The death of a loved one is never easy – even when the death follows a long illness and is expected. One of the benefits of working with Philadelphia Cremation Society is that the employees understand what you are going through, and that’s why they offer compassionate service that is beautifully simple.

When a loved one dies, you are asked to call Philadelphia Cremation Society at 610-632-1191. The caring professionals who work for us will take care of the rest. This leaves you free to care for your family and focus your energies on how to celebrate and honor your loved one’s life. Part of that process involves writing your loved one’s obituary.

Here are some common questions about obituaries, specifically about the publication process.

Who usually writes an obituary?

You knew your loved one better than anyone else on the planet, so it only makes sense that you would write the story of your loved one’s life. In fact, writing your family member’s obituary is a loving act. It forces you to slow down and focus on the deceased instead of being distracted by all the excess noise that comes with a life-changing event.

There are plenty of free online obituary templates to help you with the process. Most funeral homes (including Philadelphia Cremation Society) will complete simple editing to polish the document before publication.

How do I submit an obituary to a newspaper?

Most newspapers do not allow individuals to submit an obituary for publication. Instead, it has to be submitted through a funeral home. Philadelphia Cremation Society will submit your loved one’s obituary for you to the publications of your choice. Please be aware that there will be an additional cost for this service since newspapers charge us to publish them.

How much does it cost to publish an obituary?

It can cost between $200 and $400 to publish an obituary in a newspaper. This amount may be higher for newspapers with large circulations. The cost depends on many factors, including the length of the obituary (most newspapers charge a per-word fee) and whether or not you want a photo printed.

How do I get a free obituary?

Philadelphia Cremation Society will publish your loved one’s obituary for free. You can easily share the obituary on Facebook or through email. This is one of the ways we make things easier for the families we serve.

How long after a death is an obituary published?

Typically people attempt to write and

If you live in Philadelphia and have already chosen cremation as your preferred method of disposition for yourself or your loved one, your next step is to select a cremation services provider. While you can certainly wait for your loved one’s death to choose a cremation service, there are many benefits of planning ahead.

Planning ahead provides peace of mind for all involved. When you make prior arrangements, everyone can be informed on who to contact when the time of death occurs. Planning ahead also encourages individuals to make better-informed decisions. Instead of feeling rushed into a choice at the time of your loved one’s death, you can instead carefully select a cremation provider based on reputation and price.

If you are interested in pre-arranging your own cremation or the cremation of your loved one, consider purchasing a package from Philadelphia Cremation Society. Here are the benefits of working with this highly-rated cremation services provider.

When you work with Philadelphia Cremation Society, cremation services are easy to arrange.

At the time of your loved one’s death, call (610) 557-0672. Whether you had made prior arrangements or not, the Philadelphia Cremation Society staff will arrange for someone to pick up your loved one, fill out the necessary paperwork, and move forward with the cremation. The authorization form is easily found on the website and takes minutes to complete.

Philadelphia Cremation Society has an A+ rating with the Better Business Bureau.

Families describe the service they receive from the Philadelphia Cremation Society as quick, professional, courteous, caring, and dignified. You may struggle with finding a funeral home in the Philadelphia area with such reviews.

Philadelphia Cremation Society offers a practical and straightforward end-of-life solution.

You may feel emotionally devastated by the loss of your loved one. Many people report having a difficult time making even the most simple decisions at this time of loss. Philadelphia Cremation Society simplifies one aspect of saying goodbye to your beloved family member. This enables you to focus your energies on comforting those around you and sharing memories of the deceased.

Philadelphia Cremation Society offers plans to fit your needs.

Philadelphia Cremation Society offers direct cremation, which includes the transfer of the body to the cremation facility, obtaining, preparing, and filing all necessary legal documents, and the crematory process. Once the cremation is complete, the family may choose to plan a memorial, scattering, or inurnment service for their loved one.

Philadelphia Cremation

More Americans are choosing cremation over burial, but there are still people who have qualms about the process. In an effort to educate our readers, we would like to help you learn about the cremation process. Here are some things you need to know.

Once the body is in the hands of the staff at the Cremation Society of Philadelphia, great care is given to maintain the body’s identification. We have a strict protocol in place to ensure that your loved one’s body is identified through the entire part of the process.

