Biding farewell to a departing soul is one of the toughest tasks. Whether the demise is unexpected or anticipated both bring sadness and utmost grief. During difficult times, you need someone to take the reins. Professional funeral experts can support your family by providing the best funeral arrangements. They are the people you can rely upon in your distressing time. Let’s discuss some of the common options and different levels of services available.

1. Graveside Services

Grieving is a natural part of losing someone. A graveside service helps people start this process. It gives them a chance to express their feelings and share their sorrow.

Graveside service arrangements are important for many reasons. They allow loved ones to gather in a peaceful setting. These moments provide a chance to reflect, share memories, and find closure.

For some families, the simplicity of a graveside service feels more personal. It creates an intimate atmosphere that focuses on honoring the person’s life. Personal touches make the service more meaningful and unique. They show how much the loved one was cherished. For some, graveside services are deeply tied to religious or cultural traditions.

2. Direct cremation Service

Direct cremation is the simplest and most cost-effective option for families. Direct cremation usually doesn’t include memorial services. It is also a more eco-friendly option as the process uses fewer resources. Direct cremation service is also a popular choice because of its flexibility and affordability.

3. Direct Burial

The deceased person’s body is transported to burial ground after appropriate paperwork is filled out. The family may choose to have a service after the burial with a very few guests. Individuals may choose a direct burial for a loved one for various reasons. These include

• Deceased one requested direct burial as their final wish
• Keep the burial simple to decrease stress
• keep the expenses down
• Loved ones are unable to travel for service
• Want to plan a memorial at a later date

4. Traditional Funeral Services

Discuss your budget and preferred type of resting place with a funeral director if you and your loved ones opt for a standard funeral and burial service. While many people might think of a traditional casket or coffin and ground burial, you could also consider a mausoleum. A mausoleum is generally less expensive since you do not have to purchase a plot of land, and an additional sealant for the coffin is not required. There may be some costs associated with entombment, but these are typically low and not ongoing.

Conclusion

Nobody wishes to plan a burial service for their loved one. It is, nevertheless, the reality of life. Death is inevitable and we genuinely wish to honor our loved one in a meaningful way. It is best to leave graveside service arrangements to the experts. They have attentive and experienced staff that ensures everything is handled to the preferences of the family.

Full Service Mortuary Solutions From NMS

Your funeral home gets a call from a local family, letting your team know that one of their loved ones has passed away. The deceased may be in their home, just miles from your location. These situations are familiar and your funeral home can step right into action, arranging for transport. But as you know, not every scenario is as straightforward.

There are times when a family’s loved one might die unexpectedly while on vacation across the country. Perhaps the individual was living in another state for their retirement and expressed wishes to return to their home state for burial. These situations will require domestic mortuary shipping.

What Is the Domestic Mortuary Shipping Process?

Domestic mortuary shipping is needed when a loved one passes away in another state and the family needs to return their remains home. There are two options: ground transportation or shipping the remains by air. This is referred to as domestic mortuary, or funeral, shipping.

Here is the play-by-play:

• The Receiving Funeral Home (RFH) will connect to a funeral home where the deceased is located, known as the Shipping Funeral Home (SFH).
• The SFH will prepare the deceased for transportation. 
• The RFH will accept the remains, prepare the deceased for viewing or burial, and organize services per the family’s wishes.

While it is simple on paper, as you know, there are many details and steps along the way that must be handled and followed with the utmost care and attention. A misstep with shipping remains can cause extra stress—and extra expenses—for a family that only wants to bring their deceased loved one home.

Domestic Mortuary Shipping Questions

These are just some of the considerations when it comes to coordinating details between two funeral homes in different locations, while keeping the family informed.

• Timing
  Timing is a central concern, as it impacts next steps: How long will it take to return the deceased home? When should you advise the family to schedule services? Are there any potential delays? 
• Paperwork
  Every place of death has different paperwork: embalming and cremation authorizations, releases, identification requirements, death certificates. It is critical to understand the requirements specific to each location.
• Preparation of Remains
  How will the remains be shipped? Will they be embalmed? How will the remains be packed for transport?

All of these details must be thoughtfully considered, finalized, and executed.

Find a Mortuary Shipping Partner You Can Trust

With all of the nuances of domestic mortuary shipping, and the potential problems if it isn’t handled correctly, it is so important to find a partner you can trust in the deceased’s location of death. When you work with a mortuary services provider like National Mortuary Shipping, you unlock access to our network of trusted and vetted funeral homes around the world. 

