Easy Ways To Personalize A Funeral Arrangement

There are many ways to personalize the funeral arrangement for your loved one. The person you loved and have now lost was unique, and the funeral you plan to honor that person can be unique too.

One way to make the funeral feel more personal for the attendees is to provide them all with name tags. Since the people attending the funeral will come from several different areas of the life of the deceased, so it is likely that many will not know each other. A table can be set up where the attendees can fill out their name tags. It would be a good idea to provide a space on the name tag for the attendee to fill out 'How I knew John.' This can then become a talking point for the attendees when they mingle after the service. For example, one might say, 'You knew John from the painting class he held. I went to an exhibition of his paintings.'

Do not forget to have a guest book in your funeral arrangement checklist. The book should contain photos of the deceased and a space not only for the attendee's name, but for them to then write their memories of the departed. They could include a word or two about the life led by the deceased and how they knew him or her. This is a much more valuable keepsake for the family than simply a book of names, some of whom may even be unknown to the family.

Remembrance cards can be distributed to the attendees on the day of the funeral. At a suitable point during the service, perhaps between eulogies, attendees should be encouraged to fill out these small cards, recording a special memory of the deceased. The cards may then be collected and used on holidays or on the anniversary of the birthday of the deceased, or at any time the family wants to remember them. The cards can be handed down the generations and can provide a valuable link to generations gone by.

A memory table is a beautiful way to personalize a funeral arrangement. Anything representing significant parts of the life of the deceased can be placed on the table. Perhaps the departed one was an artist. If so, examples of his art work or maybe catalogues of an exhibition in which his art was displayed can be placed on the table. Maybe the deceased spent his life at sea. If so, his uniform, log books or his instruments of navigation can be placed there. A simple thing like two cups of milky tea, signifying time spent in conversation with another person can be used to great effect.

The location of the funeral can greatly personalize it. It may be held in a church or at a funeral home, but it can equally be held at a beach location, in an outdoor garden area or in a national park. You may invite attendees to bring a plant to plant in a memorial garden, you may release doves or butterflies during the service, or hold it at sunrise or sunset.

Music can be chosen to suit the character of the deceased. Classical music may be chosen, or the music of a flute, a guitar, a piano or a harp.

For the wake, there are many options for the food that you can offer. You may provide cheese and fruit, pastries and cake or have a personal chef cook the food for the meal.

Finally, for something that can be both rewarding and therapeutic, ask the attendees to write a letter to the departed and bring it to the funeral. These letters can then be collected and placed in the casket, or if there is a cremation, they can be included and placed in the urn.

Make the funeral arrangement for your loved one unique, and in so doing, honor them for the unique individual they were.