Ten Ideas for Creating a Memorial After the Funeral or Life Celebration

By Mary Hickey

Below you will find many memorial and remembrance ideas that you can use to keep the memory of your loved one alive. After the funeral, memorial service or life celebration many people wish to have something permanent as a reminder of the person that they loved and lost. It may help to think about what was important to the person you lost. What did they value? What made them smile? Perhaps by beginning there, the appropriate memorial will present itself. Here are 10 ideas that may help to guide you.

• You can plant a tree in their memory. You can find tree seedlings on the internet. You could also buy a tree at a local nursery.
  
• Have your love one's photo placed on a stamp. This also would be ideal for the thank you notes you will be sending for the flowers, donations and the help you will be receiving. Get more information here http://photo.stamps.com/PhotoStamps/learn-more/. On the anniversary of their death or on their birthday, consider sending a card or a memorial gift to close friends and relatives.
  
• Donate a memorial bench, if they loved golf, their favorite golf course may welcome the donation of a memorial bench. You may also consider purchasing a plaque or a brick in their name to help fund a community project.
  
• Have a star in the sky named after your loved one.
  
• Plant a section in the garden each year with their favorite flowers, you also may want to add a stepping stone or rock with their name on it in their special section of the garden. Consider each year sharing flowers from that section of the garden with the family and friends of your loved one.
  
• Start a college scholarship in their name.
  
• Create a video or DVD from photos and video or movie clips. This video can be played at family gatherings and on the person’s birthday or anniversary of their death. You can also easily make copies to share with close friends and relatives.
  
• Create a book of memories for the deceased’s family. Have friends and family write on note cards and include the note cards with photos in the book. You may also want to include newspaper articles about the deceased, the obituary etc.
  
• Create a memorial on the web – there are several websites that allow loved ones to memorialize the deceased through video, pictures, and voice recordings.
  
• Keep a journal of your memories, your thoughts and what you learned from your loved one.

Dealing with a loss of a loved one is so difficult. It’s important to do what brings you peace-of-mind. Focusing on a memorial may help you through the grief process and allow you to focus on the unique and positive aspects of your loved ones life and how that life can be remembered and celebrated for years to come.

Mary Hickey is an urn designer and thought leader in the funeral industry. She is co-founder of Renaissance Urn Company, based in San Francisco. For some drastically needed new life celebration ideas, contemporary memorial poems and verses visit her site http://www.nextgenmemorials.com/. Hickey can be reached at hickey_mary@hotmail.com.

Flowers Speaking: What Do They Say to You?

By Flora Delboda

Whatever the occasion may be - be it to share our greatest joys or express our deepest sorrows, flowers are most commonly used to represent our feelings. The formation can go as a single stem or a bouquet; these flowers, which are available in a variety of shapes, sizes, colors and fragrances, can be arranged to express almost every sentiment.

History supports the long path flowers have traveled in expressing feelings. The passion for flowers was so high with the French that they even published flower dictionaries in 1800s. This helped them classify and use almost all available flower species. The significance of a single flower such as a marigold was so high that its direction in a bouquet defined jubilation or a mourning.




Today, gifting flowers is not simply considered a kind gesture, but in many cases a hard-and-fast rule. Flowers of various types have become seamlessly integrated necessities in many of our most important life rituals, including birth, marriage, and death. It is a rare maternity ward that is devoid of bright blooms, just as a memorial service would be missing more than the dearly departed if it were not for a subtle adornment of white lilies, lilacs, and roses. Similarly, a bride without a bouquet is almost not recognizable as a bride at all.

One can be most artistic with the formation of bunch of flowers on marriages. In earlier times, it was affirmed that as the bride was to step into her new life, flowers and herbs around her forced the wicked evils away and guarded the bride. Flowers also helped couples express their feelings for each other during the courtship period wherein they sent particular flowers to exchange love notes before their wedding.

Some selections of floral symbolic meanings include:

• Daisies and lilacs: (youthful) innocence
• Tulips and red roses: love
• Irises: affection
• Lemon blossoms: vow of monogamy
• Violets: faithfulness

Flowers can strongly relate to specific personalities and hence can act as personal tributes as well. Even though the irises are more formally accepted as funeral offering, branches and ferns would be more befitting a tribute to someone who has been an avid outdoorsman all his life. Similarly, chrysanthemums though denote the expression of serious love but a girl named Chrissy might just be delighted to have them as her first date gift!

As the old adage goes that beauty lies in the eyes of the beholder, the expression the bouquet conveys is dependent on the understanding of the recipient. The appeal of Red Roses as a romantic gift is universal and can be understood everywhere. However a grouping of poppies signifying extravagance may find it difficult to penetrate many minds. If a flower or an arrangement speaks to you then perhaps bright colors best establish your happiness on success at professional level or a promotion while a single lily may remind you of someone loved at home even though it is normally considered a funeral flower.

