Funerals & Burials

Forming a base for a gravestone marker is usually a service you have to pay the cemetery or gravestone installer to do for you. However, if you would like to do it yourself, it will save you money...

Creating a marketing campaign for funeral services can be difficult. Yet, when the perfect blend of compassion, necessity, and inevitability are met the job can become much less daunting. Death is...

Death certificates serve as proof of death and are required to settle the estate of a deceased person. In California, death certificates can be obtained from the California Office of Vital Records...

Grave markers come in a vast array of sizes, materials and styles. Common materials are granite and bronze. New technology reaches cemeteries, too, and some grave markers play a short video. When...

When you create a memorial for a deceased person, it can bring solace and peace of mind to family members and friends by helping them remember their loved one's life. Often, one of the first...

People often use handcrafted headstones to temporarily mark the grave of loved ones while waiting for the completion of permanent headstones. Handcrafted temporary headstones not only act as...

The death of a loved one or special pet can be difficult to handle. One way to commemorate and honor your loss is to create a special keepsake called cremation jewelry. A part of your loved one...

Searching for the death of a loved one or familiar acquaintance may require persistent and patience. Often records regarding deaths amongst communities and states are kept private and sealed for...

Funeral service professionals serve families in their deepest time of need, when they face the death of a loved one. Funeral service professionals should have as their goal to make the family feel...

You can preserve gravestones so they will last for generations by not using a basic stone or tile sealer. The problem with a basic stone or tile sealer is that they also seal in moisture, salts...

A body farm is a facility used by doctors, scientists and law enforcement personnel to study how human bodies decompose in a variety of settings. There are four facilities in the United States,...

At the time of death, a person without a headstone will be buried with a small plastic marker that displays the name and date of death. Weather elements and general cemetery property maintenance...

There are two types of obituaries that are commonly written: short and concise, and longer and more detailed. The shortest obituary will include just the basics: name, place of residence, birth...

When a loved one dies, you can honor her memory by planting a tree. Trees help the environment by giving off oxygen and acting as a home for wildlife. You can choose to plant your own tree, on...

During the Civil War, friends and family draped Union and Confederate graves alike with wildflowers. Poppies, signifying the blood of heroes, were used for World War I soldiers, and flowers bloom...

During times of war, we often see fallen war heroes returning in flag-draped caskets. This symbolizes service in the armed forces of the United States, according to the Department of Veterans...

Flower petals are placed on the bed of the dead to honor the life of the deceased. The custom of funerary flowers is an ancient tradition passed down from the Egyptians.

Having a loved one pass away is never easy, but there are different ways to keep their memory alive, including frequently visiting their grave site. Keeping the area around their grave is equally...

Gravestone markings often attempt to communicate something about the life and religious beliefs of the deceased or the hopes and feelings of surviving family members. Gravestone markings might...

If you've gotten into a job or industry you'd be happy to leave behind--and if you also get a great deal of pleasure from working with your hands--making headstones can offer you a recession-proof...

With every movie and book comes the representation that coffins must be nailed shut. Although good entertainment, media sources rarely provide the public with an accurate portrayal of how the...

An upright monument can put a personal stamp on the place you've chosen to be buried, or it can memorialize someone special. Either way, it helps to have some training in drafting and physics,...

Finding a final resting place for a loved one or yourself is a process that takes a lot of thought and planning. There are many factors that go into this decision, such as cost and location. It is...

The custom of draping the casket of a military service veteran with a United States flag to honor his service began around the War of 1812 and continues to this day.

Solid planning for the future often means paying your funeral expenses in advance. Unfortunately, you may find yourself with a cemetery plot that no longer suits your needs due to relocation, or...

A casket vault is used to minimize the settling of dirt around a casket after interment. This can reduce the need for maintenance of the grave site by preventing the soil from sinking.

When the Associated Press reported on the receipt of a $2,000 grant given to the Fort Pierre cemetery so a surveyor could be hired to map it out, readers might have learned for the first time that...

The act of placing stones on a Jewish grave marker, historically, has not been discerned as to its true origin. In biblical times, the graves of Jewish people were marked with a mound of stones...

Whether a relative, friend or acquaintance has died, knowing what to send to the family to express your condolences can be a challenge. Flowers are the traditional funeral expression of sympathy...

"Obit" is the shortened form of obituary, a death notice often published with a short biography of the deceased. Obituaries date to the popularization of the printing press hundreds of years ago,...

If your life is all about putting your personal imprint on everything do, your desire to create a custom grave marker shouldn't come as a surprise to anyone. Designing and fabricating a custom...

Building a wooden casket is a straightforward construction project that can save you a significant amount of money on what are sure to be expensive funeral arrangements. It will also show a sense...

Customizing a headstone is inexpensive, but it requires some skill and time. Whether you're creating headstones for a themed event, to memorialize a loved one or, like the Arizona Pioneer &...

If your loved one is deceased, it is possible they had a life insurance or annuity policy, a retirement plan or other assets. Generally, life insurance and retirement plans allow the policyholder...

Genealogy and searching for one's family tree is a fun and fascinating pastime. Since the United States is a relatively young country compared to many others, most of its population will have...

Transfer of cemetery plots occurs for various reasons. A plot owner moves from a region and no longer desires internment in that region's cemetery, inherits a plot, purchases a plot from a...

When a member of your family dies, one of the first things you should do is notify others of the death, including a funeral home to assist in the final arrangements. For you to receive life...

Although it can be an emotionally difficult time for family and friends when a loved one passes away, an important consideration for burial arrangements can be the gravestone.Purchasing a grave...