When a loved one passes away, questions you didn’t know you’d have will begin to multiply. Everything from the financial puzzles to the hows, the whens, and even the whys seem to flood the mind all at once. With the help of Bartholomew Funeral Home, we explore some of those questions.
Why have a funeral?
Funerals play a vital role for those mourning the loss of a loved one. The very first step in the healing process, funerals provide surviving family and friends with an atmosphere of care and support and give them an opportunity to share memories and feelings about their mutual loss.
A funeral is the traditional way to acknowledge the finality of death, and is recognized as a ritual for the living to show their respect for the dead and to help survivors begin the grieving process. Planning a personalized ceremony or service, regardless of arrangements, will begin the healing process. Overcoming the pain of loss is never easy, but a meaningful funeral or tribute will help.
What do I do when a death occurs?
The funeral home will help coordinate arrangements with the cemetery.
- Bring the following information to complete the State vital statistic requirements:
- Birth Date
- Birthplace
- Father's Name
- Mother's Name
- Social Security Number
- Veteran's Discharge or Claim Number
- Education
- Marital Status
- Contact your clergy or desired funeral conductors. Decide on a time and place of funeral or memorial service. This can be done at the funeral home.
- The funeral home will assist you in determining the number of copies of the death certificates you will be needing and can order them for you.
- Make a list of immediate family, close friends, and employer or business colleagues. Notify each by phone.
- Decide on an appropriate memorial to which gifts may be made (church, hospice, library, charity, or school).
- Gather obituary information you want to include such as age, place of birth, cause of death, occupation, college degrees, memberships held, military service, outstanding work, list of survivors in the immediate family. Include time and place of services. The funeral home will normally write the article and submit it to newspapers (newspapers will accept pictures and they will be returned intact).
- Arrange for members of family or close friends to take turns answering the door or phone, keeping careful record of calls. If Social Security checks are set for an automatic deposit, notify the bank of the death.
When I call, will someone come right away?
If you request immediate assistance, yes. If the family wishes for some time with the deceased to say good-bye, that’s perfectly acceptable. Your funeral director will come when the time is right for you and yours.
What does a funeral director do?
The funeral director will pick up the deceased and transport the body to the funeral home—any time, day or night. The funeral director will also:
- Notify proper authorities, family and/or relatives
- Arrange and prepare death certificates
- Provide certified copies of death certificates for insurance and benefit processing
- Work with the insurance agent, Social Security, or Veterans Administration to ensure that necessary paperwork is filed for receipt of benefits
- Prepare and submit the obituary to the newspapers of your choice
- Bathe and embalm the deceased body, if necessary
- Prepare the body for viewing, including dressing and cosmetizing
- Assist the family with funeral arrangements and purchase of casket, urn, burial vault, and cemetery plot
- Schedule the opening and closing of the grave with cemetery personnel, if a burial is to be performed
- Coordinate with clergy if a funeral or memorial service is to be held
- Arrange a police escort and transportation to the funeral and/or cemetery for the family
- Order funeral sprays and other flower arrangements as the family wishes
- Provide Aftercare, or grief assistance, to the bereaved
Should I choose burial or cremation?
Burial in a casket is the most common method of laying remains to rest in the United States, although entombment is also an option. Cremation is increasingly selected because it can be less expensive and allows for the memorial service to be held at a more convenient time in the future when relatives and friends can come together.
A memorial service followed by cremation need not be any different from a funeral service followed by a burial. Typically, cremated remains are placed in an urn before being committed to a final resting place. The urn may be buried, placed in an indoor or outdoor mausoleum or columbarium, or interred in a special urn garden that many cemeteries dedicate to cremated remains. The remains may also be scattered, according to state law. Many cemeteries allow for multiple cremated remains to be interred in a single grave space.
Why are funerals so expensive?
Though it may not seem like it when faced with planning one, funerals are not expensive when compared to other major life events like births and weddings. Because they are joyous occasions, wedding costs aren’t as often criticized, even though they cause at least three times as much as funerals. A funeral home is a 24-hour, labor-intensive business, with extensive facilities including viewing rooms, chapels, hearses, and more. These expenses must be factored into the cost of a funeral.
Additionally, the cost of a funeral includes items like caskets as well as the services of a funeral director in making arrangements, filing appropriate forms, and seeing to all necessary details. Funeral directors view their profession as a service, but a profession is also a business. Like any business, funeral homes must make a profit to exist.
Is there financial help if I need it?
Absolutely. There are a number of options available, including:
- Determine if the deceased person qualifies for any entitlements. Check with the Social Security Administration, the Department of Veterans Affairs, and your State Fund. Many people are entitled to get financial assistance with their funeral costs from these agencies if they qualify.
- Review all insurance policies the deceased person has, including life insurance. Some life insurance policies have coverage clauses for funeral related costs.
- Seek local charities providing financial help for funeral expenses. Search for non-profit organizations and for churches in your area.
- Talk to your funeral director about cremation options - these can be much less expensive depending on your choices.
Even if these aren’t questions you have concerns about yet, it’s important to have a resource at the ready when a death does occur. Bartholomew Funeral Home’s website covers these questions and more in greater detail and can act as a valuable resource whether or not you are planning a funeral at this time. Though nothing can take away the immediate pain of a loss, having peace of mind and preparation can ease some of the weight.
