Simply Cremation
Deciding Between a Funeral and a Memorial Service
When you are trying to choose whether to have a funeral or a memorial service at a Buckeye, AZ funeral home, it’s helpful to know the differences between a funeral and a memorial service and the purpose of each one.
A funeral may include a viewing, also known as a visitation, in which the deceased is laid out in a funeral casket that mourners pass by while offering condolences, support, and comfort to the deceased’s family. Viewings typically last two hours, with a funeral service immediately afterward.
Funeral services are usually more formal and are led by a clergy member or the funeral director. Funeral services can include readings, prayers, eulogies, sermons, and music, among other things. You also may have an option to webcast the funeral service, if there are relatives or friends of the deceased who are too far away to attend in person, and an option to record the funeral service so that you have a permanent copy of it.
Many people are under the impression that if the deceased is being cremated, there can be no funeral. Unless the deceased is having a direct cremation, a funeral can be conducted for them. The funeral home will provide a rental funeral casket to lay out the deceased for the viewing, and the funeral service will follow after the visitation. Once the funeral is over, the body will be put in a combustible container and cremated, after which the ashes will be returned to the family.
Memorial services differ from funerals in that they are not time-delimited – they can be held at any time after the deceased’s death – and they tend to be more casual, more celebratory of the life lived by the deceased, and involve storytelling and memory-sharing among the attendees. There is no specified format to a memorial service and it does not have to be held in the funeral home or a house of worship.
While memorial services are more typical when the deceased is cremated, it is not uncommon for families to hold memorial services when a loved one has had a private graveside burial. In cases where the illness that lead to the deceased’s death ravaged their bodies, their wishes and their family’s wishes are not to have a viewing, because that’s not how they want to be remembered. So the family will have a private burial and hold a memorial service to celebrate the deceased’s life some time later.
You can get more information about funerals and memorial services by talking with one of our compassionate and experienced Buckeye, AZ funeral home staff members at Simply Cremation & Funeral Arrangements. You can also come to our funeral home at 16952 W. Bell Rd., #303, Surprise, AZ, 85374. We are available 24/7 to assist you, so call us today at (623) 975-9393.
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