Making the Right Choices for Your Loved Ones

Arranging a personalised funeral service that reflects the wishes of the deceased can be a difficult task. Whilst you and your family deal with your grief, you are also faced with countless options that can leave you overwhelmed. From choosing the location of the service, to personalising the funeral stationery, it is important that you make the right choices to give your loved one a fitting send off.

Thinking about the following aspects before deciding on the funeral service details can help you plan a fitting farewell for your loved one:-

Burial or cremation

One of the first points you and your family members will have to address is whether to go for a cemetery burial or a cremation. If the deceased pre-planned his/her funeral then the decision will already have been made. However, if it wasn’t planned in advanced, you will have to consider factors, such as cost and the religious preferences of the deceased and family members. If the family members prefer a traditional farewell, burial will be a better choice. If cost is an important consideration, cremation will be an economical alternative.

Religious or humanistic service

Funeral services may be religious or humanistic. If the deceased was a religious person, you can choose a traditional funeral service and include religious elements such as prayers, sermons, hymns, readings, and eulogies. However, if the deceased was not a religious person then you can consider sharing of real-life stories, pictures poems and readings that reflect the life of the deceased. Special requests for charitable donations can also be put forward when choosing a non-traditional funeral service.

Venue for the funeral service

The type of funeral service (religious or non-traditional) can have a significant bearing on the venue to be chosen for the service. A traditional funeral service can be planned at a church, a chapel, or at the crematorium whilst a less traditional service can be held at anywhere you choose. If you choose a venue other than a church building, a member of the clergy or a celebrant can officiate the ceremony.

Flowers or charitable donations

If you choose to, everyone attending the funeral service can be informed that charitable donations will be accepted in lieu of flowers and wreaths. Alternatively, you can still opt to receive flowers. There are a wide variety of different flower arrangements and you can choose specific types of flowers or colours, perhaps those that reflect the preference of the deceased if known.

Funeral stationery

Funeral cards, Order of Service, funeral service sheets and post-funeral Thank-You Cards can also be designed to have a consistent theme (traditional or otherwise) to reflect the likes and hobbies of your loved one. Funeral stationery no longer has to be a plain black and white document. Graphic design firms specialising in funeral stationery design and printing can turn your funeral order of service ideas into reality. They can work with you or with your funeral director to find or create the perfect theme for the farewell.

Alison Lowe works as a Graphic Designer at Fitting Farewell, a leading designing and printing firm specialising in bespoke funeral stationery.