A funeral is a way for family and friends to bid farewell to a loved one whom they’ve lost.
When a loved one passes away, friends and family are tasked with planning the funeral. There are many aspects of the funeral that need to be planned out carefully, but the most important of these is deciding what kind of funeral service you want for your loved one; a standard funeral service or direct funeral service.
Standard funeral services are what most families opt for but you will need to take into consideration the wishes of your loved one, given that they had mentioned the kind of funeral they would like when they pass away.
This blog post describes the differences between standard and direct funeral services to help you decide which is most suited for your loved one’s final farewell.
Traditional Funeral Services
Traditional professional funeral services involve holding a full-service funeral. The services offered may include:
1. Transfer of Care
After the passing of your loved one is confirmed, the body will be collected and transported directly to the funeral home.
2. Funeral Arrangements
The family and friends of the deceased will go to the funeral home to do the mandatory paperwork and discuss where the service will be held, choose the casket, select funeral music, and decide on the flower arrangements.
3. The Viewing
After the body has been prepared, it will be placed in the funeral home for family and friends to pay their respects to.
4. The Funeral Service
On the day of the funeral, the body will be transported using a hearse to the venue. The funeral may be held at the cemetery or the crematorium, if your loved one had wished to be cremated.
5. The Committal
If burial was chosen, during the committal, which usually takes place right after the funeral service, your loved one’s casket will be buried at the cemetery.
6. The Wake
After the burial, a wake will be held in the deceased’s memory, and during the wake, food and beverages may be served, giving friends and family a chance to remember your loved one in a more comfortable setting.
7. Collection of Ashes
If you choose to cremate your loved one, after the funeral service, you may need to go back to the crematorium to collect their ashes. Here you may also need to choose an urn and decide whether to take the ashes home or have them buried.
Direct Funeral Services
This is a very simple funeral service and in most cases, it doesn’t include a ceremony. Usually, these kinds of funeral services are chosen when the family wants to cremate their loved one, but we’ll look at both types of direct funerals.
1. Direct Cremation
The cremation is carried out without any ceremony. After the death has been verified, the body of your loved one will be transported directly to the crematorium.
There won’t be any intervention required from family members and the body will be placed in a simple casket for cremation. Usually, no embalming is done, but items like pacemakers will need to be removed from the body before cremation.
The cremation will usually happen a few hours after the body has been received. After the cremation is done, the ashes of your loved one can be collected from the crematorium, or you may have them delivered to your home if the crematorium gives you this option.
2. Direct Burial
Like direct cremation, direct burial will not include any ceremony. Usually, no visitation or viewing is involved. The body is not embalmed and is placed in a simple casket.
Depending on the deceased’s family’s choosing, you may have a committal, however, the burial may not be at a place of the family’s choosing.
Standard or direct funeral services: Which will you choose?
Both direct and standard funeral services are viable choices, but they come with varying prices, so it’s best to choose whichever funeral service you feel will help loved ones come to terms with their loss.
