A loved one has died. The most natural reaction, driven by grief or even guilt, is to plan and purchase a proper funeral for the deceased. In many ways, this is a mistaken assumption. The purpose of a funeral or a memorial service is to honor the life of the one who has passed away. It’s the venue for family and friends to come together, grieve, and support one another emotionally. This process is not affected by how much money is thrown at it and should not be the driver for spending to excess.
Funerals can cost a family a minimum $9000. This includes reservation of a viewing room, purchase of a casket and grave plot, reserving the hearse and limousines for immediate family, flowers, obituary notices, and other secondary expenses. Usually, the expense of a funeral comes at the worst possible time for a family to have to bear such a burden. This is especially true for families already straining under great or even severe financial hardship.
This is when cremation in Bethlehem PA should be looked to as a more sensible option because the actual process of grief and memorial observance is wholly independent of monetary expense. And, in many cases, the person who has died would not want the family to go to extreme expense either. Nobody wants to be a burden on others, and this is true even after one’s death.
A direct cremation usually costs between $500 and $600 for the most basic service package. This involves transport of the deceased to the crematorium, attending to the necessary legalities certifying the death with the proper authorities, the actual procedure, and placement of the ashes in an urn. From this point, the family can schedule their own memorial services at a more convenient date and venue, design such a gathering as they please, and make their own final decision as to whether to keep the ashes, to scatter them (depending on local ordinances), or to place them in a columbarium for permanent care. Even with that last option, the total final expense is far lower than a standard funeral. By every measure, cremation is the far more sensible choice to make at such a terrible time for any family to have to face.