Did you know that the average funeral in the United States of America costs around $8,000? Planning a funeral is a huge part of giving your loved one or friend the type of sendoff that their life deserved. There are many facets of funeral planning like finding the best funeral home and putting together the obituary.
You also need to know the type of funeral that your loved one wanted in order to take care of funeral services. It isn’t easy taking these steps as you’re probably emotionally drained. Having funeral planning in place prior to the death of your loved one is a great way to ensure that you’re prepared.
The good news is that you’re in the right place to learn more about how to handle funeral planning and give your loved one a proper celebration of life. Keep reading this article to learn more today!
Plan In Advance
Planning in advance will allow you the time that you need to heal and find the emotional room to be present. Having a sense of humor when you’re planning a funeral will make every aspect of planning the funeral services much easier. Your loved one would want you to be happy and celebrate the things that they did in life rather than being sad.
Learn What Is Involved With Funeral Planning
There are three main things that makeup planning funeral services for a loved one. The first thing is preparing the corpse of your loved one though you’ll also hold a ceremony and take care of the interment.
It is important that you know all of your options when you are planning a funeral. Does your loved one want to be embalmed or cremated? Would they rather have a large funeral service and ceremony at the best funeral home or would they want a graveside service?
You should also think about who will be at the funeral services and whether or not you want to have a viewing of the loved one that has passed away. A good resource to consider using is a funeral checklist.
Don’t Pay In Advance
If you plan funeral services in advance you’ll thank your future self because the best funeral home will offer better rates if you purchase a funeral package now versus after your loved one passes away.
A big benefit of this is that you have the option of planning your loved one’s funeral in advance without the need for prepayment. You’ll also want to consider what you plan to do with the remains of your loved one. The fact of the matter is that planning a funeral service is a personal experience.
Choose the Type of Disposition
One of the most important things that you need to do with funeral planning is deciding on the type of disposition for your loved one that has passed away. There are multiple options that you can choose from, and here is a closer look at those options.
Conventional Burial
The conventional burial is the burial that most people picture when someone passes away. It involves burying the deceased in a casket under the ground at a plot or a gravesite. It could also occur at a mausoleum if the deceased preferred that option rather than a gravesite.
You’ll need to purchase a few things if you want to go with this type of funeral service. First, you’ll need a casket to place the remains of your loved one in. You’ll also need to invest in either a burial plot or a spot in the mausoleum.
The last thing that you’ll need is a gravestone. The gravestone will tell all about who your loved one was, where and when they were born, and who they’re survived by.
Green Burial
There is also the option of a green burial. This disposition option is similar to a conventional burial with the main difference being that the green burial looks to decrease the impact on the environment. It is a great option if your loved one loved planet Earth and didn’t want to cause it any damage on the way out.
Cremation
Cremation is a body disposition option that is growing in popularity. The process of cremation involves using high temperatures of heat to reduce the body and bones to ashes. You’ll have a ton of flexibility with how you want to proceed after moving forward with the cremation process for your loved one.
You can bury their remains in an urn in the ground or you can scatter their remains into the wind. It is all up to what your loved one would want for their remains.
Think About Funeral Planning Costs
As mentioned earlier in the article, funerals are not cheap. You should expect to spend anywhere from $8,000 to $10,000 on your loved one’s funeral. There are a lot of things that go into all of the aspects of a funeral and those things add up. You’ll need to hire a funeral director to run everything and you’ll need to pay for programs and flowers.
If there is going to be a reception after the funeral services then you’ll need to make sure that you have the money on hand to book a venue. Make sure that you’re budgeting and that you have the money for each vital aspect of the funeral.
Celebration of Life Planning
If your loved one wants to have a celebration of life then you need to be ready to plan something festive. It sounds difficult getting into a festive mood after you’ve lost someone that was important to you but this is your chance to remember all of the best times that you had with this person.
Give them the “goodbye” that they deserve by planning a celebration of life that no one will ever forget. Make sure that you also check out https://shelterbay.ca/funeral-insurance/ to get the best funeral insurance possible.
Collect the Contacts
You’ll also want to take some time to collect the contact information of all of the most important people in your loved one’s life. Having the contact information for all of these people will make it much easier for you to notify them of the death as well as the time and date for the funeral services.
The best strategy is to take a seat and write down each name and the corresponding email address and phone number. You’ll have a much easier time with getting ahold of everyone if you have a small database to work with.
Find Funding
If your loved one wasn’t able to set aside enough money to afford the funeral services that they deserved then there are still a few routes you can take. The first option is to look into getting final expense insurance to cover the cost of the funeral. You can also reach out to friends and family members for donations.
Decide the Small Details
Another important part of funeral planning is deciding on all of the small details. You’ll need to make arrangements for post-service meals for everyone that chooses to attend and you’ll also need help with planning displays and videos for the person that passed away.
It is also smart to get together with people that knew your loved one well and come up with the best funeral and celebration of life songs possible. It might be difficult, but if other friends or family members ask to help with planning a funeral you should accept their offer of help.
Another thing that you don’t want to overlook is if your loved one is getting buried in the clothing that they’ll wear in their casket. Consult the family about any jewelry or belongings that your loved one would want to be buried with.
Who Will Participate?
Odds are that there are certain close friends and family members that will want to be active participants in the funeral services. You’ll want to make sure that you take the time to sit down and think about who you want to carry the casket to the gravesite and who you want to speak at the celebration of life.
If they belonged to a church then you’ll also need to choose a clergy member to speak at the funeral. Another great idea is to have someone read your loved one’s favorite passages from the Bible at their funeral services.
Avoid Driving
When the day of the funeral arrives, you might find that you’re too emotional to get behind the wheel of a vehicle and drive. If that is the case then find a close friend or family member that will drive you. You’re better off reaching out for help and keeping yourself and those around you safe.
Start Your Funeral Planning Today
Funeral planning is a massive undertaking that is stressful even in the best circumstances. There are many things that you’ll need to do when planning a funeral, like getting insurance from the deathcare industry and choosing the type of disposition. You should also avoid driving if you’re in a severe state of grief on the day of the funeral.
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