No funeral is the same. Funeral services is now possible to be modified depending on the family background or custom. Even though there seems to be some generalities to modern funerals, personal touches could be included so as to reflect the unique personality of the departed loved one. Funerals normally begin with a wake viewing. Customarily, the casket is opened for viewings, though other families prefer to close the casket and instead display pictures of their deceased loved one.
Naturally, funerals as well has some type of service. Again, depending on the family’s particular religion or tradition, the service may be held at a funeral parlor or in a church, synagogue, or any other place of worship. In order to create this segment of the funeral more customized, families usually perform readings or excerpts from poems or literature that was particularly special to the deceased.
On the other hand, other family members choose having the memorial service in some other time after the burial. In this non-traditional setting, loved ones can meet at any particular place to pay respect to the deceased without the presence of the casket.
Burial services are also included in the funeral planning. The family can choose from a variety of cemetery plots and mausoleums. These days, cremation is one of the most common practices wherein the family can scatter the ashes in a particularly meaningful location or keep in an urn.
You can personalize funerals if you put in special touches and making it more memorable. But ultimately, funerals must achieve what it’s really meant for – to honor the life of the deceased.

* Where the cremation will take place. Whether you deal with a funeral home or not, the cremation process will take place at the crematorium. Funeral homes have certain crematoriums that they use but if you are not using a funeral home then you will locate one on your own.

* Viewing or visitation. An ever increasing number of families are requesting cremation services. Cremation services options are:

Full service cremation includes visitation with public viewing and funeral service held at the funeral home or at a place of worship. This service usually also includes a private family viewing arranged at your convenience. These arrangements require embalming by company policy and, in most cases, by state law. At the end of the service or ceremony, family and friends are dismissed and the decedent is taken to the crematory for cremation.

Full service cremation with a public viewing or visitation the same day as the service. The service may be scheduled either daytime or evening.

Public viewing followed by cremation and then a graveside committal service.

Public viewing followed by cremation but without a committal service, with cremated remains returned to the family.

* Costs associated with cremation Cremations are typically much less expensive than ground burials for many reasons. For example, in many cases a cremation is not preceded by a funeral. If a funeral is held before the cremation, very often the casket is rented for the duration of the funeral instead of purchased. Similarly, remains that are to be cremated are often not embalmed for a wake or visitation.

* Caskets choices. If a funeral is planned, you have choices as to what kind of casket you use. Most casket makers have specially made caskets for cremation which allow both the coffin and the remains to be burned at once. Very often, a casket can also be rented at the funeral home to be used for any planned services.

As a rule, the top thing for you to do for you and your family is to pre-plan. Advanced preparation will ease a lot of the trouble when the time of death truly comes. Nevertheless, I know that logically, this can’t always take place. Death is not always expected, in any case.

About the Author

Hal is the author of several critically acclaimed eBooks specifically written to help people deal with end of life issues. His eBooks include topics such as: cremation, writing and delivering a eulogy, eco-friendly green funerals, funeral planning, organ donation, and buying and selling cemetery plots. To find out more about his CemeterySpot family of free services and resources, to learn more about his books, and to get a free gift, please visit: http://www.cemeteryspot.com.