Why are so many families pre-planning their funerals?

 

For peace of mind, to personalize their funeral, to reduce the emotional stress or financial burden, to provide final expenses due to Medicaid regulations and to protect against rising funeral costs.

 

What purpose does a funeral serve?

 

The funeral expresses the life and faith of the deceased while providing comfort and support for the family and friends. The funeral is arranged services designed to invoke religious rituals, honor the deceased and fulfill the needs of the family.

 

What do funeral directors do?

 

Funeral directors are administrators, but most of all they are caregivers.  They make the arrangements for the transportation of the body, complete all the necessary paperwork and implement the choices made by the family regarding all the funeral and final disposition of the deceased.

 

Why a public viewing?

 

Viewing is a part of many cultural and ethnic traditions.  Many grief specialists believe that the viewing aids the grieving process by helping the bereaved recognize the reality of death.

 

Who determines the cost of the funeral and why are they so expensive?

 

The family of the deceased does.  The cost of a funeral will depend on how elaborate the family has selected the funeral to be. Funeral directors offer a wide variety of services to choose from.  The funeral business is a 24 hour labor intensive business.  The extensive facilities, buildings, vehicles, and services are expenses that must be figured into the cost.  In addition, the cost of the casket, the burial vault, cemetery space, flowers, church, clergy expenses and death notice costs all add into the cost of a funeral.  The funeral director is making arrangements, filing the appropriate documents, meeting the doctors, hospital or hospice staff, arranging the church and clergy times, submitting newspapers notices, preparing the body and seeing to all the other necessary details.

           

Must you have a funeral director to bury the dead?

 

Yes, in New York State, a licensed funeral director must be present to supervise the interment, cremation, or pick up a deceased individual from a hospital, home or hospice facility.

 

What is the purpose of Embalming and is it required?

 

The embalming process sanitizes and preserves the body and enhances the appearance of a body to look as natural as possible.  This process makes it possible to lengthen the time between death and the final disposition.  In New York State you are not required to have an embalming, but if there is a public viewing most funeral homes require that you have an embalming.

 

Can you have a viewing even with a cremation?

 

Yes, many families will select a traditional viewing and a religious service consistent with their faith and then follow with a cremation instead of the traditional burial or entombment.