Ideas for Personalizing a Funeral Service

Personalizing services at funeral homes is something that most people want to do as a way to capture what was unique and outstanding about their loved one’s life, interests, and legacy. There are some very creative ways to make the funeral service for your loved one memorable and special.

People are continually looking for ways to make funeral services unique and poignant, with things that capture the essence of their loved ones’ lives. By adding special touches to the funeral services, it makes the goodbye more special. Whether you are planning a funeral service for a loved one who has died or you are preplanning your own funeral, here are some ideas to give you a launching pad for creating your own personalized funeral service.

Seed cards are becoming a popular option for personalizing funeral services. The cards are handed out to mourners at the service. They contain a seed, usually a flower like forget-me-nots, that each mourner can take home and plant in memory of the deceased. This is a nice way to pay tribute to someone who gardened as a hobby or for someone who farmed. Several companies offer seed cards online, or your funeral director may be able to provide them.

Another way to personalize funeral services is to reuse the flowers that are sent to the funeral home. Some people choose to disassemble the flower arrangements and reassemble small bouquets that they distribute in hospitals or senior centers. They can also be given to family members with special guests as a remembrance of the deceased.

You can also take the flowers and make them into jewelry. Although this seem difficult, it’s actually quite simple. First, you’ll need to dry the flowers. Then, all you need is translucent polymer clay, which you can purchase at any craft store. The technique is to knead the clay until it is soft, and then sprinkle in the dried flower petals, working them into the clay.

Now you can make beads out of the clay by simply cutting them in small pieces and putting a hole in the middle of each piece. Put the beads on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper. Bake at 275° for 15 minutes. Let the beads cool down. Then you can use an elastic thread or a thin metal chain to make a bracelet or necklace.

A third idea for personalizing funeral services is to give your loved one’s books away to mourners who attend the funeral service. If your loved one was an avid reader, this is a way to share part of their life with others. It has a side benefit of helping to downsize, which is inevitable after a loved one dies.

An order of service booklet or pamphlet is given out at most funeral services. You can personalize this by adding pictures of your loved one with captions below each picture. This makes the booklet or pamphlet a keepsake, and gives insights into who your loved one was throughout their lives.

Many people choose to personalize funeral services by having a memory board at the entrance of the funeral parlor. This usually consists of a collage of photographs of the deceased loved one. In front of the board, blank cards are placed so that mourners can leave memories, messages, or their favorite things about the deceased. This can provide a lot of comfort to family members after the funeral service.

If you’re interesting in personalizing funeral services at funeral homes, our empathetic and knowledgeable staff at Hopler & Eschbach Funeral Home can assist you. You can stop by our funeral home at 483 Chenango St., Binghamton, NY 13901, or you can contact us today at (607) 722-4023.