Funeral home facts for kids
A funeral home (also called a funeral parlor or mortuary) is a special business. It helps families when someone they love has passed away. Funeral homes offer services like burial (being laid to rest in the ground) or cremation (turning the body into ashes). They also help arrange important events. These events can include a visitation (where people can say goodbye) or a funeral service. Sometimes, they provide a chapel for these services. This can be a memorial service or a celebration of life.
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What Services Do Funeral Homes Offer?
Funeral homes work with families and friends to arrange services. They follow the wishes of the family or the person who passed away. Often, the funeral home takes care of all the necessary paperwork. This includes getting permits and making arrangements with the cemetery. They also help share obituaries (death notices) with news outlets. Many funeral homes now post obituaries online. They can even help create memorial websites for families.
Common Types of Services
In North America, there are a few main types of services:
- Traditional Funeral Service: This usually includes a viewing or visitation. People can gather to remember the person. Then, there is a funeral service. This might be at a place of worship or the funeral home's own chapel. Finally, there is a graveside service at the cemetery.
- Direct Cremation: With this option, the funeral home receives the body. They prepare it for the crematory (where cremation happens). They also handle all the legal paperwork needed.
- Direct or Immediate Burial: This means the body is buried quickly without a formal funeral ceremony beforehand. It is a simple burial.
- Moving a Body: Sometimes, a body needs to be moved to a different city or state for burial. The funeral home prepares the body for safe transport. This often involves placing it in a special coffin or container for shipping.
Preparing for a Service
When a body arrives at a funeral home, it might be embalmed. Embalming is a process that helps to slow down how quickly the body changes. It can also make the body look more peaceful for a viewing. This process usually involves replacing some fluids with special chemicals. These chemicals help preserve the body. They also help set the facial features.
Cosmetics are often used to make the face and hands look more natural. This is always done with the family's permission. If someone's face or hands are injured, embalmers can use special techniques. These techniques help make the person look presentable for an "open casket" service. If an open casket is not possible or the family prefers, a "closed casket" service is held.
Funeral homes usually have large rooms for visitations. These rooms allow people to gather and support each other. They may also have a space to display the body in a casket. Funeral and memorial services can also take place right at the funeral home. Many funeral homes also let people plan their own funerals ahead of time. This is called prearrangement.
See also
In Spanish: Funeraria para niños
- Cremation Society of Great Britain
- Funeral Consumers Alliance
- LeMoyne Crematory, historically America's first crematory
- Neptune Society, America's cremation service company
Image gallery
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Offices of the Butterworth & Sons mortuary in Seattle, Washington, 1900
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J. Levy & Bro Funeral Home in Galveston
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Reasons for funerals, from "The Funeral from Ancient Egypt to Present-day America", Resthaven Memorial Park
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Overton Funeral Home in Islip, New York
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Columbia Funeral Home in Seattle, Washington
