The following are examples of condolences and/or condolence messages that you may want to include in your sympathy card to the bereaved family. Any of the wording given below is appropriate for inclusion and would be greatly appreciated by the grieving family.

Condolence Message For A Friend
I am very saddened by Lisa’s death. Lisa was more than just my friend but she was also a very amazing woman. She touched many lives and was deeply loved by many.  Her passing will not only leave a void in our lives, but in the hearts of everyone who knew her. I will always cherish Lisa’s memory in my heart.

If there is anything that I can do to help you in anyway, please do not hesitate to call me at anytime. You can phone me at (phone number) to talk. I am always here for you and your family at a moment's notice. My sincere thoughts and prayers are with you.


Condolence Message For A Husband
I was deeply saddened by the death of William. I know how difficult it must be for you and your family. You are in my daily thoughts and prayers. William was such a kind person and someone everyone looked up to. I will miss his wise and helpful advice. We believe William has passed on to a better place now.

You can take comfort and strength from the wonderful family you and he had together. I know their love will get you through this sad time as well as your faith in God. I would like to offer my help in whatever you need in any way. Please call me at (phone number) and I will arrange to meet with you. May God bless you and your family during this time and always.

Condolence Message For A Mother
I just heard about your mom. I am so sorry to hear of her passing. I want you to know I am thinking of you and what you and your family must be going through right now. Please accept my sincere condolences. I can only imagine how difficult this must be for you.

She was a strong woman and certainly demonstrated commitment and love for her family and friends. Mrs. Smith was a kind and considerate person who had the love of many she touched. My thoughts are with you and your family at this sad time. Sending you my deepest condolences and love.



Condolence Message From An Illness
I am so sorry for your loss. I was sad to hear (name of deceased) lost his battle with cancer. I am sure you are missing (name of deceased) everyday. His presence was strong in many lives and all are feeling the void. I truly loved (deceased name) and his unique and great sense of humor.

He was a blessing to be around. This is just to let you know that you are in my thoughts and if there is anything I can do to assist you in anyway, please don’t hesitate to ask.

Condolence Message For  A Sudden Death

I am sorry to hear about (deceased name)’s death. We are still in shock, especially since we just saw him last week. I remember that we were already planning for a next meeting and how excited he was to be together with all his friends.
I cannot imagine the pain of losing a spouse, much more at the peak of his career. We will definitely miss him. Our coworkers are also extending their deepest sympathies to you and your family. You and your family will always be in our prayers.

General Heartfelt Condolence Message
Our hearts go out to you in your time of sorrow. Perhaps they are not the stars, but rather openings in Heaven where the love of our lost ones pours through and shines down upon us to let us know that are happy.

You have my deepest sympathies on the death of your love one.  Please remember that we love and care about you. May your heart and soul find peace and comfort. May the blessings of love be upon you, may its peace abide with you, may its essence illuminate your heart, Now and forever more Blessing

Hold tight to memories for comfort, lean on your friends for strength and always remember how much you are cared about. Also check out these great resources for condolence message information:

About.com
Words of Sympathy
Obituaries.com

Funeral flowers are a necessity at any funeral or memorial service. Nowadays, most families choose fresh florals to decorate and honor a loved one’s memory. Whether it is at the gravesite or in the room where the memorial ceremony is held, flowers are considered to be a visual expression of sympathy, love, and respect. It can also certainly add an atmosphere of encouragement.

Flowers are mainly used in several ways when it comes to a death or passing of a loved one. There are the sympathy flowers which are generally sent to the surviving family members and the flowers that are present at the funeral or memorial service.

Remember that flowers in general is a form of expression. Often, it can be hard for those who are mourning a loss to put their feelings into words. Flowers can be a means of lending support and sharing the burden of grief.

Friends and acquaintances may send flowers to the funeral service or directly to the home of the immediate family after the service. In addition, some people may also send flowers to the church in memory of the deceased. There are many different types of arrangements depending on where you would like to have them placed. If your unsure about the correct one to choose, ask the florist for assistance.

Flowers create a background of beauty and warmth that can add to the dignity and consolation of the funeral service. If you’ve ever attended a service without flowers, you may have felt that something was missing or that the funeral was rather depressing.  Funeral flowers can be comforting to the bereaved family and is recalled often in their memory of the final celebration of their loved one.

People who send flowers are expressing some kind of emotion. In a death, it is a form of sympathy that is extended to the family. You can find and order flowers online where the florist will send directly to the address you provide for them. There are specific arrangements set aside for a funeral or memorial service and adequate to place anywhere.

