Humanists Making a Difference: Humanist Celebrant Kristi Cummings

What motivated you to become a celebrant?

When marriage equality went to the U.S. Supreme Court in 2015, I wondered how I could help. I live in a very conservative area, so when The Humanist Society offered the Humanist Celebrant endorsement, it seemed like an opportunity I couldn’t pass up.

Why did you seek endorsement with The Humanist Society?

Justice of the Peace and Notary Public were also options, but by this time, I had also discovered Camp Quest. My partner and I joined the AHA and got involved. Beginning in 2012, our kids who were old enough began attending CQ Smoky Mountains. Nowadays, all our kids have aged out! They’ll all be counselors in 2026.

Is there an event you officiated that stands out as rewarding and significant (i.e. unusual wedding ceremony, touching celebration of life, impactful exchange)?

To date, I have had only wedding opportunities (about 200 of them!) but the greatest honor comes from loved ones. My very first ceremony was for a dear college friend, legalizing a partnership of nearly twenty years, just a few days after marriage equality became a reality. At a college reunion in 2021, I led a vow renewal for two other dear friends from my alma mater. In 2023, I married my cousin! (To his partner, of course.)

Have there been challenging moments in doing this work?

Not many, to be honest. It’s mostly been joyful moments! I did have one almost-wedding where everything seemed to be arranged, and everyone was to meet at a waterfall in a national park. One party didn’t show, supposedly out of gas, then got lost on a marked trail, then stymied by bears! I wanted to comfort his partner, but how? She waited with her mom and their kids for hours.

How does your nonreligious worldview impact your work? 

The Humanist Society’s guidance that we should do our best to serve all people is my light. When couples want scriptures, poems, or specific rituals in their ceremony, I’m happy to help. I don’t pretend to be a religion that I’m not.

How do people (coworkers/clients) respond (if at all) to you being a humanist?  Do you often meet people who don’t even know what humanism is?

Yes, most people I meet don’t really know what humanism is. I include Senior Humanist Celebrant in my email signature in correspondence with clients. Very occasionally that’s a hindrance. More often it invites curiosity, and I find that most people accept our goals of compassion and reason. Once in a while, couples are astounded to find that they are not alone, but welcome in a community of like-minded people.