FAQ

The funeral is a ceremony which is designed to honor and celebrate the life of an individual. It provides an opportunity for the survivors and others who share in the

loss to express their love, respect, and gratitude. It permits facing openly and realistically the loss which has occurred. Through the funeral, the bereaved take that first step towards emotional adjustment to their loss.

This is a very personal question only you can answer.

• The type of service, if not pre-planned, is decided by the family and usually held at a place of worship, at the funeral home or in a community facility. The service may vary by religious denomination or the wishes of the family.

• A public service and visitation period allows friends to share in the loss and to express their love and respect for the deceased and the family.

• A private service is by invitation only where selected relatives and a few close friends attend.

• A memorial service is usually a service without the body present.

Regardless of the type of service selected, it is important that it honors and celebrates life and provides family and friends an appropriate time to grief.

Absolutely, in fact, we recommend it. After all, the funeral is a celebration of life. There are so many creative and meaningful possibilities today.

With years of experience and training our Directors and staff are truly experts in helping family create special moments and opportunities to remember their loved one. If you have questions or would like to discuss arrangements and creative possibilities, call the funeral home. We would be pleased to help.

There are many reasons to view the deceased. It is part of many cultural, social and family traditions. Many grief specialists believe that viewing aids the grief process, by helping the bereaved recognize the reality of death. Viewing is even encouraged for children, if it is their desire, and the process is explained well.

It is helpful to friends and the community to have an obituary notice published announcing the death and type of service to be held. A notice can be placed in a local newspaper, our funeral home website or through Facebook and other social media platforms.

Funeral directors are both caregivers and administrators.

In their administrative duties, they make the arrangements for transportation of the body, complete all necessary paperwork, and implement the choices made by the family regarding the funeral and final disposition of the body. 

As caregivers, funeral directors are listeners, advisors and supporters. They have experience assisting the bereaved in coping with death. Funeral directors are trained to answer questions about grief, recognize when a person is having difficulty coping, and recommend sources of professional help.

Funeral directors also link survivors with support groups at the funeral home or in the community.

We are available 24 hours a day, seven days a week. Just call any of our funeral homes for assistance. If you request immediate help, one of our professionals will be there within the hour. If the family wishes to spend a short time with the deceased to say goodbye, it's acceptable. We will delay our arrival until the time is right.

Your funeral director can assist you if a death occurs anywhere on the globe. Contact your hometown funeral director of choice immediately.

They will assume responsibility and coordinate the arrangements for the return of the deceased person to their community. They may engage the services of a funeral director in the place of death who will act as their agent.

Embalming sanitizes and preserves the body, retards the decomposition process, and enhances the appearance of a body disfigured by traumatic death or illness. It makes it possible to lengthen the time between death and the final disposition,

thus allowing family members time to arrange and participate in the type of service most comforting to them. 

Embalming the body enables mourners to view the deceased if they wish. The emotional benefits of viewing the deceased are enormous, particularly to those having difficulty dealing with the death.

No. However, certain factors of time, health and possible legal requirements might make embalming either appropriate or necessary. Please note that embalming may be required if the deceased is being transported by air to another country where local laws need to be observed.

No, cremation is an alternative to earth burial or entombment for the body's final disposition and often follows a traditional funeral service. We can assist you with the necessary information for a funeral with a cremation following or a memorial service.

For the past 30 years, the interest in cremation as an alternative to traditional burial has seen an increase. Cremation offers flexibility and options not available with traditional burial.

Yes. Cremation does not preclude having a visitation period and a funeral service. Cremation is simply one option for the final disposition of the body.

Funerals can cost as little as $4,700 for a direct disposition. (Direct disposition includes registering the death, a basic casket or container, and transporting the deceased to a cemetery or crematorium) 

For an adult, full service funeral, consumers choose to spend an average of $9,000. This includes all professional services, including transfer-of remains, embalming, and other preparation; use of viewing facilities and the facilities for the ceremony; hearse, limousine, and the purchase of a casket.