If you so choose, you can also go to a local florist and select one of their arrangements. Most online florists can provide a fresh floral arrangement and can send them out within 24 hours. When choosing an online florist for such an occasion, select a reputable one that has been in business for awhile and be sure to check any reviews about them.

At times, the surviving family members may wish to have donations in lieu of flowers being sent or given. If this is the case, this will be noted either in the funeral program or within the funeral invitation. You may also want to check out our beautiful floral ceremony programs if you'd like to carry over the theme of flowers.

Flower resouces online:
FTD Online
Teleflora Online
Funeral Flowers Online
Pro Flowers Online

Most states have a licensing board that regulates the funeral profession. You can contact any board within your own state for information or additional help regarding funeral professionals and arrangements. The following are some of the biggest funeral organizations regarding funeral planning and arrangements:

AARP Fulfillment
601 E. Street, NW, Washington, DC 20049
1-800-424-3410
www.aarp.org

AARP is a non-profit, nonpartisan organization dedicated to helping older Americans achieve lives of independence, dignity, and purpose. They offer free publications called, "Funeral Goods and Services" and "Pre-Paying for You Funeral" simply by writing the address given above. These publications and other funeral related topics are also posted on their website.


Council of Better Business Bureaus, Inc.
4200 Wilson Boulevard, Suite 800, Arlington, VA 22203-1838
www.bbb.org/library/funeral.asp

The Better Business Bureaus are private, nonprofit organizations that promote ethical business standards and voluntary self regulation of business and its practices. Their website offers information about funeral pre-arrangement.

Funeral Consumers Alliance
P.O. Box 10, Hinesburg, VT 05461
1-800-458-5563

www.funerals.org

FCA is a non-profit, educational organization that supports increased funeral consumer protection and is affiliated with the Funeral and Memorial Society of America (FAMSA).

Cremation Association of North America
401 North Michigan Avenue, Chicago, IL 60611
1-312-321-6806
www.cremationassociation.org

CANA is an association of crematories, cemeteries, and mortuaries that offer cremation.

International Cemetery and Funeral Assocation
1895 Preston White Drive, Suite 220, Reston, VA 20191
1-800-645-7700
www.icfa.org

The ICFA is a nonprofit association of cemeteries, mortuaries, crematories, and monument retailers that offers information mediation of consumer complaints through its cemetery consumer council. Their website provides information and advice under "consumer resources."

International Order of the Golden Rule
13523 Lakefront Drive, St. Louis, MO 63045
1-800-637-8030
www.ogr.org

OGR is an international association of independent mortuaries.

Jewish Funeral Directors of America
Seaport Landing
150 Lynnway, Suite 506, Lynn, MA 01902
1-718-477-9300
www.jfda.org

JFDA is an international association of mortuaries serving the Jewish community.

National Funeral Directors Association
13625 Bishop's Drive, Brookfield, WI 53005
1-800-228-6332
www.nfda.org/resources

NFDA is the largest professional association for funeral directors.

National Funeral Directors and Morticians Association
3951 Snapfinger Parkway, Suite 570, Decatur, GA 30035
1-800-434-0958
www.nfdma.com

Selected Independent Funeral Homes (Formerly National Selected Morticians)
3951 Snapfinger Parkway, Suite 570, Decatur, GA 30035
1-800-434-0958
www.nfdma.com

NSM is a national association of funeral professionals that have agreed to comply with its Code of Good Funeral Practice. Consumers may request a variety of publications through NSM's affiliate, the Consumer INformation Bureau, Inc.

Funeral Service Consumer Assistance Program
P.O. Box 486, Elm Grove, WI 53122-0486
1-800-662-7666

FSCAP is a nonprofit consumer service designed to help people understand funeral service and related topics and to help them resolve funeral service concerns. FSCAP service representatives and an intervener assist consumers in identifying needs, addressing complaints, and resolving problems. They offer free brochures on funeral related topics as well.

Funeral Service Educational Foundation
13625 Bishop's Drive, Brookfield, WI 53005
1-877-402-5900

FSEF is a nonprofit foundation dedicated to advancing professionism in funeral service and to enhancing public knowledge and understanding through education and research.

Federal Trade Commission
600 Pennsylvannia Avenue, NW, Washington DC 20580

1-877-FTC-HELP (382-4357)

www.ftc.gov

You can file a complaint with the FTC by contacting the Consumer Response Center by phone or mail. Although the commission cannot resolve individual problems for consumers, it can act against a company if it sees a pattern of possible law violations.

What happens after the cremation has been completed?

