While most will agree about the importance of the funeral, many are reluctant to discuss funerals as openly as they do weddings, retirement and other major milestones for which they plan. The result - many well-intentioned individuals die, leaving friends and family with painful emotional and financial burdens. It is avoidable, but funerals require detailed, logistical and financial planning - today.
Think about it. Would you ever begin planning a wedding today - with no prior thought, details or saving - that you intend to have occur 3 days from now? With funerals, this type of mindset still exists.
Funerals: Life's Missing Milestone
The road to life is filled with important milestones - moments and achievements that help define who we are and what is important to us. Events like graduation, childbirth, marriage and retirement are universal occasions that require thoughtful planning and financial commitment in order to bring family and friends together to celebrate and mark these accomplishments.
But what about funerals? Where do they fit on the list of life's milestones? Perhaps the most unique milestone of all, the funeral represents a rare opportunity to pause, briefly, one final time, and reflect on all of life's accumulated milestones.
Cremation Society of St. Louis
10305 Big Bend Road
St. Louis, MO 63122
(314) 205-0022 is the most trusted destination in St. Louis for clients who recognize the importance of planning for this milestone and are interested in discussing the unique simplicity, value, features and benefits which cremation brings to the funeral planning process.
Call us at (314) 205-0022 or email us to request your FREE "Guide to Planning Ahead".
It’s All About Taking Control
Some people take the step of creating a will and perhaps even a trust - contemplating the important details of distribution of property and assets. But an extraordinarily well planned funeral event conveys and reflects so much more about the indivual legacy and accumulation of relationships, memories and milestones throughout a life well -lived, that all the property and financial assets available are not sufficient to overcome poor planning.
At the same time, detailed and thoughtful planning for any meaning event - requires financial planning as well. As wedding costs approach $20,000 funerals begin to approach $10,000 nationally - making it only natural for consumers to look toward more simplicity and value through cremation. But planning the details of a funeral today and expecting others to "write the check" for at prices tomorrow, after it occurs, is simply no longer the most realistic proposition.
What does Professional Funeral Planning look like?
Many pre-arranged funerals from the 1970's and earlier sit in funeral home files with few details about events and incomplete or outdated biographical information from when they were written. The primary benefit to these contracts is the financial promise of price guarantees tied to merchandise and service selections, which occasionally was vague. When these pre-arranged funerals "mature" and events are provided, the surviving family members and funeral home often take almost as much time updating and interpreting detals as they would in making funeral arrangements that were not pre-planned at all.
Today, the professional funeral planning is focused on capturing details of events that express the important ideas regarding funeral wishes based upon your thoughts today, with periodic client reviews to make certain this information remains timely and accurate. Addtionally, it is tied to a safe, secure, flexible funding product that provides a price guarantee and portability of the funeral plan.
Does Pre-planning Require Pre-payment?
At first glance, the simple answer to this question is, "No". However, it is clear from the perspective of funeral homes throughout the nation that in the absence of funding a funeral direclty with the funeral home, more and more challenges arise than ever before.
First, few people are dedicated enough to save and set aside enough funds or secure and keep in force sufficient insurance for the price of a funeral today - much less to invest those funds (and never touch them for a "rainy day") so that they keep pace with the price of that same funeral in an unknown 10, 20 or 30 years from now.
Next, for a number of reasons, it is becoming less likely that a survivor, beneficiary or next of kin will actually "write the check" to the funeral home when the time comes. In some cases, the person who is supposed to "write the check" does not because they, 1. disagree with the type of services, 2. precede the person in death, 3. do not attend the funeral, 4. simply refuse to write the check and decide to retain the funds themselves, 5. find out that it will be 6 weeks before they can get a death certficate allowing them check writing privileges.
For all of these reasons, an entire financial industry has evolved and matured, dedicated to providing a flexible funeral funding option to clients which can include funeral price gurantees along with portability -while giving funeral homes and consumers confidence that the funds will be paid directly to the funeral home at the time of performance, for their intended use.
Why Pre-Plan with Cremation Society of St. Louis
10305 Big Bend Road
St. Louis, MO 63122
(314) 205-0022?
By pre-planning with us, you’re assured that your final wishes are known. This relieves your family of the burden of making difficult decisions, under emotional duress. Through pre-funding your plan, expenses will be covered when you need them to be. That's guaranteed.
Our plans offer a variety of payment options to fit most everyone. Choose the payment option that's right for you.
Ready to get started?
Request a personal appointment with a Cremation Society of St. Louis
10305 Big Bend Road
St. Louis, MO 63122
(314) 205-0022 pre-planning advisor. Please contact us by clicking on the link below.
Record your personal information to be kept on file at Cremation Society of St. Louis
10305 Big Bend Road
St. Louis, MO 63122
(314) 205-0022. For assistance in completing this online planning process, please contact us by calling (314) 205-0022.
