THE MEMORIAL SERVICE AND CREMATION

A memorial service, like a funeral, is a service of remembrance, only without the body present. It may be held at a place of worship, the funeral chapel or any other appropriate location. Regardless of the site, your funeral director will assist in planning and organizing the service, and provide the necessary staff to direct the service.

The urn may be present for the memorial service, as the casket would be for a funeral. It is usually placed on a stand and attractively arranged with flowers. Sometimes a photograph of the person or meaningful memorabilia is displayed at the service or during a reception period.

Depending on where the death occurred, state or provincial laws may require that a specific "waiting period" elapse before cremation can occur. When scheduling the memorial service, therefore, care should be taken to accommodate these requirements, to ensure that the cremated remains can be present at the service, if that is the preference of the family. Your funeral director can advise you on the regulations in effect in your area.

The family may hold a visitation or reception at the funeral home/mortuary with or without the presence of the body. Frequently, the body will be in the casket during this time for viewing, and then cremated before the memorial service. If cremation is to take place immediately following death, it is often possible to arrange a brief private time for the family to see the body prior to the memorial service. For many people this has important psychological value, allowing them a time to "say good-bye."