Monthly Archives: January 2020

Columbarium Vs. Mausoleums After Cremation Services

If you’ve ever been walking in, through or past a cemetery, you’ve most likely noticed the ornate but small buildings scattered around the grounds amidst the tombstones. These buildings are mausoleums, columbarium, or even a combination of the two. How do these buildings come into play when it comes to cremation services in Walnut Creek, CA? Many people choose to inter the cremated remains in the ground or in a permanent above ground resting place, but which building do they use?

Both columbarium and mausoleums are defined as permanent, above ground resting places for human remains, but they have a few key differences between them. Unlike mausoleums that generally hold bodies, columbarium are designed to house cremated remains. According to the National Funeral Directors Association, a mausoleum is defined as, “a building designed for above-ground placement of a casket. The casket is placed into a crypt that may be designed for one or two persons.” Mausoleums can have one crypt, or a chamber designed to hold one body, or a larger space made to hold a few people like a family or a couple.

Some mausoleums have more than one room for different parts of a family. These buildings are often decorated with exterior markers to denote who is resting inside. Some even have glass windows that allow those on the outside to view the coffins. Mausoleums can be found in different variations and designs all around the world. One of the original Seven Wonders of the World was a mausoleum! Built in 353 BC near what is now known as Turkey, The Mausoleum of Halicarnassus was the final resting place of a famous Persian king named Mausolus. This king was so rich that he commissioned one of the finest mausoleums ever built and is actually how the term mausoleum was coined.

The term columbarium comes from the Latin word “columba” which means dove. In the past, doves and pigeons were housed in buildings with niches on the walls for their nests. This design is very similar to how columbarium are made, as they have compartments built into the walls to house and display cremation urns.

There are lots of different columbarium designs. Some are indoor and some are outside, while others are simple and more still are decorated and elaborate. There are some with clear class niches to display the urns, while others are made of thick stone to hide the cremains inside. You can choose whatever kind of columbarium you like for your lost loved one, or you can look to the deceased’s list of post-humous wishes to learn about what he or she wanted done with the cremains.

Do you want to learn more about your options for after a Walnut Creek, CA cremation service? Deer Creek Funeral Service is here to help. You can visit us at 20630 Redwood Rd Castro Valley, CA 94546, or give us a call at (510) 317-7890 to learn more about what we can do for you in your time of loss, or for more information about your cremation options.

Funerals and the Holidays

While the holiday season is usually all about festivity and celebration, there are those that face loss during this time of year. Whether it’s a recent loss with a funeral at a funeral home in Walnut Creek, CA, or an anniversary of a past death, losing a loved one around the holidays is hard.

However, there are ways to make a holiday visit to a funeral home much easier. For example, you can continue the spirit of the season. Celebrating and remembering a lost loved one doesn’t have to end at the funeral home, even during the holidays. There are lots of ways bereaved can continue the spirit of the season and remembering the deceased at home, such as setting up a vase of the deceased’s favorite flowers, leaving an empty chair at the table, having a moment of silence before a meal, or putting up a special ornament on the tree.

The holidays are traditionally about celebration and happiness, so it’s important to set aside time for grief. Whether this grieving time is at the funeral home or memorial service, or if it is a more private or informal moment at home or with family, it’s a good idea to make it know that it’s OK to be sad and grieve even during the holidays. You can observe a moment of silence, share memories of the deceased, or just spend a few simple moments remembering. Make a holiday funeral or memorial service more meaningful and personal by adding personal touches. You can send everyone home with fresh baked holiday cookies, hang up festive decorations, sing seasonal songs, or take a moment to acknowledge the season.

Open the service to those from the community that knew the deceased or might want to offer support to the bereaved. Use various methods to promote the service and make it know that its open to the community. You can post on social media, post flyers or make calls. An open service fosters seasonal goodwill and allows everyone that was touched by the deceased to acknowledge their loss and pay their respects.

Giving back to your community is another great way to celebrate the season as well as turn your grief and loss into something positive. Grief can make you feel helpless, so doing community service or volunteering can bring back a feeling of control and positivity. There are tons of ways to volunteer around the holidays. Try caroling at a local retirement home, write notes to troops serving oversees, or host a toy drive for underprivileged kids.

If you have more questions about what to do with funerals around the holidays, or want more information about Walnut Creek, CA funeral homes in general, Deer Creek Funeral Service is here to help. We have years of industry experience that we would love to put at your disposal in your time of loss. Please visit us at 20630 Redwood Rd Castro Valley, CA 94546, or give us a call at (510) 317-7890 for more information on what we can do for you.

