Tag Archives: dublin funeral home

Make It Meaningful

Losing a loved one is never going to be easy. A lot of people think that speeding through the funeral home in Dublin, CA funeral arrangements will make the process easier and less painful. However, mental health professionals and grief specialists agree that taking the time to plan and execute a meaningful funeral service can help people cope, accept, and eventually move past the loss of a family member or loved one.

Properly planned and executed meaningful funeral services provide an opportunity for families and friends to express feelings, connect with one another, and move towards healing as a unit. But what makes a meaningful funeral?

Most meaning funerals have an emphasis on the deceased’s relationships. People always say that relationships are the most important part of life, so the best way to have a meaningful funeral service is to have focus on the relationships the deceased had with friends and family. Take a moment to remember special events, fond memories, or everyday moments that embody what made the deceased’s relationships special. Use these memories to enhance your funeral services so they can best honor the deceased.

Meaningful funerals can also include more concrete things like:

Memorial Websites – Make the meaningful funeral services accessible to the world with a memorial website. Websites are beautiful and useful. They help connect family, friends and acquaintances online for easy funeral announcements and communication. They also can display the video, obituary, photos and more online so everyone has easy access long after the funeral is over.
Tribute Videos – Modern technology offers a unique way to remember the deceased. Take your home videos, photographs and memoires and create an especially unique tribute video. Put in graphics and music for even more personalization.
Customized Prints – Order customized prints for the funeral. These prints range from photo collages and blown up portraits to bookmarks, programs, boards and even books. Put special quotes, Bible verses, poems or artwork on the prints. You can also print out the obituary, or even the deceased’s favorite sayings. The prints serve as decoration for the funeral, and can be taken home by hosts and guests as keepsakes.

Remember, there is no right or wrong way to plan a funeral that honors the deceased and helps the bereaved grieve. These are just ideas to give you inspiration, as what is meaningful to you about the deceased might be different that what is meaningful to someone else about their lost loved one. You knew the deceased, and you know the best ways to honor his or her life through meaningful funeral services.

If you would like more information on how you can plan a meaningful funeral for your lost loved one, or would like to learn more about Dublin, CA funeral homes, Deer Creek Funeral Service is here for you. 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 in your time of loss.

Are Cremation Services Environmentally Friendly?

As our planet continues to suffer from worse and worse climate change, many people are beginning to as the question: “What can I do?” A posthumous, non-traditional way to help the environment is through cremation. A lot of people never even think about burials’ environmental impact, but a few small changes to funerals and services can go a long way.

If you are looking for a green way to celebrate the life of a loved one, or prepare for your own passing in an environmentally friendly way, cremation services in Dublin, CA might be the answer. Make an informed decision on how best to make your cremation environmentally conscious.

Cremation has a lot of positive sides over traditional burials. One of the main ones is environmental impact. Traditional, full service burials have considerable negative impact on the environment.

One big example is loss of habitat. A recent statistic from the Centre for National Burial states that 10 acres of cemetery holds almost 20,000 tons of vault concrete, 1000 tons of casket steal, and enough wood to build over 40 full-sized homes. All that material leaves little room for animal and plant life. Not to mention loss of land that could otherwise be used to grow food or build homes.

On the whole, thanks to modern advances, cremation is a greener choice. However, there are some downsides to cremation in terms of the environment. Standard crematoriums burn a lot of natural gas, and therefore release lots of greenhouse gases and chemical vapors that can harm the atmosphere.

Also, to fully dehydrate a human body to bone and ash, a crematorium has to be fully heated to at least 1400 degrees Fahrenheit, and maintain the heat for a minimum of 45 minutes. This process releases a lot of carbon dioxide, and uses up a lot of fossil fuel. But, new technology and more fuel-efficient crematorium centers have greatly reduced these negative impacts.

