Last Hurrah Funerals
If there’s one thing a lot of people don’t want to talk about it’s death right? I mean it’s inevitable, it’s final, and there’s a bit of paperwork involved. And then there’s the funeral. Now most of us hear the word ‘funeral’ and think ‘please, no’ – which is fair enough. After all they are confronting, can be awkward and you’re bound to bump into relatives you don’t want to see – but it was never written in stone (tombstone?) that it ever had to be this way. The wonderful folks at Last Hurrah Funerals recognised this, and took on the challenge of creating unique funerals for unique people. We were lucky enough to chat to co-founder Nastassia Grace about Last Hurrah’s role in the death services industry.
Please tell us a bit about yourself and your life and times before Last Hurrah?
I’m a Kiwi, and moved to Aus in 2006 to be with my family who had moved over earlier. I studied psychology and took about 10 years to complete my 3 year degree. I’ve worked in retail, youth work, administration, skateboarding, forensic cleaning and funerals… you know, the usual career trajectory. I love everything a bit left of centre, am opinionated as all hell, and don’t really like being told what to do. About 10 years ago I started a skateboarding community called Thrusher, which was created to foster a comfortable environment for non-male folks to get into skating. It was the best and we built a pretty incredible community of absolute legends. I would say that prior to creating this Last Hurrah beast, it was my proudest achievement.
Have you always been interested in the death services industry – if not, what drew you to it?
Having been a teenage goth in small town New Zealand, I’ve always had a interest in death; not to minimise the hugeness of death itself, but I’ve always been a fan of the aesthetics. Having studied psychology and experienced death in varying ways throughout my life, I know the magnitude of losing someone or something. Being able to help in a tangible way at such a genuinely shit time is something I feel very grateful to be a part of. I felt that what was available in the funeral industry just didn’t suit most people, and certainly didn’t represent me.
How did you and Kimba come to envision and create Last Hurrah?
In my previous work in the funeral industry, I had to speak softly, wear horrible ill-fitting suits and silk scarves. and just generally not be authentic to who I am. That felt pretty damn weird, so I always dreamed of doing something that was more fitting for weirdos like myself. Kimba had worked previously as a celebrant on services organised by other funeral companies and felt that families weren’t able to have the freedom and flexibility to farewell their person in the way that they wanted to. It really was our combined frustrations with the industry that led us to create The Last Hurrah. Our whole thing is that we just want to honour everyone’s life and experience in whatever way feels right to them. One exception to this though, is that we have made the decision not to provide services within churches. A number of reasons led to this, but primarily it was due to the systemic abuse and the outcomes which we have experienced first hand as funeral directors.
Last Hurrah is proudly unique and welcoming to those who are looking for something more original in their life farewell, can you tell us about the services you offer?
We can basically do anything. We’ve had Viking metal bands play at The Tote complete with mosh pit and shirtless, leather clad men carrying the coffin to the hearse through to shamanic ceremonies and serene services in some beautiful spots. It honestly is whatever floats your boat. We always want to stress the point that we do not just get weird for the sake of getting weird. There is a lot of comfort in the ceremony and rituals that people are used to being a part of death, but we also want to present every opportunity for people to engage with their grief and honour their person. That’s what it’s all about.
What’s coming up next for you and Last Hurrah – tell us everything!
We’ve just finished our mortuary, and have launched our sister business Specialist Mortuary Services, so we now offer mortuary support to other independent funeral directors and direct to families that want to take care of their person without using a funeral director. It was always part of our vision when we started this, so it’s wonderful to see it in action. The next step for us is to grow our facilities further so we can accommodate more funerals at a reduced costs for families, and also host more non-funereal events like art exhibitions, gigs and basically anything that requires a huge, beautiful space.
admin@lasthurrahfunerals.com.au
www.lasthurrahfunerals.com.au
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