How Will You Customize a Cremation Service?

Whether you’re planning a memorial service at a unique location or hosting a wake after a cremation service in Dublin, CA, it’s important that the service is personalized to the deceased. Studies show that the more personalized and memorable a service is the more it helps not only honor the deceased but also offer some relief for the bereaved during their time of loss.

How will you customize the cremation service? If you don’t know, don’t worry. There are a lot of different ways to go about it. The following list of ideas, for example, is a great place to start:

Put Out Special Food – Food is a serious comfort for a lot of people. Take inspiration from the deceased’s favorite foods and put out a special spread for guests at the service.
Set Up a Memory Table – A memory table is an easy way to help make a memorial service custom and personalized. It’s a simple and free way to show items that either meant a lot to the deceased, show their personality, or represent the deceased to other people. You can put almost anything on a memory table such as photos, sunglasses, ticket stubs from special events, letters, favorite vases or flowers, beloved clothing, or anything else that was special to or about the deceased. You can also make several memory stations as opposed to just one table. There can be themed tables with each one showing a part of the deceased’s life, such as wedding memories, school items, and children and grandchildren.
Share Photos and Videos – Many bereaved families make photo collages or montage videos for a memorial service. These items are treasured by the family, but other bereaved like friends and coworkers would appreciate access to them as well. Consider uploading any montages or videos online to share with other people. You can use GoogleDrive, DropBox, or Youtube. Make the files accessible with only a certain link and print the link on the service program so guests can access it if they choose.
Add Decorations – It might seem like bad form to decorate a memorial service after a cremation, but decorations can actually make the service more special and unique. You can add decorations in any form you want, from lamps and rugs to artwork, flowers and everything in between. Bring decorations that somehow represent or honor the deceased. For example, if she loved to stitch, you could hang some of her work. Or if he loved a certain artist you could display copies of famous artwork.

There are many ways to customize a cremation service, and one option is to create cremation jewelry. This type of jewelry is typically made from the ashes of the deceased, and can be used to create a special and unique memorial for your loved one.

If you need more ideas, look to the deceased for inspiration from his or her life, or turn to Deer Creek Funeral Service. We have years of experience in the direct cremation services industry, and are happy to help you in any way that we can. Please stop by and visit us at 20630 Redwood Rd Castro Valley, CA 94546, or give us a call at (510) 317-7890 to learn more about what we can do for you in your time of loss.

Planning a Funeral with Non-Traditional Next of Kin Relationships

Though our laws and perceptions of what it means to be a family are becoming more inclusive, it can still be challenging for those with non-traditional next of kin relationships when it comes to planning a funeral at a funeral home in Dublin, CA. The most common non-traditional relationships are same-sex couples, Common Law marriages, and separated but still married couples.

There are three criteria that have to be met in order to couples to be considered legally married under general Common Law. If you are married under Common Law, it’s important to know that it might be tricky for a funeral home or service to validate a Common Law Marriage after one of the people passes away. Unless a Declaration of Informal Marriage has been filed by a county clerk, many funeral homes will ask a different next of kin person to sign the necessary funeral documents as there are penalties involved in allowing a non-documented marriage to serve as legal standing to be a next of kin. To avoid any concerns or issues after a death, Common Law couples should file with the county clerk before a death.

Thanks to modern legislation, legally married same-sex couples have the exact same rights and next-of-kin spouse status as heterosexual couples. However, the this is only the case if the couple is legally married at the time of death. Without proof of a legal marriage, the funeral home or service will have to look to a different member of the family to take on final disposition responsibilities and decisions.

Marriage is a complicated relationship, and oftentimes married couples are separated but not legally divorced. In this scenario, the spouse would be still be responsible for making all necessary funeral arrangements and paying for them. Unless there is a clear legal proof of divorce, the marriage is still valid, and the spouse is the next of kin. This is more common than you might think and is a confusing situation that causes a lot of delays in making funeral home or cremation plans.

These days, most states have a process in place for getting around difficulties with next of kin relationships. Depending on the state, there is usually a form that people can fill out, sign and file to give a specific person the responsibility of all death-related decisions. This form allows you to choose who you want to make your funeral arrangements and is valid at the vast majority of licensed funeral homes and cremation providers.

Be sure to look into the specificities of your state law or reach out to a lawyer for the most up-to-date information and guidance. This way you will be as prepared as possible. If you have more questions about Dublin, CA funeral homes Deer Creek Funeral Service is here to help. You can stop by and visit us at 20630 Redwood Rd Castro Valley, CA 94546, or give us a call at (510) 317-7890 to learn more about what we can do for you.

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