Different Kinds of Cremation Services

There are tons of different ways you can make cremation services in Trenton, NJ personal and meaningful as they are very flexible in terms of planning. This flexibility is great to not only have a unique and meaningful service for the deceased but also because it gives the bereaved an easier time planning and executing the memorial or cremation itself.

This flexibility begins with what kind of cremation service you want. The three main choices are funeral, memorial, and direct, with each one offering slight variations in price, timeline and planning.

• Cremation with Funeral – These cremation services have a regular funeral followed by a cremation instead of a burial. As with a traditional funeral, cremation services with a funeral usually are held in coordination with a wake or some kind of visitation within the days immediately following the death. Funerals followed by a cremation can be hosted by a religious leader, funeral celebrant or family member, and generally take place in a funeral home or church. The typical service includes readings, music, poems, sermons, eulogies and prayers. These cremations come with more costs than other types, mainly embalming and caskets. Embalming is the process in which the body is preserved for the viewing, and does cost money. The viewing and funeral also require a casket, not just a plain cremation box.
• Memorial Cremations – Memorial cremations are very similar to cremations with funerals except that the body is not present at the service. This type of cremation service can be held at a later date after the death, sometimes weeks or months later, as the body is cremated directly after the death without any prior embalming or preservation. The remains are generally given back to the bereaved right before the memorial so they can inter them in the ground, scatter them, or put them out in a display right after the ceremony. The body can be a part of the memorial by being represented by a cremation urn, or, the bereaved can put up or display pictures of their lost loved one. Since there is no body, the service can be held almost anywhere like a park, church, home, funeral home, or even on a beach.
• Direct Cremation Services – Direct cremation services are the most cost effective and time efficient cremation services. In a direct cremation the body is cremated directly after death and the remains are returned to the family without a ceremony or service. Typically, all the direct cremation costs are included in one flat fee, from transportation to the cremation itself. This method is cheap but doesn’t offer any sort of included celebration for the deceased’s life before the cremation.

There are tons of other ways you can personalize cremation services for your lost loved one. If you would like more information or inspiration, or would like to learn more about Trenton, NJ cremation services in general, J. Allen Hooper Funeral Chapel is here to help. You can stop by and visit us at 41 W Trenton Ave Morrisville, PA 19067, or give us a call at (215) 295-7725 for more information on what we can do for you in your time of loss.