Pennsylvania law requires that the body is stored for 24 hours before it is cremated. During this time, the body is placed in a cooling chamber.

After 24 hours, the body is prepared for cremation. All metal, prostheses, or implants are removed (including jewelry, pacemakers, glasses, etc.)

The body is prepared and may be placed in a cremation casket before the process begins. Cremation caskets are combustible and less expensive than a traditional casket. Most funeral homes allow you to rent a traditional casket if you choose to have an open-casket visitation and funeral before the body is cremated.

Once the body is identified once again, it is placed in the cremation chamber (or retort.) Some facilities allow the family to be there as this occurs, so they can feel as if they are part of the process.

The cremation chamber heats up to 2,000 degrees. Once the cremation process is completed and the cremated remains cool, a magnet removes any metallic bits that may have been behind.

While most people refer to what remains after cremation by using the word “ashes,” the cremated remains are composed of small pieces of bone. The “ashes” have a uniform texture because they are processed before they are returned to the family.

Unless other arrangements were made, the family might receive the cremated remains in a temporary container. These remains may be transferred to a cremation urn.

Most cremation urns hold the remains of an average-sized adult. Look at the volume of the receptacle as measured in cubic inches. Every pound of the deceased’s body requires one cubic inch of urn space. Extra-large urns can be purchased for larger adults or may be used as companion urns. Smaller urns can be purchased for pets and children.

Once the cremation services have been completed, the cremated remains can be shipped to the family or picked up at the facility. Before

It seems as if there are two camps of people: one group has no interest in what happens to their body after they die while others have definite opinions. Regardless of what group you fall into, there are several important reasons for creating final wishes arrangements.

Creating an end-of-life plan is one of the greatest gifts you can leave for your loved ones.

No matter your preferred method of disposition, choosing one and sharing your plan with your loved ones will make life easier for them after you pass. Someone will have to make your arrangements after you die. Instead of discussing “what they would have wanted,” they will know your plan for final wishes because it will be written in black and white.

If this bit of decision-making is already done for them, they will have more of an opportunity to comfort each other and share stories about what made you unique.

Making final wishes arrangements will relieve your loved ones of financial stress after you pass.

Your family will breathe a sigh of relief when they discover that you not only made your own end-of-life arrangements but that you also paid for the services. The grief of losing a loved one is difficult enough without having additional financial worries.

Philadelphia Cremation Society allows individuals to pre-pay for cremation services. There are three plans available: Direct Cremation, Veteran Cremation Plan, or Cremation Plan for Graveside Service. All are affordable, and when you pre-pay, you lock in today’s prices.

Share your plan for final wishes with several of your loved ones.

You know that creating an end-of-life plan will keep your family from arguments and relieve them of financial strain, but going through the trouble to make the plan won’t do anyone good if they are unable to find it.

Print out all the necessary documents and place them in an envelope with a large label. Pass them out to the members of your immediate family.

Better yet, create an end-of-life plan and organize all of your final wishes with Cake, and share it with your family. This will enable you to tweak your plan over time without making sure your next of kin have the most recent documents.

No matter how you share your final wishes arrangements, do not write the details in your will. Most families don’t even look for or read the will until after the funeral is over, and matters of disposition

One of the objectives of the Philadelphia Cremation Society is to act as a resource for people who have questions about the cremation process. Below are some of the most common questions people tend to have about the process. While we tried to provide clear answers to these questions, please know you can reach out to our staff for more information.

1) How is the body prepared for a cremation?
Much care and respect is given to the body as it is prepared for cremation. We make sure the body is properly identified and that the necessary paperwork is complete before we begin the process.

The process of preparing the body is relatively simple. Usually, the body is cleaned and dressed before the identification process. Any jewelry is removed from the body and set aside to return to the family. Any medical devices are removed from the body, such as pins, screws, implants, and fillings.

Once we confirm the deceased’s identity, the body is placed in a cremation container, and the process begins.

2) Does the body feel pain during cremation?
Please rest assured that the person you love is no longer in pain after they die. Even though you still grieve the loss of your companion, you can receive some solace knowing that your loved one is no longer hurting.

3) Can I still have a memorial service if I use cremation?
Yes, you can still have a memorial service for your loved one if he or she is cremated. There are several options to consider.

