By Cathy Green
“Baby boomers think they’ll live forever,” said Nevin Mann, president and CEO of Bringhurst Funeral Home. “Most people beginning to think about pre-paying for funerals are 60 and over.”
There’s a financial advantage to making arrangements and paying in advance, he said: It’s protection against increasing costs.
However, he has found, that is not always the main reason. Your survivors appreciate your thoughtfulness.
“When people come here to complete final arrangements,” he says, “no one ever says they’re happy they saved money; they say they’re ‘happy she wrote this down and we know what she wanted. She took the burden from us.’”
More choosing cremation
Gilbert Schobert, owner and founder of the Gilbert H. Schobert Funeral Home, has seen many changes in his 55 years in the funeral business. Some who use his services have planned their funerals. Arrangements may involve survivors who do not live nearby.
Many more people choose cremation these days, Schobert said, and he predicts in the future, many more will do the same. He finds fewer calls for elaborate flower arrangements; instead, many people select smaller displays they can take home after the ceremony.
FTC has issued a guide
Auer Memorial Home and Cremation Services, Inc., utilizing a Cremation Society of Pennsylvania crematory, offers a variety of choices from a simple basic cremation to arrangements for church or graveside services, said representative Fred Cluck. Auer also offers the option of scattering the remains in the Gulf of Mexico or Arizona desert.
The Federal Trade Commission’s “Funerals: A Consumers Guide,” (www.ftc.gov/bcp/conline/pubs/services/funeral.shtm) gives information on every aspect of the process. It lists questions to ask when paying in advance; the funeral home’s responsibilities; and advice on choosing funeral directors, caskets and cemeteries.
When there is no viewing and burial or cremation take place soon after death, embalming is not required, according to the FTC. After cremation, the remains may be kept in the home, buried or “scattered in a favorite place.”
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