Comments for Home Funeral Directory

Comment on Home Funeral Guidebook for Congregations & Communities by admin

admin — Thu, 17 Nov 2011 20:02:40 +0000

You can get a free copy of this guide by going to http://www.undertakenwithlove.org and downloading it.

Comment on Can Families Have Their Own Cremations? by Lisa Carlson

Lisa Carlson — Fri, 11 Nov 2011 20:57:52 +0000

A number of states have copied the CANA suggestions for legislation and specifically state that cremation must occur in a licensed crematory.

Apart from that, people should consider that such an outdoor cremation is polluting and an inefficient use of natural resources.

Comment on Beyond Yonder | Baddeck, Nova Scotia, Canada by cassandra

cassandra — Mon, 29 Aug 2011 18:38:15 +0000

Just wanted to add this link to a presentation I made on Home Funerals:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=paJAKDU55AU&feature=share

Comment on About by Sharon Lightfoot

Sharon Lightfoot — Fri, 04 Feb 2011 20:53:39 +0000

I witnessed a family funeral yesterday for the first time. The deceased was surrounded by loving family in a peaceful setting. This may not be for everyone but it’s good to know that it is possible. The funeral guide that I met was warm and gracious. For this particular family it was the best way to release their loved one.

Comment on Erika Nelson | Ann Arbor, MI by Lisa Carlson

Lisa Carlson — Sat, 08 Jan 2011 03:31:16 +0000

Erika is extremely knowledgeable about Michigan laws and is very supportive in enabling families to care for their own dead.

Comment on Sacred Crossings | Los Angeles, CA by Kathy Mattes

Kathy Mattes — Tue, 10 Aug 2010 02:34:21 +0000

Dear Olivia:

What a magnificent gift you’ve been given – and how fortunate we are in Los Angeles to have you!

As my dad was moving into the final stage of the disease process that would take his life one year ago, I absolutely knew that an at-home funeral was the way I wanted to honor him and to begin the healing process for myself and my family. Born in Oklahoma during Dust Bowl days and migrating to California when he was very young, he was raised in a time and a culture in which it was perfectly normal for the family to take care of their own dead. Many old photographs he had shown to me over the years showed family members lovingly dressed and presented, lying in their coffin in the living room, while the rest of the family was scurrying about – women putting out food, children playing on the floor, pets walking around. This was the tradition I wanted to bring back to my family.

But knowing that I wanted to care for his body and have his funeral at my home and knowing HOW to DO it were two very different things. Once Dad passed, your gentle ways of teaching us each step of the way made me feel so safe. My 22-year-old son, who adored his grandfather, was not entirely sure what the process would be like, but he quickly put his trust in you. You guided us both through such a beautiful experience. Your kindness and your wisdom empowered us to do just exactly what we needed to do at just the right pace.

Bless you for the beautiful experience you helped us to have and bless you for the work you do.

Comment on Sacred Crossings | Los Angeles, CA by Mary Melkonian

Mary Melkonian — Mon, 02 Aug 2010 18:23:00 +0000

Oh! my, it has been three years since we had the magnificent gift of a home funeral with Olivia for my beloved husband of 41 years. Everyone was enriched by his life and his graceful transition. Olivia is absolutely dedicated to
ease and grace and loving kindness. I still can’t stop talking about the absolute
joy of family centered home funerals. Thank you, Olivia, for your English elegance and presence. Thank you, Vahe’, for your grace and nobility.

“For yesterday is but a dream,
Tomorrow, a vision,
But, today, well lived
Makes every yesterday a dream of happiness
And every tomorrow, a vision of hope.
Look, therefore, to this day. Such is the salutation to the dawn.” Kalidasa

Comment on Funeral Ethics Organization | Hinesburg (near Burlington),VT by Lisa Carlson

Lisa Carlson — Fri, 29 Jan 2010 22:46:27 +0000

As the author of a state-by-state compendium of funeral law for consumers, I can walk you through the legal requirements for a home funeral in any state. For those of you nearby here in Vermont, I keep cardboard caskets on hand and sell at my cost ($75). My office phone also rings in my home, and it is fine to call me at any hour. E-mail is welcome, too.

Comment on Erika Nelson | Ann Arbor, MI by Erika Nelson

Erika Nelson — Wed, 07 Oct 2009 19:18:10 +0000

In addition to holding licenses in social work and mortuary science, I am a hospice volunteer. Any information, consultation or referral that I provide is free of charge; however, I am currently unavailable to provide hands-on care and I am not on-call.

I have attended trainings by Final Passages and Crossings, and assisted in presenting information for the Crossings’ workshop. I attended the Natural Death Center’s Green Burial Conference in England and the FCA’s biennial conference in Seattle. I have presented material regarding green burial and home/family-led funerals for a number of groups in the Ann Arbor, MI, area over the course of the last three years, and I have consulted with families interested in alternatives to the conventional funeral.

I provided a presentation for continuing education credits for social workers and nurses at the University of Michigan, and I have close personal ties to A Sacred Moment, the Funeral Consumer’s Alliance and Funeral Consumer Information Society of Detroit, and the Green Burial Council.

Comment on Final Gifts, LLC | Midland, MI by Wendy Lyons

Wendy Lyons — Wed, 07 Oct 2009 00:35:01 +0000

I am very dedicated to enabling Michigan families to care for their own at death, and I have hands-on experience assisting home funerals in Michigan. I have attended training workshops by home funeral guides Jerrigrace Lyons, of California, and Beth Knox, of Maryland.

Additionally, I have researched, written and published articles on green burial and home death care, including acting as senior editor of the recently published “Undertake With Love.”

For the past four years, I have given community awareness presentations in southeast Michigan on “DIY Funerals: Families Caring for Their Dead” on behalf of Funeral Consumers Information Society, the Michigan affiliate of Funeral Consumers Alliance.