The cost for funeral goods and services have increased over the years at about the standard rate of inflation.

In some respects, funerals are a lot like weddings or birthday celebrations. The type and cost will vary according to the desires and budget of the family.

Additionally, a funeral home is a 24-hour, labor-intensive business, with extensive facilities (viewing rooms, chapels, limousines, hearses, etc.), which expenses must be factored into the cost of a funeral. 

Moreover, the cost of a funeral includes not only merchandise, like caskets, but the services of a funeral director making arrangements; filing appropriate legal forms; dealing with doctors, ministers, florists, newspapers, and others; and coordinating all the necessary details. Contrary to popular belief, funeral homes are largely family-owned with a modest profit margin.

While most funeral homes provide outstanding services, sometimes things can go wrong. Funeral service is regulated by the Federal Trade Commission and state licensing boards. In most cases, the consumer should discuss problems with the funeral director first. If the dispute cannot be solved by talking with the funeral director, the consumer may wish to contact the FTC by contacting the Consumer Response Center by phone, toll free, at 1-877-FTC-HELP (382-4357); TDD: 1-866-653-4261; by mail: Consumer Response Center, Federal Trade Commission, 600 Pennsylvania Avenue, NW, Washington, DC
20580; or on the Internet at www.ftc.gov, using the online complaint form. You may also choose to contact the local Better Business Bureau, or your state consumer protection office.

Other than the family, there are veteran, union, and other organizational benefits that may help pay for funerals. Most funeral directors are aware of the various benefits and know how to obtain them for the indigent. However, to ensure the deceased has a respectable burial, funeral directors often absorb costs above and beyond what is provided by agencies.

Just like other open spaces, cemeteries are impacted by increased population density. Most noticeably in urban areas (inside city limits) available cemetery spaces are decreasing and new cemetery development is usually restricted.

If you are interested in having space for your entire family to be buried in a designated area, this would be the time to begin making decisions. Family plots can accommodate any number spaces and allow for common family memorials, individual markers, and benches.

"Perpetual Care" refers to cemeteries who guarantee or assure constant care and maintenance of the cemetery. Perpetual care cemeteries set aside a percentage of the cost for each space into a special fund overseen by the Texas State Banking Department. These funds are used to maintain the grounds, roads, and buildings of the cemetery.

Registered with the State of Texas, they are audited regularly to ensure financial integrity and accountability to the families they serve.

Yes, we can show you the wide range of personalization choices, including customized nameplates and military insignias.

Yes, we offer urn vaults, designed for in ground burial of cremated remains. These too can be personalized in creative and meaningful ways.

Never. Not only is it illegal to do so, most modern cremation chambers are not of sufficient size to accommodate more than one adult. Thereby making it virtually impossible to conduct multiple cremations simultaneously.

Yes, for a nominal fee. Our state-of-the-art cremation facility is set up to allow family members to be present when the body is placed into the cremation chamber. In fact, some religious groups include this as part of their funeral custom.

No, embalming is not required for burial. It is always your choice. Your decision may depend on such factors as whether the family selected a service with a public viewing of the body with an open casket; to enhance the deceased's appearance for a private family viewing; if the body is going to be transported by air or rail, or because of the length of time prior to the burial.

In most areas of the country, state or local laws do not require that you buy a container to surround the casket in the grave. However, many cemeteries require that you have such a container so that the ground will not sink. Either a grave liner or a burial vault will satisfy these requirements.

Mausoleum crypts are both clean and dry. They offer a viable alternative for those who simply have an aversion of being interred in the ground. Furthermore, with the growing shortage of available land for cemetery use, mausoleums will allow for a maximum number of entombments in a minimum amount of space.

A columbarium, often located within a mausoleum, chapel or in a garden setting, is constructed with numerous small compartments (niches) designed to hold urns containing cremated remains.