Planning a Funeral
Funeral Arrangements: A Comprehensive Guide
Planning a funeral is a deeply personal and often overwhelming process. Whether you are arranging for a traditional burial or opting for cremation, the team at Jerh. O’Connor Funeral Homes is here to support you every step of the way, ensuring a respectful and meaningful service for your loved one. Below is a comprehensive overview of the key elements involved in planning a funeral.
Consultation with Jerh. O'Connor Funeral Homes:
- Burial or Cremation: Decide on whether your loved one will be buried or cremated.
- Service Details: Choose the type of service, such as a visitation, formal ceremony, or reception.
- Clothing: Select the outfit the deceased will wear for the service, burial, or cremation.
- Clergy: If desired, arrange for a clergy member to officiate the service.
- Personal Touches: Personalise the service with music, photographs, flowers, scripture, or readings.
- Charity Donations: Consider arranging for donations to a charity in memory of your loved one.
- Internment Arrangements: If cemetery arrangements have not been made, the funeral director will work with the cemetery or crematorium to finalise the details.
Funeral Service Options
A service based on faith traditions
A non-religious service that focuses on celebrating life
If you prefer, a simple direct internment with no formal service this can be arranged in keeping with your loved ones wishes.
Funeral Arrangements
- Family Plot: If family members are to be buried together, consider the space and type of cemetery property needed.
- Memorial: Choose the type of memorial, such as a headstone or plaque.
Learn more about your options here.
Cremation is available all over Ireland with crematoriums in Belfast, Cork and Dublin. The coffin is always used in the cremation process. The ashes may be interned in a family grave, inserted in the columbarium wall or scattered at a favourite place.
Choose from various urns made from materials like wood, bronze, ceramic, or biodegradable options. Urns come in different sizes, and some can be engraved as a memorial to the deceased.
Select from a range of dignified final resting options that best reflects a life well lived. These options include:
- Buried
- Placed in a Niche
- Scattered
- Kept at Home
Most religious groups, including Christians, Sikhs, Buddhists, Hindus, and Parsees, accept cremation. However, some religions, such as Islam, Orthodox Judaism, and Greek Orthodox Christianity, may not.
Learn more about these options here.
Other Important Considerations
For many people music plays an essential role in honoring your loved one, offering comfort and reflection. Whether a religious or secular service, we can arrange professional musicians, soloists, or instrumentalists. Alternatively, pre-recorded music can be played during the service.
Embalming is typically recommended if you plan to have an open coffin or visitation. It preserves and sanitises the body, allowing for a natural appearance during viewing.
Funeral costs vary depending on your choices, covering expenses such as the coffin, transportation, cemetery arrangements, and third-party services (like florists and obituary publication). Instead of flowers, donations to a charity can be arranged. The funeral director will provide an estimate once provisional arrangements have been made.
Funeral Cost Breakdown:
Funeral Director’s Costs: Includes coffin/urn, transportation, and professional services.
Third-Party Costs: Includes cemetery, crematorium fees, obituary publications,music, live-streaming, recording and flowers.
On behalf of the family, we will arrange the content and structure of the death notice and as requested publish the notice in a newspaper or radio station of choice. We are also able to assist families with acknowledgements and anniversary notices.
The death notice must be received the evening before to be published in the newspaper.
Jerh. O’Connor Funeral Homes provides dignified and comfortable transportation for both the deceased and the family. Our fleet includes Mercedes hearses, limousines, private ambulances, and lead cars, with each limousine comfortably accommodating up to seven passengers. We prioritise your comfort and peace of mind, ensuring transport to and from the funeral venue, cemetery, or crematorium.
At Jerh. O’Connor Funeral Homes, we offer discreet and professional live streaming services to help families include loved ones who are unable to attend in person. Whether due to distance, illness, or travel restrictions, our streaming option ensures that everyone has the opportunity to take part in the ceremony and pay their respects. The service is delivered securely through private or public links depending on the families preferences, maintaining the dignity and intimacy of the occasion. A recording can also be made available afterward, offering comfort to those who wish to revisit the service or view it at a later time.
The team at Jerh. O’Connor Funeral Homes will assist you in writing a thoughtful obituary for your loved one. Our team can guide you through every step, ensuring the personality and spirit of your loved one is protected, while also reaching those who wish to pay their respects. An obituary typically includes the following:
- Full name of the deceased, including any nicknames.
- Place of residence, along with death date.
- Family information, listing immediate family members, including survivors and those who have died.
- Service details, including visitation times, funeral, and graveside service locations.
- Memorial donations, with suggestions for charitable organisations in place of flowers.
We will also, when desired, assist with submitting death notices to national newspapers (i.e The Irish Examiner), local newspapers (i.e The Evening Echo), online platforms (i.e RIP.ie), and local radio stations.