• If you do not plan to have an open-casket viewing, your loved one’s body can be directly cremated after death. When undergoing direct cremation, the body doesn’t have to be embalmed. The family can choose to have the cremains present at the funeral or not.
• Even if your loved one wanted to be cremated, you could still have an open-casket viewing. The body would first be embalmed, prepared for viewing, and placed in a casket. After the visitation or funeral, the body would be prepared for cremation.

4) Are cremated remains sterile?
During the cremation process, the body is heated to nearly 2,000 degrees. Even though no definitive studies state that the cremated remains are sterile, most people in the scientific community make that assumption.

5) What is a direct cremation?
Direct cremation refers to the act of the body being cremated soon after death. Families choose direct cremation

Are you dreading having the much-need conversation with your parents regarding their end-of-life wishes? You are not alone. This is a painful and difficult conversation for many people.

What you may not realize is that many older adults want to be asked about their final wishes. They may also like assistance with finding resources on how to create a will or trust. They may also need help finding online resources on how to pre-plan for their funerals.

Here are some tips on how to talk to parents about end-of-life wishes. We will give you ideas on how to broach these complicated conversation topics and provide you with a list of questions to ask your parents before they die.

1. Get help from your siblings.

Ask your siblings for help with this discussion about your parent’s final wishes. Even if they want to bury their heads in the sand on the subject of your parent’s mortality, remind them that you will all be responsible for planning for a funeral someday. It’s better to approach this process with your parent’s preferences than guessing what those wishes were after your parent’s death.

Talk with your siblings about the best approach for starting this conversation with your parents. Do you all agree that the best course of action is to set up a formal family meeting? Or do you know that your parents would respond better to a discussion that seemed more “off the cuff” and casual?

The personalities and knowledge of your parents and siblings may determine the best course of action for broaching the topic.

Some people are reluctant to disclose what they may feel is their private financial or health information, even with their children. If you find that your parent(s) are resistant to having this conversation about their final wishes, use these talking points to encourage them to share.

• “We want to be able to fulfill your final wishes. We can’t do it if we don’t know what they are.”
  “We don’t want to have to pay lawyers to sort through the details of your estate.”
  “We’re worried that making these decisions after you die will cause arguments among the family members.”
  “Making your own end-of-life plans is one of the best gifts you can give to us.”

2. Ask all of the hard questions and take notes.

Here is some of the information you need to gather to help your parents complete their end-of-life plans. Start by obtaining general information

Most of us are living different lives now than we did in the Fall of 2019. Even though COVID-19 has disrupted many of our activities, we would like you to know that Philadelphia Cremation Society is still serving families in Philadelphia and surrounding communities. This doesn’t mean that other aspects of your loved one’s funeral service won’t be affected by the pandemic.

Let’s discuss cremation during COVID-19. We’ll discuss what has changed due to the pandemic, and what has remained the same. We’ll also give you a quick overview of cremation laws that were in effect before the coronavirus was discussed daily.

Cremations During COVID-19

While there is a lot that is still unknown about the coronavirus, scientists and medical experts have released guidelines for those working in the funeral and cremation industry. The Center for Disease Control released “What do funeral home workers need to know about handling decedents who had COVID-19?” in July.

In this report, we learned that “decedents with COVID-19 can be buried or cremated.” We also learned that the safety guidelines we follow are appropriate for handling decedents with the coronavirus.

What does this mean for your family? Regardless of whether your loved one died while infected with the coronavirus or passed away from some other cause, we can safely transport the body to one of our facilities and complete the cremation.

If your loved one recently passed away, call one of our end-of-life experts at 610-632-1191.

Cremated Remains During COVID-19

You may be wondering if it is safe to handle the cremated remains of loved ones who died while infected with the coronavirus.

According to this report from the CDC, cremated remains are reduced to an ash-like substance by intense heat. This means that “cremated remains are considered to be noninfectious regardless of the cause of death.”

After our cremation experts return the ashes of your loved ones to you, you are free to keep, bury, inter, or scatter them as long as you follow state and local guidelines.

If your loved one was a veteran, let experts from Philadelphia Cremation Society assist you with the veteran’s benefits that your loved one may be entitled to receive. This service is offered