Discover how our domestic mortuary shipping services can be an asset to your funeral home, allowing you to focus on serving families while our experts handle all the details.

Cremation has been a popular choice in the last few years. However, another option that is gaining popularity is the direct cremation. It is the simplest and most cost-effective choice for traditional funerals and burials.

Direct cremation is when the body is cremated without a funeral service. The person’s remains are directly sent to the cremation facility and their ashes are collected by the families. However, there is so much you need to know about direct cremation services.

Understanding What is Direct Cremation?

Direct cremation is a different approach where the body is cremated soon after the death and is not embalmed. It does not include any other service, and ashes are returned to the family. It is a modern way of doing things that focuses on cremating the remains with no formal ceremony or visit.

List of 5 Things about Direct Cremation You Need to Know

1. No Need for Embalming
Embalming refers to the process that helps preserve human remains for a short time. It can be done using chemicals. It is used to prepare the deceased to be suitable for funeral viewings or ceremonies.

2. Memorial Services can Be Held
Direct cremation services don’t include funeral services. But it does not mean that services can’t be done after that. Once the ashes have been returned to the family, they can hold any funeral or burial services or any other ceremonies they want. Direct cremation provides flexibility as there is no time constraint.

3. Families can Witness the Cremation
Many direct cremation service providers let the family and friends witness the cremation. They offer some designated areas where families can gather and witness the process. Even in some cases, the family can initiate the process.

4. Direct Cremation Services are More Eco-Friendly
This option is more sustainable as it uses fewer resources and is typically less labor-intensive. Also, there are some other reasons why it is eco-friendly such as no embalming chemicals needed, no need for burial plots, etc.
Direct cremation helps produce fewer greenhouse gases and lower the carbon footprint.

5. Simple and Flexible
Direct cremation services offer flexibility in different ways. Families can choose which type of cremation they would like. Family members can handle the planning and paperwork themselves. Even they can decide when these services should hold and more.

In The End
Nowadays direct cremation is an increasingly popular choice because of its simplicity and affordability. We at National Mortuary Shipping and Cremations make your process of shipping and cremation stress-free. We offer a wide range of services including, direct cremation, graveside service arrangements, embalming, and many more. Our team handles all aspects of transportation and ensures all the necessary protocols are followed.

When a person passes away in a foreign land, the process of repatriating the body to another country can be a daunting task for anyone to deal with. For funeral directors working with families grieving the loss of a family member, there are so many things to consider.

Funeral repatriation service providers can handle all aspects of bringing the body back, no matter where the final resting place for the deceased is. With the assistance of a specialist, you can rest assured that every aspect of the repatriation process will be handled with care and dignity. Here is some of what you need to know about funeral repatriation services.

What is Funeral Repatriation?

Repatriation refers to the process of transporting human remains from one location to another. This can include crossing national or international borders for burial or cremation keeping with family wishes or cultural customers.

Funeral Repatriation process can include:

• Gathering documentation like autopsy reports, death certificates, transit permits, embalming certificates, etc.
• Preparing the body for safe transportation through embalming and placement in a protective casket.
• Navigating customs, clearances and immigration formalities.
• Coordinating transportation depending on the distance and mode of transport used.
  Performing the final rites in the ancestral land is of utmost importance in many cultures. This increases the need to repatriate the remains of the deceased.

Importance of Funeral Repatriation Services

Arranging transportation of a body when a person dies abroad may seem like a logistical nightmare. Different countries have different rules for transporting the remains of a deceased person. Funeral Repatriation Services, like National Mortuary Shipping provide support to funeral directors during the challenging times. Through their knowledge, they provide assistance to funeral directors supporting grieving families. These professionals handle the intricacies of repatriation to bring the deceased back to their homeland

National Mortuary Shipping and Cremation guide the funeral directors through the documentation process and coordinate with relevant authorities to ensure a smooth transfer. This also includes handling the logistics related to the process while adhering to all the regulations.

When Families Might Need Funeral Repatriation Service?

A family may choose repatriation for various reasons after a loved one has died abroad, including

1. Fulfilling last wishes of the deceased who requested burial in the home country
2. Cultural or religious beliefs related to burial location.
3. Lack of visits to grave site if buried abroad
4. Family preferences to have mourning, funeral and grave memorials in the home country.
5. Avoiding complex bureaucracy of a burial in foreign land.

