| Because death is a devastating experience for loved ones and friends to cope with, a funeral is a matter which should be planned before hand. The Pre-Planned arrangement for your funeral will help alleviate some of the grief and confusion surrounding the loss of loved ones. If you are a widow or widower you may have no surviving relatives. Pre-planning then becomes an assurance that your funeral will take place according to your wishes. You may be a member of a family whose relatives are far from home. Pre-planning will uncomplicate your funeral arrangements thereby relieving your scattered family from the burden of making hasty decisions and arrangements because of time limits imposed by travel. For a single parent it removes the burden of planning a funeral from the surviving child or children. This will be particularly beneficial if your death should occur when they are too young or inexperienced to make such arrangements. Planning your funeral requires careful consideration. First, you must select a funeral director. Choose one as carefully as you would choose a doctor or lawyer. They can be most helpful and understanding when you plan your funeral. When you have selected a funeral director, make an appointment with him or her. During your meeting, they will be more than happy to give you any information you will need at no cost to you. A pre-planned funeral is a written funeral plan which has been filed with the funeral director you have selected and a copy for you to retain. This plan will fit your personal funeral needs and desires. It covers such things as how much money will be spent on your funeral, what sort of services will be held and where, and who will officiate the service. It also states whether the funeral is to be an open or closed casket service, and what kind of casket will be provided. The plan also outlines what music will be performed and what clothes or jewelry you may wish to be buried in. It also determines whether the funeral will be open to the public or to only a select group of your loved ones and friends. It may further state whether you wish to have the gift of flowers held to a minimum, requesting instead that the money which would had been spent on flowers, be donated to your favorite charity or service organization. Once the pre-planning has been established, you may choose to pay the predetermined sum to cover your funeral. The money is placed into a funeral trust fund account at a local bank, in your name, in trust for the funeral home. It earns the highest interest rate available for such an account, which helps cover any additional expenses which might arise due to inflation. When you die, the proceeds from the burial trust fund are immediately made available thereby leaving insurance, savings, and investments to those loved ones, friends and service organizations which you have previously designated in your will. |
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