By 
HAVING dedicated her life to helping others through the toughest of times, Jacqui O’Kane of Maguires Funeral Directors in Omagh is the only fully-qualified female embalmer and funeral director in Tyrone.
The Cookstown woman’s career as an embalmer began in the late nineties, when Jacqui took up her first job in the industry at the mortuary at Craigavon Hospital after studying Cosmetology in London – an industry of which women were ‘few and far between’.
“I worked with State Pathologists doing forensic work and I really enjoyed it,” she said.
“However, many of us were eventually made redundant, so I went out on my own, working all over the country with many different funeral directors.”
Having carried out such essential work behind the scenes, it wasn’t long until Jacqui took on the opportunity to provide cover for funeral directors, something she was passionate about and filled her with pride.
“I have worked with Maguires Funeral Directors for over 10 years now,” she explained. “I always highly-respected Jay Maguire and his wife Marian, they were a great team.
“I initially helped out with embalming, but would have covered for Jay when he was on holiday, conducting funerals on his behalf, and I have been doing it ever since.”
Working with many local families through such devastating times, Jacqui said that in her line of work, you have to approach many factors of the job in a sensitive manner.
“We are only human and everybody grieves differently,” she described.
“There are seven stages of grief, and not everyone goes through it in the same way.
“There are a lot of factors in this job that we must approach with such sensitivity, and we have to be very mindful of the situation we are dealing with.
“In these situations, many loved ones look up to you, especially in hard times, and they may have questions. Unfortunately, we don’t always have the answers, but we can source them and we try to do so with general quietness, dignity and respect.
“At the end of the day, we are a crutch for people. We are the shoulder they need to cry on.”
Beyond embalming and funeral arranging from their newly-refurbished funeral home, Jacqui also spoke of other services that they can offer.
“We also offer a private counselling service from a fully qualified counsellor who is there if it is needed,” she said. “Pre-paid funerals are another service we provide.
“It is a simple way to protect your family from difficult decisions, avoid rising costs and offer peace of mind by taking the pressure off your family. People contact us regularly about these. We can discuss over the phone or meet up.
“We have a safe space in the funeral home, I can come to their home, or we can meet up for a coffee to discuss what they need.”
Adding that personal touch to your loved ones funeral service, no matter their age, Jacqui also spoke of how they often go that extra mile to add a personal touch.
“We provide everything from horse to a range of personalised caskets – whatever is required to incorporate that personal touch,” she said.
“In the tragic circumstance of burying a young child, we provide balloons featuring their favourite cartoon characters that can be sent off into the sky by their graveside,” she added.
“Bagpipers and different musicians are also a big factor in any funeral. Some of the musicians we have in the Omagh area are just fabulous.”
Jacqui explained that whilst many of those who she works for may be strangers at times, before they are finished, they are friends.
“It’s all about showing compassion, care and empathy,” she continued.
“You do as much as you can, and we always try to take the weight off their shoulders and do everything we can for them.
“We honour your loved one’s life with dignity, respect and with attention to detail.”
