Burial Services

What is Burial?

Burial is the act or process of placing a deceased person's body into the ground, typically in a grave, as a form of final disposition in many cultures and religions. Burial has been practiced for millennia throughout human history.

Why Choose Burial?

Burial has been a fundamental part of human rituals for thousands of years, offering a sense of closure and permanence. Here's why many families opt for it:

Cultural and Religious Significance: For many faiths such as Christianity and Judaism, burial aligns with spiritual beliefs about returning to the earth or preparing for the afterlife. It symbolizes respect for the body and provides a physical site for remembrance.

Memorialization and Gathering: A gravesite serves as a dedicated space for family and friends to visit, reflect, and honor memories. Cemeteries often allow for personalized headstones, monuments, or plantings, fostering ongoing connections across generations.

Emotional Comfort: The ritual of burial can bring solace during grief, as it follows familiar customs that emphasize dignity and finality. In a fast-changing world, it offers stability, familiarity, and a tangible way to celebrate a life well-lived.

Increasing Options: Burial continues to evolve, with options like green burials emphasizing simplicity and sustainability to minimize environmental impact, appealing to those seeking eco-friendly alternatives.

Viewing: A Personal Choice...

A common component of North American funeral service is the professional embalming and open-casket viewing (whether public or private) of the dead human body prior to the cremation process taking place. It allows for family and friends to visit with the deceased one final time, pay their final respects, find closure, and accept the loss. Private family viewings without embalming may also be arranged for immediate family members. Hospice organizations are increasingly trained to support and guide families who may wish to wash or dress their deceased loved one as a final act of care. In these instances, impromptu private family viewings may also occur at the place of passing, prior to us bringing your loved one into our care.

Viewing is a deeply personal experience and deeply personal choice which may only be made once. Some choose to view the body due to religious reasons, while others choose to do so for personal reasons. Some feel that viewing the body is a natural part of the funeral process, while others feel that it is unnecessary.

According to Dr. Alan Wolfelt, one of North America's leading death educators, viewing and spending time with the body of a loved one is a way of honoring the transition from life to death. As Dr. Wolfelt states, "viewing allows the acceptance of the reality and finality of death." Whether it is a private family viewing without embalming or large public visitation, we always recommend that families give themselves and others the opportunity to say their final goodbyes whenever possible. COVID-19 has further reiterated this belief, as we found that many families were unable to visit with their loved one as healthcare facilities all but shut down to visitors.

In considering your wishes, bear in mind those family members or friends who may want or need to have this time. It is a decision that can only be made once, and a decision that may even be taken for granted. If someone does not wish to view their deceased loved one, that is perfectly fine - the important thing is that they were given the opportunity to have this final moment of closure.

Current Practices and Types

Traditional burial remains common, generally involving embalming to preserve the body, placement in a casket, and interment in a cemetery plot, often preceded by a viewing or funeral service. This practice, dominant for much of the 20th century, includes rituals like eulogies, processions, and graveside ceremonies, influenced by religious and cultural norms. To many, this is a familiar and comforting process.

Traditional Services

• The transfer of the deceased from the place of death to the funeral home
• Professional care of the deceased, which may include sanitary washing, embalming, dressing, hairdressing, cosmetology, and casketing
• An arrangement conference with the family to plan specific details for the funeral
• Locating the deceased's doctor to sign a death certificate; then filing this certificate at the local health department; obtaining the requested amount of certified death certificates for the family
• Obtaining all necessary permits and authorizations, as required
• Preparing an obituary to be placed in any newspapers requested by the family
• Contacting local cemeteries
• Use of facilities, equipment, and staff for visitation, funeral service, or church service
• Care and arrangement of floral pieces, and delivery to the family's residence after the funeral
• Arranging for Pallbearers and motor equipment, including limousines, as required
• Ordering special floral pieces at the family's request
• Contacting Clergy, Fraternal, or Military organizations to take part in the ceremony
• Arranging for an online remembrance package including a guestbook

Immediate Burial

• The transfer of the deceased from the place of death to the funeral home
• Professional care of the deceased, which may include sanitary washing, embalming, dressing, hairdressing, cosmetology, and casketing
• An arrangement conference with the family to plan specific details for the funeral
• Locating the deceased's doctor to sign a death certificate; then filing this certificate at the local health department; obtaining the requested amount of certified death certificates for the family
• Obtaining all necessary permits and authorizations, as required
• Preparing an obituary to be placed in any newspapers requested by the family
• Contacting local cemeteries or crematory, as required
• Care and arrangement of floral pieces, and delivery to the family's residence after the funeral
• Contacting Clergy, Fraternal, or Military organizations to take part in the ceremony
• Arranging for an online remembrance package including a guestbook
• Conducting of graveside service
  
  

Green Burial
Throughout the United States, there is a growing preference for green or natural burial, which is an environmentally conscious approach to death care that emphasizes simplicity, sustainability, and allowing the body to decompose naturally.

Options for green burial are largely dependent upon individual cemetery regulations. Local cemetery options remain limited for green burial, however, this is slowly evolving. Depending on your wishes, we can help create a burial service that incorporates green options, such as foregoing embalming or eco-friendly casket options.

Traditional Services with Cremation Following

Many families do not realize that you can incorporate many components of a traditional funeral (for instance, a viewing and funeral service) with cremation following. The cremated remains can then be buried at a cemetery, scattered in a special place, or retained at home. We offer ceremonial caskets that may be used for this purpose.

• The transfer of the deceased from the place of death to the funeral home
• Professional care of the deceased, which may include sanitary washing, embalming, dressing, hairdressing, cosmetology, and casketing
• An arrangement conference with the family to plan specific details for the funeral
• Locating the deceased's doctor to sign a death certificate; then filing this certificate at the local health department; obtaining the requested amount of certified death certificates for the family
• Obtaining all necessary permits and authorizations, as required
• Preparing an obituary to be placed in any newspapers requested by the family
• Contacting local cemeteries or crematory, as required
• Use of facilities, equipment, and staff for visitation, funeral service, or church service
• Care and arrangement of floral pieces, and delivery to the family's residence after the funeral
• Contacting Clergy, Fraternal, or Military organizations to take part in the ceremony
• Arranging for an online remembrance package including a guestbook
• Transfer of the deceased to local crematory
• Burial of cremated remains at cemetery