Resources
Pre-Planning
Why Plan Ahead
Being responsible for planning a loved one's funeral can be a very emotional and stressful time. More people are choosing to pre-plan their own end of life care in order to take the burden off family members, ensure their wishes are followed and be financially prepared for the event.
Benefits of Advanced Planning
- Planning ahead allows you to make thoughtful and informed decisions about what you want for your funeral arrangements. You can choose the specific items you want, compare prices, and explore your options without the burden of time constraints or pressure to make quick decisions during an emotional time.
- You can organize all of your important information in advance to help your family members later on. Details such as social security number, religion, birth information and so on, will all be documented and accessible to be available when the time comes.
- Details of your funeral such as location, music, readings, and individuals you would like to be part of the service are all made in advance, giving you the ultimate choice in how you are celebrated after your death.
- If you choose to prepay for your funeral or cremation services, it can ease future financial burden for your loved ones. You may also benefit from paying in advance if the cost of goods and services rises and you are able to secure those items at a lower cost in advance.
- Advanced planning helps to ease the conversation with your loved ones about any end of life wishes that they may not be aware of, such as any details regarding medical treatment, location of any wills or important documents, and other specific wishes you may have or details you'd like to make sure they know about.
What to Expect From The Process
Our team is experienced in working with you to pre-plan for your end of life wishes. You will need to make choices for the three main components of of end of life planning. First, what is your preference for the treatment of your remains? Embalming, burial, cremation, etc.? Your second choice will need to be what kind of funeral service or ceremony you would like, whether a traditional service or something completely unique to you.
Finally, you'll need to decide how you would like your remains interred (i.e. traditional burial, scattering of ashes, etc.) We can help you complete a pre-planning checklist and fill out the necessary forms at an appointment in our office, or you can choose to do it all online using the links provided below.
Pre-Planning Checklist
Here are some examples of things you should take into consideration and prepare for when preparing your funeral arrangements:
1. Prepare Vital Statistics Information for Death Certificate and Other Paperwork
You will need the following vital statistics information available for completion of the death certificate and other necessary documents:
- Full Name
- Full Address, including Street, City, State, Zip Code
- Telephone Number
- Email Address
- Birth Information, Including Date of Birth and Place of Birth
- Social Security Number
- Parent's Information, Including Father's Name, Father's Place of Birth, Mother's Name, Mother's Place of Birth, and Mother's Maiden Name
- Marital Status, Including Spouse's Name, Spouse's Maiden Name, Date and Place of Marriage, If Applicable
- Military Service Information, If Applicable, Including Branch, Rank, Date of Enlistment and Discharge, Military Service Number, and Name(s) of War or Conflict(s) During Your Service
- Your Level of Education
- Occupation, Including Type of Work and Business Field
2. Decide on Method of Disposition and Interment
Making the choice about your preferred method of disposition is one of the most personal decisions you will ever make. Pre-arrangement allows you to decide whether you want to be buried or cremated, and how you would like your remains to be placed to final rest, such as buried in a casket or having your ashes scattered. This understandably may be a little uncomfortable to think about, but you can take comfort knowing that your decisions will be clear and respected after your death. We can help you understand all of the disposition options available to you, and make the choice that best fits your wishes.
You may need to choose a cemetery and burial plot or mausoleum, or specify whether you already own a space so that information is available to your family.
You can select a grave marker and inscription, and other relevant memorial items at this time.
If you choose to be cremated, you can pick an urn, determine who will keep the urn, whether you would like to have your ashes scattered, by whom and where.
3. What Type of Service Do You Want and Who Should Be Involved
Advanced planning gives you control over your preferences for the type of service you want. Some of your options include:
- Do you prefer a traditional funeral or something more unique to you?
- Would you like to have a viewing? If so, what are you preferences for your clothing, jewelry, eyeglasses, hair, makeup, etc?
- Choose a casket, urn, cremation container, etc. We can help you with the variety of options available to you.
- Select your favorite location for the service.
- You can choose a theme for your service and decide on memorial items like programs, bookmarks, etc.
- Decide on floral arrangements, decorations, choose memorial photos, and other items of importance to you.
- Make a list of who you want to be involved in the service and in what capacity. Clergy, speakers, pallbearers, musicians, etc.
4. Document Your Obituary Preferences and Relevant Information
Document the meaningful things you'd like to have included in your obituary. You may even choose to write a draft obituary to leave a memory of your life for your family. Include significant life milestones and events like:
- Marriage details, such as date and location.
- Names of schools and colleges attended, and areas of study if those are significant to you.
- Career milestones and highlights.
- Hobbies, activities, service organizations, fraternal groups, religious affiliations, unions, important charities, volunteer work, etc.
- Family members, both already passed and those still living. Parents, siblings, spouse, children, grandchildren, great-grandchildren, etc.
5. Make a List of Family and Friends To Be Notified Upon Your Death
You may want to make a list of anyone who needs to be contacted in the event of your death. Family members and children do not always know everyone who needs to be informed.
You should also consider leaving information regarding the location of any important documents, wills, safe deposit boxes, etc. to make things easier on your loved ones.
6. Make Payment Arrangements, If Desired
Many people are choosing to pay for their funeral expenses in advance to relieve their loved ones of the financial burden at the time of their death. We can help you explore your options to pre-paying, and help answer any questions or address any concerns you may have.
Ready to Pre-Plan Online?
Use our Online Pre-Planning Form to enter your information and submit to our system where a Forest North Funeral Chapel staff member will process and get in touch with you.
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