Once the cremation process has completed, here are some things to know and consider about the cremains you will have before you. You are to provide the crematory provider with an urn or similar container to house the cremains or ashes after cremation. The urn or the container containing the cremated remains will be returned to you or whomever you designated on the authorization form.

If you and other family members have not yet decided on the final resting place for the remains of your loved one, you may want to talk with a death care professional such as a funeral director for the various options available to you. Some of these options may include:

• Placing the urn with the cremains in an indoor or outdoor mausoleum or columbarium.
• Place the urn with the cremains in a family burial plot or special urn garden that some cemeteries provide specifically for cremated remains.
• Scattering the ashes in a cemetery garden that are created for this such purpose.
• Scattering the remains at sea or on a land in accordance to your state laws. If you scatter the ashes, you may want to also choose a place for a permanent memorial, such as a garden location or other special outdoor place.

The urn may of course be taken back to the home of the deceased, but you should make plans for a permanent resting place as well. It is not typical that the cremains are stored in the home and are most likely placed at a final destination. Some families will take a small portion of the ashes and keep it inside a cremation piece of jewelry of small container in a home.

Also see cremation related articles:

Before Cremation
Cremation Processing

[ Return to Funeral Planning]

All cremations are performed individually or one at a time. They are never done in groups. Exceptions are only made when prior written permission is given by the authorizing agent only in the case of close relatives.

The cremation process begins with the container or funeral casket being placed in the cremation chamber where it will be subjected to intense heat reaching temperatures of 1400-1800 degrees fahrenheit. At this heat temperature, the body is reduced to ashes with the exception of bone fragments from calcium compounds and any other jewelry or metal materials not removed prior to cremation.

During the cremation process, it may be necessary to open the chamber and reposition the deceased in order to ensure a thorough process. The Atime of cremation varies depending on the size and weight of the deceased. Typically it will range from 1.5 - 3 hours.

When the heating process has completed, there is a cooling period when the cremains are raked or swept from the chamber floor. Every effort is made to sweep all the remains however, there may be a thin residue that remains which may result in co-mingling with other remains.

After the remains have been removed, all the fragments and other metal items that were not removed prior to cremation will be separated and filtered from the human ashes. They will be discarded and cannot be recovered.

The bone fragments may be further processed to reduce the sizing and make them more uniform in size with the remaining ashes. Cremains usually weigh between 4-8 lbs. depending on the size of the bone fragments. The ashes are white in appearance but this may also vary depending on other factors and temperature variation.

The crematory will place your loved one’s cremains in a container appropriate to hold human remains if you do not provide an urn or similar type of container for them.

[ Return to Funeral Planning]

Here are some important things to note before the cremation takes place.

The cremation must take place before you schedule the funeral service ceremony and visitation or wake. You must all be aware of all the authorization forms and permits that need to be completed and signed. You can get these forms from the crematory or funeral director you are working with.

Let your funeral director or crematory provider know if the deceased has a pacemaker, prosthesis or any other mechanical devices You should also make mention of any implants they may have as well. Also make note to let them know if the deceased was recently treated with any radioactive medication. The devices and implants must be removed prior to cremation. If you do not inform the crematory or funeral director of these devices and/or implants, and it causes any damages to the crematory, you will be held responsible. So be mindful of this before you sign the required forms.

If the deceased has had gold dental work done or has any jewelry on their persons, you must have it removed prior to cremation. You can do this yourself or someone you designate can perform this task. Any jewelry or items such as these not removed will be destroyed by the crematory.

Most crematories require that the body is cremated in a burnable or compustible covered container if you are not going to use a casket. So check to see if you need to house the body inside a container before the cremation process begins.

Decorative handles on caskets or metal caskets could cause damage to the cremation equipment and therefore must be removed. Some crematories, do not allow metal caskets as an approved body container. If you do use it, remnants of the metal shell must be disposed of by the crematory and will not be recovered.

There may be a waiting period of two days before human remains are cremated so check with your state laws. This may vary from state to state.

Not all crematories enable the family members to witness the body being placed in the cremation chamber. So if this is something you’d like to do, check with them to see if you can witness this procedure. If they do allow it, you may need to sign a waiver or an additional form that protects them from any liability.

You will need to provide the cremation provider with an urn or container to house the cremains once the procedure is complete. If you do not provide a container, they will place the cremains in a container made of appropriate material for you.

Once you receive the cremains you are free to place the cremains in a columbarium or scatter the ashes as desired. Check out our great selection of cremation service funeral programs. It will be a wonderful addition to your cremation memorial funeral service.