The colors, the varieties, the sizes, the combinations... flowers can combine to create an endless number of expressions and sentiments. The fresh aroma of newly-emerged roses can capture the memories of a childhood summer better than the most vivid journal entries and home movies. Breathe in the fragrance, take in the vivid coloring, and enjoy expressing that which cannot quite be put into words with flowers.

Copyright 2006 Flora Delboda. All rights reserved.
Flora Delboda is the webmaster of DM Flower- a Flower Portal which is a single resource for flower growers, gardeners, florists, wedding planners, and other flower enthusiasts. on the Internet. Be sure to visit her archive of articles at: http://www.dmflower.com/newsletters/

Military Funerals

By Eddie Tobey

In the US, a military funeral is given by the armed forces for a war veteran, a soldier who died in battle or a prominent military figure. The Department of Defense, or DOD, is usually responsible for providing military funeral honors or the title “Honoring Those Who Served” to the deceased.




Section 578 of Public Law 106-65 of the National Defense Authorization Act mandates that the U.S. military must provide the rendering of U.S. military funeral honors for an eligible veteran upon a family’s request. Those who are eligible for a U.S. military funeral include military members on active duty or in the Selected Reserve, former military members who served on active duty, former military members who completed at least one term of enlistment or a period of initial obligated service in the Selected Reserve, and former military members discharged from the Selected Reserve due to a disability incurred or aggravated in the line of duty.

A military funeral usually includes all or some of the following features, depending on the status or the deceased. The coffin of the deceased is traditionally draped in a U.S. flag, and at the time of burial the flag is folded and presented to the next of kin as a keepsake. The flag is provided by the U.S. Veterans Benefits Administration without any cost, and is draped around the casket or accompany the urn of a deceased soldier. During the funeral procession, a horse-drawn caisson sometimes transports the coffin. Usually, cannon fires or gun salutes accompany a military funeral for high-ranking officials. A military bugler play taps at a distance of 30 to 50 yards from the gravesite, and sometimes a fly-by by military jets is performed for flyers and General Officers of the USAF.

A military funeral honors a war veteran, soldier who died in battle or a prominent military figure, and fills the hearts of their immediate family member with pride for the deceased.

Funerals provides detailed information on Funerals, Presidential Funerals, Military Funerals, Readings for Funerals and more. Funerals is affiliated with Golden Caskets.

Whole Life Insurance Advice – Important Whole Life Insurance Components

By Jessica Farrell

Not one of us is going to live forever. It’s a fact that many of us don’t want to think about; however, not thinking about it isn’t going to make it any less painful when the day does come that we leave our family members and loved ones behind. Not only are we going to leave them with sadness, but we may also leave them with accumulated bills, including medical bills, as well as funeral costs.




Purchasing a life insurance policy will help ensure that our families and loved ones won’t have to worry about any of the financial difficulties or strains that almost always arise in the even of death. Purchasing a whole life insurance policy will take care of three important concerns: costs, coverage duration, and cash value. Below you’ll find information and advice about these three whole life insurance components.

Most whole life insurance policies have permanent, level premiums, so the earlier you purchase your whole life insurance policy the better. Your rates won’t skyrocket as you get older.

Unlike term life insurance policies, whole life insurance policies cover you for life. Although term life insurance policies are ideal for people who only want coverage for a certain amount of time, with a whole life insurance policy you won’t need to worry about your coverage coming to an end.

Also unlike term life insurance policies, whole life insurance policies accumulate cash value. You can receive these cash values if you ever decide to surrender your policy. You may also take a policy loan against these cash values at your insurance’s current policy loan rate. It is important to remember that if you should surrender your policy or die while a loan is taken out, your cash value or death benefits will be decreased. The cash value accumulation component of whole life insurance policies might be the most popular feature as it acts as an investment component and can even provide you with financial security should you encounter an emergency.

View our Recommended Whole Life Insurance Company, a simple site that has an easy to fill out application. It also has a lot of great info about Home Insurance and Car Insurance

Advantages and Disadvantages of Guaranteed Acceptance Life Insurance for Seniors

By Chris Simons

Buying life insurance when you are a senior used to be a hard thing to do, but now there are many companies that offer Guaranteed Acceptance Life Insurance to people who would not otherwise be able to buy life insurance due to their age, health or financial situation. With Guaranteed Acceptance Life Insurance there is no physical exam requirements or questions about the applicants health. These plans usually have a limited benefit period. If the death of the policyholder occurs in the first few years a reduced benefit is paid, or the insurance company returns the premiums already paid with the accumulated interest. This is how insurance companies are able to guarantee acceptance.