There are ways you personally can make cremation even greener. Some of these include:

Choose the casket carefully. Cremation providers generally require bodies to be in a rigid, consumable, and leak-proof casket for the cremation process. Burning these caskets can give off noxious gases and fumes, if you chose a bad one. When picking out your cremation casket, look for one made of non-toxic and renewable material. Wicker and cardboard are great options.
Recycle medical materials. Remove and recycle medical devices and parts, like pacemakers, before cremation. Burning said parts can release harmful gases and produce non-biodegradable ash.
Consider a biodegradable urn. Many people chose to bury their loved one’s ashes after cremation. While urns and ashes take up less space than a full-size grave, urns slow down the decay process and may negatively impact the surrounding earth. Choose a biodegradable urn to better protect the local ground.

Be careful to remain aware of your options when it comes to Dublin, CA cremation services so you can feel good about your choice in terms of the environment and celebrating your loved one. If you want more information, you can visit Deer Creek Funeral Service at 20630 Redwood Rd Castro Valley, CA 94546, or give us a call at (510) 317-7890.

Do You Need An Estate Planning Attorney?

No one wants to think about funeral homes in Dublin, CA, but its important to plan and protect your family in case anything should happen to you before your time, or in the event of your eventual passing. An estate-planning attorney might be able to help you do that.

Estate planning attorneys help guide you through the process of deciding how you want to divide your assets, gathering and preparing necessary post-life documents, and making sure your wishes are carried out after you’re gone. These lawyers are important because sometimes, without proper legal advice, affairs are left up to family members that are unsure of your wishes, or, in the worst case, might fight over the decisions. Estate lawyers can help you draft, review, and authorize important documents such as:

Last will and testament
Trust
Durable power of attorney
Medical durable power of attorney
Beneficiary designations

Like all other lawyers, estate-planning attorneys charge fees. They generally charge a flat rate for prepping your desired documents and a per hour rate for more complicated tasks like handling disputes or carrying out the will. The exact rates depend on where you live and what caliber of lawyer you wish to procure. Be sure to decide on rates up front with your lawyer to protect yourself from getting over charged.

The questions remains, however, do you need an estate-planning lawyer?

For most people, the answer is generally no. You don’t really need an estate planning unless:

Your net worth is more than $5 million. If you have a large net worth, your estate might be subject to estate tax. In that case, it’s a good idea to consult a lawyer to make sure that your beneficiaries get what you wish as opposed to it being taken by taxes.
You own large or many properties. Dividing up property can be tricky as titles are held in many ways and there are often confusing technicalities that you might be unaware of. In some cases, you might not even have the right to bequeath certain properties. An experiences lawyer can help guide you through these confusing laws to make sure your property is dealt with appropriately.
You have special circumstances. From children with disabilities to foreign property or heirs, special circumstances and finances are tough to navigate. A specialized estate-planning attorney can show you the way to get through such special circumstances.

If you’re unsure if you need an estate-planning lawyer, it couldn’t hurt to get a consultation. Remember, most lawyers do charge fees even for consultations, but sometimes peace of mind is worth the small cost. If you have more questions about estate planning, or want to know more about preplanning for your passing, Deer Creek Funeral Service would be happy to help. We offer Dublin, CA funeral home services from 20630 Redwood Rd Castro Valley, CA 94546. Please give us a call at (510) 317-7890 to learn more about what we can do for you.

Memorial Jewelry For After Cremation Services

You cared deeply for your lost loved one, and obviously want to memorialize him or her in a respectful but special way that is just as unique as he or she was. If you choose cremation services in Dublin, CA for the deceased, then memorial jewelry might be what you’ve been looking for.

What is memorial jewelry? Memorial jewelry can come in many forms, from necklaces and rings to lockets, pendants and bracelets, but every form is a special reminder of the deceased.

Most memorial jewelry is made through a similar process. Once a body is cremated, the family sends the remains to a jeweler. The remains, consisting of minerals like calcium phosphates, are combined with molten glass gold, silver, platinum or other materials using special encasement methods to mold the remains and the metals together. The goal is this molding is to display and protect the cremated remains.

