Minneapolis Funeral Homes Tell Clients How to Remain Sane While Planning a Funeral

Whether you’re thinking about how you want to be remembered when called from this life, or you’re organizing a memorial for a loved one who has just died, planning a funeral is an extremely sensitive affair. Cremation, graveside service or burial at sea – keep in mind that whichever option you choose should be done with the intent of helping other relatives and friends cope with the loss. So where do you turn when faced with the task of planning a funeral?

Here’s how you can reduce the stress of funeral planning and give your loved one a great sendoff:

1. Get Family Involved

Funeral planning starts at home. Your family members help you with decisions such as when you should start saving for college, home buying, weddings and other major issues – so too they should discuss funerals. Let faith and your shared viewpoint guide your choices. Be sure your choices are centered on what’s important to you as a family, and not on what you believe "the community" would want you to do.

Discuss disposition of the body – should your loved one be cremated? Should he or she have a traditional burial? Keep his or her wishes in mind – it will be comforting to know that you’ve given your loved one the sendoff he or she desired. You also need to discuss who will read the eulogy, which family members and/or friends can offer tributes, and whether or not there will be food after the funeral.

1. Visit one of the Funeral Homes Minneapolis

Once you’ve decided on the basics such as the manner of disposition, what music you want and who will do the readings, it’s time to set up an appointment with your funeral director. At this meeting you will discuss cremation services Minneapolis options, burial services or other alternatives. The appointment will run more smoothly if you designate two or three people to attend. Let everyone else stay home – remember the adage "too many cooks spoil the broth."

The primary reason for this visit to one of the Minneapolis or Burnsville funeral homes is to select "funeral products" such as a casket or an urn, stationery, flowers etc. The products selected at the funeral homes Burnsville MN will be based on your budget and the type of funeral service you’re having. A burial plot or vault will be required if the body is being buried, along with a headstone. If the body is being cremated, you may opt to place the cremains in a columbarium, which you will again need to arrange with the director at your selected Burnsville MN cremation services provider.

1. Contact Your Spiritual Leader: Priest, Rabbi, Imam etc.

He or she should be able to help you plan the spiritual aspects of the funeral. Consult a humanist minister if the deceased was not spiritual. The director of any of the funeral homes Richfield MN, Burnsville or Minneapolis should be able to help you. The customary American funeral complete with elaborate casket, wake, visitation etc. has no root in Judaism, Christianity or Islam. For example, in the Islamic Middle East and in Israel, interment in a shroud without a casket is still the main disposition method, as it has been for thousands of years.

There are numerous steps necessary for making funeral arrangements, as you can see. You might want to start making funeral arrangements or consulting with Richfield MN cremation services providers as soon as possible if you feel like a loved one’s death is looming. Even if you can’t plan in advance, though, your funeral director can assist you with all of the funeral arrangements.