How To Plan Ahead For A Cremation

Pre-arranging ensures that your loved ones will never have to wonder whether they handled things as you would have wished. Considering the many religious, moral and lifestyle variations today, even intra-familial differences occur.

After you find a cremation provider you are comfortable with, call them and schedule an appointment to complete your cremation pre-arrangements.

Cremation Resource has a database of the most reputable cremation providers in cities near you.

What is Involved?

In pre-planning, first one must choose where to be cremated. This step involves talking to local or regional services and making the choice that’s right for you and your loved ones.

One also must consider the type of memorial service they want, be it a typical funeral service, a small private gathering, or an otherwise customized event. In doing so, you need to decide on things such as where to hold these events and the size of the gathering.

Then, one must decide what to do after the cremation and service has been finalized, such as whether to be preserved in an urn (and if so, what kind of urn), have the urn buried, have ashes scattered, and so on.

Steps to Take

In the pre-planning process, include any family members, friends, or other loved ones. Communication is key in pre-planning, and the more everyone knows about the process, the easier it will be. Loved ones can help make the difficult decisions of where to be cremated and have memorial services. They can help choose a funeral director and the form of the funeral service itself.

In working this process out with loved ones, document what you decide, either in your will or with the crematorium/funeral home you have selected.

Funding the Process

To avoid hang-ups in the cremation and funeral processes you have selected, it is best to go ahead and fund the arrangements so that mistakes are not made afterward. In doing so, the life insurance company (if applicable) should be contacted. Although they won’t explicitly begin funding at this point, it’s best to make sure you and your loved ones understand how insurance is going to cover the events. With this information in mind, it’s easier to plan the entire process.

If family or loved ones are providing the funding, coming to agreements with them is a crucial part of the pre-planning process. Make sure everyone understands who is covering what, what kind of budget you’re looking at, and go forward accordingly.