Since every person’s chemical makeup is slightly different, every piece of memorial jewelry will have a slightly different chemical reaction, resulting in different colors, shapes, and patterns. In other words, every piece of memorial jewelry will be just as unique as the person it’s made from. Families can also choose to include items like hair or dried flowers in the jewelry piece for even more uniqueness.

If you’re considering memorial jewelry for your lost loved one, there are a few things you should keep in mind:

Material – Though you can have memorial jewelry in almost any material, you should think about how and how often you’re going to wear it, as some materials are more durable than others. For example, if you’re making a ring that you’re only going to wear on special occasions, resin is fine. However, if you want to wear the ring on a daily basis, you need a stronger material like silver.
The Deceased – Also keep in mind how the deceased would want to be memorialized. Think about his or her styles, preferences, and even interests for inspiration. How do you think you could best memorialize your lost loved one?
Style – You should choose memorial jewelry in a style that you will actually wear. If you don’t like big pendants, maybe choose a small bracelet or locket. Be sure that you choose a style that fits your comfort level, or consider a piece that is simple and timeless for the coming generations.
Size – Another practical consideration is the size of the memorial jewelry. Choose a piece that you will actually be comfortable wearing on a daily basis. If you are spreading ashes, you may want to choose a larger piece so that you can keep a larger portion of the ashes with you at all times.

Memorial jewelry is just one of the many options you have to memorialize a lost loved one after a cremation. If memorial jewelry isn’t for you, you can always choose a more traditional method like a displaying the remains in a cremation urn, scattering them, burying them, or putting up a headstone.

Do you have more questions about memorial jewelry, or customized cremation service in general? Deer Creek Funeral Service can help. Located at 20630 Redwood Rd Castro Valley, CA 94546, we have years of industry experience to put at your disposal. Please give us a call at (510) 317-7890 for more information.

Funeral Homes For Pets

Losing a pet is never easy. However, just like how funerals can make the loss of a loved one a bit easier, funeral and cremation services for pets can help ease the pain. Luckily, there are many funeral homes in Dublin, CA that offer various types of funeral and cremation services for pets.

Planning pet funerals and cremations starts with deciding how you want to send your friend to his final resting place. Pet cremation is one great way to memorialize your pet. You can scatter the ashes somewhere special after the cremation, or keep them in a pet cremation urn. Pet burials are another common and more traditional option. You can bury your pet in the comfort of your own yard, or in a special cemetery dedicated to pet burial.

You can also plan a pet funeral or memorial service to go along with the body disposition. You can hold the service at your home, where you plan to scatter the ashes, in a funeral home, or in the pet cemetery. Be sure to choose a location that allows you to express your grief in a healthy way, and sets you up to properly begin the healing process. Also, be sure to get any necessary permissions or permits before you host a ceremony in a public space, especially if you plan to bury the pet or scatter the ashes.

Just like a traditional service for a deceased person, a pet funeral or memorial is an honorable way to memorialize your pet’s life and say goodbye in a constructive way. There are many different ways you can celebrate your pet in a memorial. For example, you can invite friends and family members who were a part of your pet’s life, or understand how important he was to you. Gather around the grave or ashes and share pet memories or stories. You may also choose to play music, read poems or share feelings.

You can ask attendants to help eulogize, say prayers, or just talk about how your lost pet made them feel. Bring along special stationary, cards or paper on which people can write down their feelings or thoughts. This way you can hold onto these ideas and memories to go through later on when you miss your pet.

Also just like traditional funeral services, most pet funeral and memorial services can benefit from some sort of visual representation of the deceased. You can craft a small tribute or viewing in the memory of your pet by decorating a table with memories of your lost pet like tags, collars, favorite toys or photos. If you chose to cremate the body, you may also choose to display the urn for the viewing.

Losing a pet is painful, but a funeral or memorial service and help ease the pain. If you want to learn more about pet funeral or cremation services, or have questions about Dublin, CA funeral homes in general, Deer Creek Funeral Service can help. You can visit us at 20630 Redwood Rd Castro Valley, CA 94546, or give us a call at (510) 317-7890 for more information.

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