaTree]

What a fascinating use for clowning. I neve rreally thought about anything along these lines. Thank you for sharing.

I know after going to three funerals this summer I began discussing my own preperations. I told the wife that I didnt want my last act on this earth to be something that makes people cry after a lifetime of laughs. I havve instructed her to request balloons and streamers instead of flowers, and to dress me in my Jester outfir and Gilroy makeup. I've also requested to be wearing a button that everyone can read when they approach the coffin - the button will say "I'm not wearing any pants" I figure if that doesnt get a laugh, nothing will.

Some may find that tastless, but I see death as a reason to celebrate, not to mourn, and I want people to remember me and giggle. My dream funeral would be the one from the Mary Tyler Moore Show when chuckles the clown died - She laughed her head off during the Eulegy. I can think of no finer compliment that a clown could be paid/

Thaat's my $.02 woth

[Scruffy]

Well said Gilroy!

[mr_buckaroo]

what a great idea. and instead of the funeral march play a john philips sousa march or circus music.
,

[BananaTree]

Actually I was thinking something like Livin La Vida Loca or the Hokey Pokey...maybe even the bunny hop for while they aare viewing the body on their way out.