Pictured above, our Fuze Foundation founder, Anne Widdop
Hello and thanks for clicking through. I’d like to tell you a little about me and why I started a Humanist Ceremonies organisation and not-for-profit Foundation.
I grew up in Barrhead, East Renfrewshire, in a family of seven kids with me being number five, one of the “twins”. Mum and dad were regular church goers. We all trooped along to church on a Sunday and being such a big family we even had our own pew. Over the years, like all of my siblings, I decided I didn’t believe in god around the age of fifteen. I had been questioning it for a few years and while the church can fulfill the spiritual needs of some people, it didn’t do that for me. I have an inquisitive mind and one drawn to science and reasoning. I’m a big fan of proof. If you want to assert something is true, show me the evidence!
Growing up in the seventies, it was a time of change with punk music, feminism, equality and diversity dominating my ideas. I embraced a radical shift in ideas from the conformity of my parents wartime generation, much to their horror. After school I was drawn to computers and started out a lifelong career in technology with my first job as a programmer. Fast forward a few decades, Computer Science Degree, software engineer, Project Manager and eventually a Global Director for IBM.
I loved my job and travelled the world managing increasingly large complex projects and global clients. I was one of the few women to reach Director level at IBM and after many accolades for the company, I can say I am proud of my achievements. Importantly, my corporate life was always balanced by voluntary work. I firmly believe we should all give back – whether it is time or money. It is our duty as humans to help make the world a better place, to address division and inequality.
Over the years I gave my time to many organisations: I was the vice Chair of a UK organisation which sought to address the gender imbalance in Science, Engineering and Technology, Chair of the Helix Trust (been to the Kelpies in Falkirk?), set up a Women’s Technology Centre in Falkirk, established ‘Women in Blue’ in IBM as well as host of other organisations.
But life wasn’t all plain sailing. I experienced many tragedies along the way including loosing my younger sister, aged fifteen, my brother in an accident in his mid thirties and my dad of a heart attack at only sixty. They all died suddenly and in a short space of time. On top of heart wrenching grief, one thing that upset me immensely was their funerals. They were all religious ceremonies and said very little about who they were.
In 2011, my corporate career was reaching a conclusion. In my early fifties, I decided I wanted another life. The truth be told, I wanted A life! A few years previously mum died of a brain tumour. It was a cruel end for a beautiful, patient, kind, caring woman. I was determined her funeral would not just be about god… and that is when a germination of an idea about Fuze Ceremonies and the Fuze Foundation started to grow.
Combining my business acumen with a passion for ceremonies and a desire to not only help but give people a choice, I took the leap from IBM into the unknown. it wasn’t an easy transition, but right from the start I loved it. I wanted a professional, well run organisation with a team of people who were qualified to do the job. I was joined by Victoria then Morag and a few years later by Laura. We are family and that’s important to me and share my vision and passion. Victoria moved onto pastures new but I want to acknowledge and thank her for all her hard work in the early years.
Since 2011 we have built an extraordinary team of outstanding Celebrants. It’s been a mountain of unpaid hard work, financial investment, risk and an emotional rollercoaster. Celebrants and staff have come and gone, some in a professional way but others have taken advantage of our good nature. That is a hard lesson, but Morag, Laura and I still have unbounded passion for the Fuze Foundation. I’ve now handed the reigns over to Morag as Chair of the Foundation and to Laura and Morag managing Fuze Ceremonies, but I’m there in the background. I’m kind of retired, as much as I will ever be, as I’m the Chair of Arisaig Community Trust and I have more time for my garden, sailing and lots of outdoor and indoor sports, having recently competed at 3 Hyrox events!
Although the Fuze Foundation has been recognised by the Registrar General and authorised to conduct Humanist marriages in Scotland since 2012, we began the process that same year of seeking recognition from the Scottish Government as a *prescribed organisation, placing us on the same footing as the Humanist Society. I will not fully step away until this has been achieved!
The more ceremonies we do, the more the Fuze Foundation can help others. Our customers and the welfare of our team is what matters most. Since 2012, the Foundation has created an impact worth in excess of £110,000. This has been achieved through a combination of direct donations to charities and support given in kind. I am immensely proud of that and of the dedication from Morag, Laura and the Celebrant team to continue to do good work.
To support Fuze, you can give a donation to the Foundation or you can use our services. By using us you can help us to help others.
Next steps
Use this link HERE to make a donation to support our work at the Foundation.
*A prescribed organisation in Scotland is a faith body that the Scottish Ministers have officially designated through legislation for specific legal purposes, such as authorising its celebrants to solemnise marriages without needing individual authorisation from the Registrar General.
About the Author
Anne Widdop established The Fuze Foundation in 2012 and remains active in the promotion of the organisation. She is a Humanist and strongly believes in equality, diversity and freedom of expression. Although she is an atheist, she believes everyone has the right to choose their own beliefs and as a society we need to learn to live with and respect other people’s choices
