I’ve always been drawn to life’s big transitions - adding beauty to the moments that crack us open, break us down, lift us up, and reshape us. I grew up in the simple Blue Mountains landscape of the 1980’s where we roamed wild in the bush til dusk, building our own little universes and mixing potions from the nature wonderlands around us. I was always that kid that talked to the trees and sung to the flowers. My bedroom walls were layered in photos and love notes and ticket stubbs and posters - and in a way, when I look back now, I can see that I always created nooks of devotion, spaces full of meaning - because it’s what anchors me in the beauty of life.
Ceremony has been woven through my life for as long as I can remember, thanks, in no small part to my maternal grandmother, the Reverend Dr. Moira Laidlaw. Emigrating from Edinburgh as a ‘ten pound pom’ in the mid-1950’s with my Grandad, she became one of the first ever women ordained in the Uniting Church of Australia, a true trailblazer who showed me that spirituality is about connection. She was a true vessel of love and ultimately inspired people to find their own connection with the ‘Divine Mystery’. “You can give *God* what ever name you want, but at the end of the day: love works.” Nan taught me the sacred art of holding space - of showing up with empathy & compassion, no matter the moment. She showed me how, even when faced with life’s most brutal and heartbreaking moments when we have no answers - our greatest gift is our presence, gentle and unflinching. She walked alongside so many in their despair, unable to fix any of it - but ensuring they were not walking through it alone.
My Nan’s sudden death in 2013 bookended a 2 year period of profound bereavement in my life and put into motion a deeper awakening in me. After a frantic phone call, a 30 hour journey from London to Brisbane, I arrived at her bedside just in time to pray her out of this life. That moment remains a truly ineffable mystical experience - I will never truly be able to put words around it, but in that moment as her breath left her body - something was extinguished in her, and ignited in me. There was my life before that moment - and then there was my life after that moment, it changed me so deeply. (I recently watched back a recording of the eulogy I gave at her funeral - and it’s actually a helpful reminder of how to speak through grief.)
Having completed my Bachelor of Arts degree and spent a decade playing music around the UK, all my paths in life intersected and I couldn’t shake this feeling of being called to a life of service, but with no real sense of what that might look like as a queer, buddhist, Aussie musician living in London?! But someway, somehow - I thankfully found my way towards the OneSpirit Interfaith Foundation in London and began my two year seminary training in Ministry & Spiritual Development.
The OneSpirit Interfaith Foundation is a UK educational charity based in London & a sister school of the One Spirit Alliance based in New York. Founded in 1996 as a response to division, suffering, and the ever-present need for connection in our world, OneSpirit’s training is a call to unity - grounded in interfaith dialogue, deep spiritual exploration, and the belief that peace begins within. Born from a desire to challenge the forces that divide us, particularly in the shadow of historical trauma, OneSpirit offers a path of peacemaking, sacred activism, and radical compassion. Their two-year training invites people of all faiths and none to step into authentic service, whether through ceremony, spiritual companionship, or simply living with greater awareness. Now, with over 1000 interfaith ministers serving worldwide, OneSpirit continues to stand as a beacon for those who believe that listening, understanding, and love have the power to transform lives. It’s a path of deep listening, presence, and reverence - one that shaped me profoundly on my own journey as a minister, celebrant and ritualist.
Interfaith is not a religion. It walks among the religions. Interfaith begins when we create a bridge between one set of beliefs and traditions and another. An Interfaith Minister ideally is one who turns towards all, regardless of their beliefs or practices, with an open heart and mind, offering them a mirror to their own wholeness and their own divinity.
- OneSpirit Interfaith Minister, Susanna Stefanachi Macomb
In parallel, after attending the London Buddhist Centre for about 5 years, I entered into a deeper training and spent four years studying with the Triratna sangha, grounding myself in the Buddhist teachings of radical acceptance & compassion. I spent years deepening my meditation practice, attending long intensive silent retreats, and even lived in a Buddhist commune for a while. My ongoing Buddhist practice continues to deepen my own capacity to sit unflinchingly with life’s most profound moments.
Since my Interfaith Ministry ordination in 2016, my work has mostly been crafting rituals for life’s most precious moments. Ceremony isn’t just for weddings and funerals - it’s for all of life’s transitions, big and small. A miscarriage. A divorce. A new name. A new home. These moments shape us, and they deserve to be witnessed, honoured, and held with care. A proud member of the LGBTQI+ community, I’m also passionate about offering sacred celebration and spiritual safety to our community e.g. Transgender Renaming Ceremonies, Coming Out Rites of Passage Blessingways, Poly-Relationships Blessings, Non-Bio Mother Blessings etc
Interfaith ministry, to me, is about reverence and devotion - to all people, to all stories, to the sacred in all its forms. It’s about standing alongside others as they navigate life’s thresholds, whether in grief, love, loss, or transformation. As a funeral director and death care practitioner, I walk with people through some of their hardest days, helping them create farewells that truly reflect their loved ones. I also host Death Cafés - gatherings where we talk openly about death, grief, and everything in between. Because when we acknowledge death, we learn how to live more fully.
Bereavement and loss has been a powerful teacher in my life. It’s why I’m passionate about reimagining how we approach death and dying. I work with Picaluna Funerals, an organisation that believes in meaningful, creative, community-led farewells. Funerals don’t have to be one-size-fits-all. They can be tender, bold, funny, deeply personal - whatever feels right.
At the heart of it all, I believe in the power of being seen. I believe in the deep magic of gathering. And I believe in reverence—for love, for loss, and for this wild, beautiful life we’re all living.
