It’s funny; in life, we’re always keen to plan things for ourselves. Weddings, birthday parties, pregnancies, purchasing a home, overseas holidays, all major life events really, except……….our funeral. Why is that? We know it’s going to happen, it’s more certain than anything else in our lives yet we avoid planning it, talking about it, even thinking about it in some cases. Why not create a funeral that’s right for you? You’ll get to choose just how you would like everything to be and your family won’t need to stress when the time comes, they’ll be able to concentrate on being together and sharing stories about all the good times.
What is there to plan? It’s just a funeral isn’t it?
Well, there’s quite a few details that need to be decided on and the more choices you make, the more personalised your funeral will be, making it a reflection of the life you’ve lived. Let’s take a look at some of the options you have.
- Type and style of the funeral – Will it have religious or cultural significance? Will it be in a church, a sports club, at home? Will it be traditional and formal or modern and in formal? Will you have a theme or dress code? Will a minister or funeral celebrant take the service?
- Final resting place – Would you like to be buried or cremated? Where would you like to be buried? Family plot in another town? Local cemetery? At sea? And if you want to be cremated, where would you like your ashes to go? Kept with family or scattered in a special place?
- Casket and urn – Will you have a stock standard plywood casket or would you prefer something personalised and hand painted? If you’re going to be cremated after the service, will you have a matching urn or will you need a scatter tube?
- Flowers, music and readings – Do you have a favourite flower or colour preference? Would you prefer guests made a donation to a charity rather than bringing flowers? Is there a song or number of songs you’d like played? Is there a poem or biblical scripture that you would like reading out? Who would you like to read them?
- Reception and catering – Will you have a reception after the service? What kind of reception will it be? A sit down meal or drinks and nibbles? Do you have a favourite food you’d like everyone to have?
- Your final ride – How will you take your final ride? In a hearse? a motorbike with a sidecar? horse and carriage? Tractor? The options are endless!
- Any special features – Would you like anything special placed in or on your casket? Do you have an old secret recipe that you’ll finally share with everyone? Do you want everyone to wear something in particular? You could consider having doves or butterflies released or even have everyone sign your casket.
OK how do I do all of this?
You might be surprised to know that it’s easy and even better….free! There are two ways to go about pre-planning your funeral. You can simply download and fill in a pre-planning form here or meet with a funeral director at one of our venues or in the privacy of your own home. If you choose to also prepay your funeral, you’ll be able to reduce your assets. You can put up to $10,000 towards your funeral, tax-free. This money is held securely by the FDANZ Funeral Trust, not the funeral home. Whether you prepay, pre plan or both you’ll be able to rest easy knowing you’re going to get the send of you want.
