More and more individuals are planning their funerals years in advance of their death. Planning your funeral now not only brings you peace of mind, but it also relieves your family members from the responsibility and stress of doing this in the final days and not really knowing what you might want for your service. At Roper and Sons Funeral Home in Lincoln you can trust that our experienced team of professionals will answer your questions and help you through the pre-planning process.
Before you attend your pre-planning appointment with our Family Service Counselor, there are things you will want to discuss with your family members, such as the type of service – Traditional, Memorial, or Cremation – cost of the funeral, and casket or urn preference. Once you have that decided, start to pull together documents and information that you will need to bring to your meeting. That may feel overwhelming so that’s why we have taken the guesswork out of what to bring by creating a checklist for you!
What to Bring to Your Pre-planning Meeting
Some things on this list may seem common sense but we have found that reminding you of what we will go over at the meeting is helpful to know in advance.
- Name(s) of the person(s) for whom you are planning the service
- Social Security Number
- Spouse’s/Partner’s information, including maiden name if applicable
- Marital Status
- Date of Birth
- Place of birth (City, state, country)
- Place of Marriage, if applicable
- Date of Marriage, if applicable
- Father’s Full Name
- Mother’s Full Name
- Mother’s Maiden Name
- Names of Children, Grandchildren, Great-grandchildren
- Sisters and Brothers and their spouses/partners
- Work History (include names of companies you have worked for throughout your career)
- Education: College(s) and Degree(s)
- List of associations, lodges, church affiliation, etc., that you have a membership
Military Service
- Locate a copy of your discharge papers to be kept on file at Roper & Sons
- Determine if you want to have an Honor Guard at the service
Obituary Instructions
- Bring a copy of your obituary if you have one written, or your family can work with a funeral director at the time of your death to create one
- A list of newspapers (other than the local paper) where you wish to have an obituary/notification published
Special Instructions for Your Service
- Address and contact for the church or other location where the service will be held
- Name of the cemetery preference or location, section, and lot if you already own burial property
- Name of the clergy who will be performing the service, if you know
- Name of the organist, other musicians, music preferences/dislikes that you know
- Service personalization ideas
- Flower Preferences
- Casket Bearers (6)
Our Family Service Counselor will go over your final wishes and provide you with a cost estimate. You will be able to set up a payment plan, or pay in full at this time if you wish. Preplanning helps you save money as you have the opportunity to talk about things you want well in advance.
Remember: family members have different thoughts about what a funeral service should look like so having it in writing now saves a lot of disagreements later. Whether you prefer a traditional or religious service or would rather have everyone attend a lively celebration is your decision. This will provide comfort to everyone knowing that these were your wishes.