First, preplanning ensures that all of your final wishes will be fulfilled. Because death is a difficult subject to discuss, often times your true wishes may not be known or fully understood by your family

Second, preplanning can eliminate the financial burden that a funeral might pose on your survivors. And by prepaying, your funeral will cost less now than it would in the future.

Third, preplanning provides you and your family with the peace-of-mind in knowing that everything has been "taken care of" in the manner you specified. It's the best gift you can leave your loved ones.

FUNDED
When pre-planning is funded, the prices of funeral goods and services are frozen regardless of when services are provided. A commonly used funding vehicle is a funeral home issued insurance policy. A variety of payment plans are available depending on your age.

NON-FUNDED
A non-funded pre-plan is the selection, recording and filing of your service details. No payment is made. Charges are shown at current prices but actual cost will be based on prices in effect at the time services are provided.

No. Many people just want to have their final arrangements known in advance, even decide upon the type of ceremony and casket, without actually paying for these items. Getting your wishes down in writing is the most important thing. That way, there is no confusion about your intentions at the time of your death.

While most people pay for their funeral in one lump sum, you can also set up a payment plan that's convenient for you. Alternatively, you can use the current value of your existing life insurance to pay for your funeral without ever having to cash in the policy.

If you enjoy travel, we offer a unique out-of-state extended service program. It guarantees that if you pass away anywhere in the world, your body will be shipped back to us at no additional cost to your family.

By prepaying for your arrangements, you can lock in your service at today's lower price. Once your funeral is paid for, we guarantee, in writing, that the total price of the funeral will never increase. In fact, not only are the funeral home charges guaranteed, but any merchandise selected and other expenses such as cemetery fees are guaranteed not to increase as well. This clearly makes preplanning a financially wise decision. You should be aware, that many funeral homes do not offer a "lock in" price guarantee on the entire funeral.

Any funds we receive towards a prepaid funeral are placed into an Irrevocable Mortuary Trust account, in accordance with state law. This Trust is insured and the funds gain interest, which we maintain in the account to offset future price increases. We pay all taxes and administrative fees each year for you. No one can access these funds or cancel the Trust. By Federal and State law, the funds can only be used to perform the service you selected and withdrawn only at the time of death.

If you must travel due to a death in your immediate family, many airlines have a bereavement airfare. Airlines will vary in what they offer; for example, some airlines will offer a discount off the published fare or give a waiver off an advance purchase fare.

When requesting this type of fare, be prepared to provide the airline with:

Name of deceased, your relationship to them, and the name and phone number of the funeral home. The airline will verify your information before giving the discounted rate or waiver.

A compassion fare applies if you must travel due to a serious illness or imminent death of a member of your immediate family. The airlines will extend the same discounts or waivers to you as with bereavement fares. Airlines policies vary and some do not offer any discount. When requesting this type of fare, be prepared to provide the airline with:

Name of person who is ill, your relationship to this person, and name and phone number of hospital and doctor. The airline will verify your information before giving the discounted rate or waiver.

The definition of immediate family can vary by airline, but in general includes parent, children, brothers, sisters, in-laws, brother and sister in-laws, grandparents, grandchildren, and some include aunts and uncles.

Laws concerning ash scattering differ in each state. If state law permits it, ashes or cremains may be scattered in lieu of preserving them in a columbarium, burying them in a grave, or keeping them at home. Some cremation societies offer scattering services to their members.

Some people leave specific instructions on where they want their ashes scattered in a river, a pond or lake or some private property. Some prefer a hillside behind their homes. A golfer wanted his ashes strewn on his favorite fairway in his country club; one lady specified a rose garden.

For those with concerns about the ashes posing a problem to the environment, the Cremation Society of Greater Cincinnati, Ohio reminds people that "ashes are purified and pose no environmental hazard."

Because it's expedient and inexpensive, ash scattering is beginning to appeal especially to busy and mobile families who can't always find time to visit a columbarium or a cemetery.

Missouri State Laws for Funeral Service Providers

If you have never dealt with a funeral home in the past, you may want to meet with several before you make your decision. All funeral homes in our area offer some sort of preplanning program and all are priced competitively. While price is an important consideration, it should not be the only one. You should also compare things such as the quality of the facilities, professionalism of the staff and their attention to your needs in offering a service that's right for you. Experts agree that these factors will go a long way in assisting your family at a most difficult time. And isn't that the reason why you wanted to preplan in the first place?