At Macarthur Memorial Park, John Dickinson’s passion for community engagement ensures that every group, religious or non-religious, finds a place to honour their loved ones.
John Dickinson looks after community engagement at Macarthur Memorial Park and describes his role as “acting as the conduit for community groups, both religious and non-religious to secure space at a memorial park to look after their future generations.”
John has worked with the team at Macarthur Memorial Park – the first greenfield Crown cemetery to be developed since Rookwood – for over five years, after specialising in stakeholder engagement roles for the past forty years.
His passions have taken him across the globe, and his keen interest in history has led to him visiting several overseas cemeteries. He notes that cemeteries have social, historic and cultural significance. “I enjoy learning about people, their life story and their connection to their family and community”.
Memorial parks have a deep historical connection to their local community. They bring locals closer to an understanding of the past and help to provide insights into how people used to live. At Macarthur Memorial Park a series of interpretative walks will showcase the indigenous and European history of the site.
John is well known in south-west Sydney, with networks established across cultural and religious groups, funeral directors, business chambers and not for profit organisations.
What John loves most about his job are the people that he meets from diverse backgrounds. “You learn to understand who they are, as a person and as a community. You learn about their passions, their history and why they would like to be commemorated together in a memorial park.”
John has been instrumental in working with various groups and organisations to assist them with their burial and cremation requirements, arranging community gatherings at the cemeteries and sponsorships for their special events.
The most important thing that John has learnt during his time at Macarthur Memorial Park is to “empower people through information” by providing new and existing communities with guidance on our suite of services in a way that makes sense to them.
If there is one take-away that John wishes everyone knows about the industry it is “There is a place for everyone to be farewelled in a way that they determine; whether that be a traditional burial, natural burial or cremation, there’s a place for them.”
He looks forward to watching communities enjoy the spaces they have helped create at Macarthur Memorial Park and appreciating as they use the area, that it is theirs forever. Many communities have been waiting for decades for this day to come, with only a few years burial space left at some Crown cemeteries.
John has learnt to juggle multiple cultural and religious requirements, whilst negotiating how to give different communities exactly what they want, in the time frame that they are after. This ensures the provision of culturally appropriate funerals for all in the community.
He is proud that the new memorial park will “create a living history for them” and believes cemeteries are “more for the living than the dead”. The vision is for Macarthur Memorial Park to become a hub for the community, a welcoming space where stories and legacies live on.
John’s biggest passion is people and how to make their lives better. He gains satisfaction from being a reliable resource for communities to turn to for answers on death and dying, something that many people struggle to talk about.
John is a steadfast advocate for community groups in Sydney wanting to bury loved ones in accordance with their religious customs and beliefs and is now witnessing the culmination of several years’ work, as we prepare to sign memorandums of understanding with them.
After two-years of ongoing discussions, the first agreement for Macarthur Memorial Park has been signed with the Polish community for their own dedicated memorial area and John is looking forward to welcoming many more.
To find out about how Macarthur Memorial Park can help your community with end-of-life planning, you can contact John at community@mmpark.com.au
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