Timeframe for Repatriation

The timeframe for repatriation depends on specific circumstances such as delays in paperwork, customs clearance, availability of flights, etc. The duration also depends on the cause of death. If the death is natural the process can be shorter while for a suspicious death, the investigation can take longer which can cause delays in the process.

Conclusion:
Regardless of where a person has died, funeral repatriation services, like National Mortuary Shipping and Cremation take care of the transportation to make the process less time-consuming for the families that funeral directors serve.

At National Mortuary Shipping & Cremation, our shipping specialists work directly with funeral directors to ensure that every detail is handled with care and dignity. We understand the challenges of funeral repatriation and provide solutions that support funeral directors in providing professional care to grieving families.

To say that the funeral service industry is changing would be an understatement.

The rise of green burials is bringing with it a whole new industry, and to be successful, you have to be on top of it. Families are more concerned than ever with the expenses associated with cremation and are looking for alternatives and less expensive methods when available. We are more connected than ever, but also more spread out than ever, so mortuary shipping has evolved to keep up with the changing landscape and technology to increase efficiency. But, the funeral service itself has changed as well, and as the internet provides more examples of creative and unique ways to say goodbye to our loved ones, the traditional funeral experience is becoming a thing of the past.

So what do you do when someone comes to you for a non-traditional funeral service?

If you are used to just preparing for funerals at your facility, and someone walks in and requests a funeral on a beach or at a local park, where would you begin? These types of events are becoming more and more popular as people begin to look at them as celebrations rather than goodbyes. Your funeral home has to be prepared for any number of scenarios where a family wants you to assist with a funeral that will take place outside of the walls of your home. So, where do you begin?

1. Make sure that the family is making a good decision. As with any funeral planning session, you want to begin with a good discussion. Listen to what the family is saying and help them make sure that a non-traditional service works for them. Let them know that there could be additional expenses and that paperwork and permissions might mean that the process cold take a little longer as well. Let them know that you will help in any way possible, but that once the process begins, it could be tough to revert to a traditional service, so allow them the time they need to make sure that they are making a sound decision initially. Factors like weather, traffic, accessibility and other unseen obstacles might need to be addressed, so think of every possible scenario you can while helping to plan out this type of service.
2. Encourage pre-need services to all of your families. This is another reason why pre-need services are so important in today’s market. The more you know ahead of time, the easier it will be to plan out non-traditional services. Pre-need isn’t just about saving money – it’s about making sure that the family gets the service they want and increasing the likelihood that you’ll be successful in delivering it. It might be too late in some instances, but for those families you know well, it doesn’t hurt to have the pre-need discussion so that everyone is on the same page going into a non-traditional event.
3. Make sure it’s legal. Many people are considering non-traditional burial sites to go along with their non-traditional services. Home burials are increasing in popularity now that cemeteries are becoming overcrowded and space is limited. In most states, this is legal, but they do usually require a funeral director to handle arrangements. In many states, embalming is required for a home burial, so if the family doesn’t want their descendent embalmed, that could raise an issue. Check with your local authorities to see about limitations. There are also people requesting to be buried at their favorite park or other alternate sites. Believe it or not, this could be a viable option depending on the facility. It’s always worth asking if it means a family finds comfort, so don’t be too quick to say it can’t be done.
4. Remember it’s not about you. A funeral service at a bowling alley might not be the way you would choose to say goodbye to your loved one, but for a grieving family, this might be the closure they need. Remember not to judge and just support the family in any way you can to make the occasion as special for them as you can. As the internet gives more and more access to what other people are doing around the world, the ideas that pour in might get more and more abstract compared to a traditional service. Do what you can to accommodate and assist in any way possible.
5. Think about incorporating some ideas into your marketing. Be proactive. If you live by a body of water, it might not be a bad idea to contact someone with a large boat to talk about collaborating on sea burials. Spreading ashes in the water is a great tribute to those who love the aquatic life – why not make this a package you offer? Collaborate with a local park to offer services there for people who loved the outdoors. You might even be able to collaborate with a local sports team to have funeral services at their stadium for the devout fan! If you can provide alternative services and find a way to market them, it could be the perfect way to offer the family what they need and still keep the service profitable for your business.

Non-traditional services mean non-traditional planning. At National Mortuary Shipping & Cremation, we’ve seen it all. It’s our job to help you make arrangements, no matter how far outside the box they might be. From shipping a body internationally to arranging for gravesite ceremonies, we are here to make sure that you are taken care of so that you can take care of the families that are depending on you. Contact NMS today, and let us give you our traditional, excellent service for your non-traditional customer!