Our staff are committed to presenting you with options and guidance, without pressure, allowing you to make the decisions that you feel are appropriate. Planning a funeral for a loved one is far from easy. However, knowing that you can honour them in a way that best represents the individual, can be comforting. By integrating elements that reflect their personality, interests and life story, the service can be helpful with closure, allow for a feeling of connection to the memory of their loved one, and help in the grief process.
Options for personalizing a funeral can be simplistic, or as creative as you choose. The ideas can be the actions or displays of any of the following, and are certainly not limited to: golf clubs, homemade quilts or other crafty items and handiwork, a favourite teddy bear, books, lego creations, planting a tree, hobby collections, favourite sports team jerseys, flowers, hockey sticks, baseball bats, a football, board games, club jackets or uniforms, items to honour nationality or heritage, a motorcycle or antique car, medals, line of duty apparel representing years of service, a tribute or eulogy… these are all just options, to start the thought process. There are so many possibilities!
Favourite foods can be served, you can collect a written memory from each attendee, dance groups can participate, a favourite song or hymn can be played or sung, a tribute video, photo collages and/or scrapbooks displayed. A register book can be signed and service cards handed out. There was even an article, awhile back, about an ice cream truck coming to a funeral and serving treats!
Items like the urn or casket, can also be personalized. As well, there are many options of keepsake jewelry available, including pendants that hold cremated remains, or ones that contain a print of something as individual as a fingerprint.
One funeral that stands out in my mind was a service on the West Coast, where the family had a private graveside service at the cemetery, prior to the church Memorial Service. At the front of the church for the service, in place of the casket, was his motorcycle and on the seat was the most beautiful floral arrangement. I remember it being a unique focal point at the front but so personal at the same time, possibly because it is going back over twenty-five years now, long before we had Pinterest and other social media forums to give us endless creative ideas.
My husband’s father passed away on Easter Sunday this year and we had the service a couple weeks later, in his rural prairie community. We also held the burial before the service and rather than have floral arrangements at the cemetery, we grabbed a pail of wheat from a bin at the farm. Everyone got to walk by and place a handful of wheat on the casket, before it was lowered. He didn’t like fancy and he’d think spending money on extra flowers was wasteful, so the simplicity of the wheat was a perfect tribute for him.
He was a physician in the area, for over 50 years, so we felt that having his stethoscope at the front of the church, alongside his photo and prairie-themed floral arrangements, would be a fitting touch. This is just another idea of personalization. It really can be as simple, or as elaborate, as you choose. You know your loved one best.
We want you to know that you always have options! A few specific details can make an impact, it doesn’t need to be overwhelming. There is no right or wrong way to celebrate your special person. Be assured that we are here to guide and assist you, as you create that meaningful celebration of life.
Beautifully. Affordably. It’s not a day in a lifetime… it’s a lifetime in a day.
Any content, resident submissions, guest columns, advertisements, and advertorials are not necessarily endorsed by or represent the views of Best Version Media LLC (BVM) or any municipality, homeowners associations, businesses, or organizations that this publication serves. BVM is not responsible for the reliability, suitability, or timeliness of any content submitted, inclusive of materials generated or composed through artificial intelligence (AI). All content submitted is done so at the sole discretion of the submitting party.