[ Return to Funeral Planning]

Death is one of those circumstances in a person’s life that can be overwhelmed with emotions. Experiencing a death in the household is one instance where surviving family members can be weighed down by feelings, so much so that it can leave them not knowing what to do when it comes time for planning.

Often in the most unexpected time, we can find ourselves faced with a death. Poems about death are very popular and are often used within the funeral service itself. They can help families come to terms with a death and can be a source of encouragement and inspiration. We have compiled a large library of funeral poems written especially for any family member who has passed on. For instance, we have a collection of funeral poems for mom and dad, grandmother or friend.

If it is a father who passed on, you can choose among our funeral poems for dad. These might be poems which express how substantially your father will be missed or those poems which recall past fond memories. They are emotionally charged and the words are consoling to a grieving heart. Poems about death can be a good source of comfort since its wording is expressive of emotions one may be feeling during a loss.

Remember, it can be a source for healing for you and those who hear it. Frequently poetry can speak to the soul like none other and its a great meditative tool as well. Reading a funeral poem aloud or silently is a good for the soul when suffering a recent loss. It offers words that you may not be capable of expressing on your own. Frequently reading will bring soothing feelings of calmness.

Never ever give up hope even though your loved one is gone from this life. Poems about death can give you insight that you’ve never discovered before. It can also help make sense of why things may have happened in the way that they did. If your spiritual, we also recommend reading bible verses as a way to encourage your spirits.

Don’t forget to include and share poems that you are particularly fond of or have comforted you. You can place them inside the funeral programs or have a family member of close friend read them aloud at the funeral wake or ceremony.

Example of our Pathway tri fold brochure template using one photo panel.

Congratulations on making your way to our wonderful website which is full of information and resources for bereaved families and friends. We've decided to outline the top ten reasons or benefits of using funeral program templates. Here is what we came up with in the following outline:

1. Cost Saving. Yes, templates are cost effective. If you think about how much you would spend or pay at a funeral home for funeral programs, you will soon see why they are a good way to go. Even if one template cost you $89.00 which may seem a bit high at first, it is really worth every penny. For all the advantages to using a template, it is going to save you not only time, but money as well.

2. Time Saving. Speaking of time, templates are used by almost everyone in some form or another. They are created with just that in mind; to save time for the consumer. Templates for any occasion are created with preformatting the layout, photo and text boxes. They will be your best friend when you are preparing a printed document within a short amount of time.

3. Full Control. Templates give you full control over your project from start to finish and that includes printing. You don't have to wait on anyone and have complete power over what is included in the content and also in the printing!

4. Professional Designs. The templates here are created by professional graphic designers with years of experience creating unique and beautiful designs. They are also skilled in template creation so we can provide you ease of use without any delay. You can see the difference between our designs and all the others on the web.

5. Set in High Quality. Templates that are set below 300 dpi are really not very good quality. They tend to become grainy when printed and you will not be able to take them to a commercial printer such as Kinkos/FedEx or even an Office Supply Store without getting a poor quality printout. The better quality templates which are available here are always set in 300 dpi and fit for any type of commercial printing including your own home printer.

6. Mutli Uses. Once you purchase a template from our site, you can use them as many times as you wish without having to repurchase them for each use. There are programs that you can create online which charge you a per usage fee but with our templates, there is just a one time charge so you are able to use them over and over again. Just copy the original template each time you want to use it and then your set.

7. Quantity of Designs. We have hundreds of program designs and new ones are added every week. You will always have a fresh and large selection to choose from. There are many different themes and chances are if you can't find one here, we can custom create one for you in just a short amount of time!

8. Matching Sets. If you decide you want to create another keepsake for the wake or visitation service such as prayer cards, you can certainly do that since all our designs come in matching layouts. So select a theme and find their coordinating design in our categories for bookmarks, memorial candles, guest books, plantable cards, and the large variety of layouts we offer.

9. Immediate Download. Templates purchased online are provided and delivered to you immediately after purchase so there is no waiting. You can start working on it right away and best of all, no shipping costs!

10. Use Software You Already Have. Templates can come formatted in Microsoft Word, Publisher, or Apple iWork Pages. Because we offer such as variety of formats, if you decide you want to use another format after purchase, its one-stop shopping. You can find it here or exchange the format to another application. You don't have to buy special software to use our templates, just use the programs already on your computer. These three applications are the most ubiquitous desktop publishing software you'll find today!

Memorial societies are generally non-profit organization that are started up by churches, or individuals to assist people in finding reasonable priced funeral services for a loved one.