Funeral Services

We assist your family in planning final arrangements and choosing the options that best suit your family's needs. We do everything from traditional funerals with burial, various cremation options, medical school donations and everything in-between.

Once a decision is made, we handle everything that must be done to coordinate those wishes. Whether services are held at our funeral home, your church or directly at the cemetery, we can help.

In addition to funeral services we also provide the following services.

Online Memorials

Online memorials provide personal information about the life of an individual much like an obituary does, but allows people to access the information from their computer. 

It gives details about dates, times, service locations and directions on how to get there. Guests can leave you a personal message by signing the online guestbook. This also provides an opportunity for those who aren't able to attend the services to pass along their condolences.

Some funeral home online memorials appear only for a set time frame and require an additional payment or even worse, ask your visitors to help pay for it.  We provide this benefit free of charge and have no time restrictions attached.  

Obituaries

We assist you in writing the obituary notice during the arrangement conference.  That way you are able to make any changes or corrections before it is sent to the Herald Palladium or the Tri-City Record. 

We will also take care of placing any additional obituary notices in out of town newspapers should you wish to do so.

Social Security

We notify the Social Security Administration when a death occurs. We can also explain and help you apply for any benefits you may be entitled to through Social Security.

Death Certificates

The law requires the original death certificate to be filed at the County Clerk's Office in the county in which the death occurred. 

We can, at the same time, pick up any certified copies of the death certificate you may need for life insurance purposes,  transferring property or titles, veteran's benefits or a host of other issues.

The only fee you pay is the actual fee charged by the County Clerk's Office.  Berrien and Van Buren Counties currently charge $13 for the first copy and $4 for each additional copy obtained at the same time.

Veteran's Benefits

We will help you secure your potential veterans benefits, such as burial flags, government markers, memorial certificate and a burial plot.

After Care

Sometimes the loss of a loved one can be especially painful. We understand that the grieving process does not end with the funeral.

We are here not only to help arrange the funeral, but to help families cope with the loss of their loved one. There are a wide variety of grief resources available in our area and we will help to point you in the right direction and begin the healing process.

Pre-Planning

There are many advantages to planning a funeral ahead of time. By pre-planning a funeral, difficult decisions will not have to be made during a time of grieving and stress. You will be able to visit a potential resting site and have time to decide on and compare options. Thought can be made to whether or not cremation is an option you may want to choose. Your wishes can be put into writing to give your family direction when the time for the funeral comes. Our staff will help you plan so that your family can carry out your wishes.

If you have already preplanned or prepaid for your arrangements at another funeral home, you are allowed by law to transfer those arrangements to another funeral home of your choice.

If you have any questions or concerns about your existing prearrangement, feel free to call us.  We will honor most contracts, explain your options, and assist you with the transfer if you desire.