There are a few disadvantages to guaranteed life insurance. Most of these types of policies are designed to provide only funeral expenses, so most do not sell policies with a benefit value of more than $15,000 to $20,000. The cost of guaranteed life insurance policies are also high, because the company has no other information but age and gender on which to base the premiums. These two disadvantages can make guaranteed life insurance very undesirable, especially since you can end up paying the insurance company more in premiums than the death benefit of the plan. That means that the insurance policy has a worse performance than a savings account. The National Association of Insurance Commissioners is actually looking into this problem to find out if anything should be done.

Guaranteed life insurance policies also have a feature called “Graded benefit period.” This protects the company from people signing up for insurance while on their deathbeds. This is done by writing into the policy that if the policyholder dies within a certain amount of time after the policy is taken out, the company only has to pay the premiums, plus the interest that that has accrued to the policyholder.

With all of these disadvantages in mind it is usually best to look for traditional insurance first, and take the physical exam and answer medical questions to find out if you can get insurance. If you can get traditional insurance you will most like pay much less for a greater amount of benefit than if you had bought guaranteed issue life insurance. If you have been turned away from every other policy because of health or age, guaranteed life insurance is a good option, but it should not be your first. Talk to a financial advisor and see if a savings or investment plan would be a better option.

Chris Simons is a prolific freelance writer. You are welcomed to visit http://life-insurance.cyberinformer.com/, for more information on Life Insurance.

When Grandma is Dying - What to Do With the Young Children

By Jack Wilson

When Grandma (or anyone else close) is dying we need to consider the children’s lack of sophistication about death. But children know more than we think and know it sooner than we realize. It is best to let them in on what is going on in the household to the degree that they can understand. If you conceal the truth, it only teaches them to do the same and that you don’t have faith in them. When they are very young they need to cope on a fantasy level. They are glad to hear stories which they can feel a part of. Stories about make-believe are fine, but not to deceive them, just to distract and comfort. Always answer their questions as honestly as you can. If you don’t know the answer, say so.




By age seven they are finished with pre-school and kindergarten and have negotiated the world of the school yard and the neighborhood and have a lot more savvy than we may believe. Even so, they need to be spoken to with care. No need to be sentimental about it, but show as much warmth and love as possible so they feel secure. Holding them and rocking is very beneficial. It can help children to deal with human mortality if you talk about the life cycles of plants and animals. They will have had experience with seeing plants die and probably animals, and will surely have seen movies in which animals die. It is worthwhile to help them to realize that our grief is for ourselves because we don’t have that wonderful person in our lives anymore, not for the dead person who is beyond awareness. Don’t be afraid to laugh and make them laugh.

While she is alive, have the children start a scrapbook with pictures of them and Grandma together. Have them draw pictures of Grandma as they remember her earlier and as she looks now. Have them write stories about the past with Grandma and where they think Grandma is going. Have them make a greeting card every day and have them present it to her. Save the cards for the scrapbook. Take pictures of the presentation. Grandma smiling is a wonderful keepsake.

Make a recording of Grandma’s voice; take a movie with her and the children if you can. Encourage them to sit and play quietly near her when she is sleeping. Ask them about their dreams every morning. Have them make a banner saying WE LOVE YOU GRANDMA to hang in her room.

They may want to see her body in the casket. You will need to exercise judgment about that. It can be traumatic or it can be comforting. Consider the children’s relative vulnerability. Include them as much as possible in the funeral and the activities afterward. Give them tasks so they feel that they have made a contribution.

Here is a site that helps in talking to children about death: http://www.hospicenet.org/html/talking.html

Children often feel guilty about the death of a close one, as if they were somehow responsible for the death. Assign them some responsibilities of a ceremonial or ritual nature such as lighting candles, singing a song, creating a shrine. The more they participate in the last months and days, the more they will be able feel that they did their best and they will have memories to cherish and less guilt to worry about.

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Jack Wilson is a writer in Tempe, AZ

http://www.geocities.com/galimatio/jackwilson.html

Colorado Wrongful Death Lawyers

By Jimmy Sturo

Colorado wrongful death lawyers can help you whether you are prosecuting or defending a wrongful death case. A wrongful death claim alleges that the deceased was killed as a result of negligence or other liability on the part of the defendant. Further, the surviving beneficiaries and dependents are entitled to monetary damages because of the defendant’s actions and conducts.





The wrongful death law is a law that seeks to provide financial compensation to the heirs of a deceased, whose death was caused due to negligence, omission, wrongful acts or default of another.

Though there are no federal statutes for wrongful death, each state has made its own set of civil wrongful death statutes; therefore the laws vary from state to state.

Wrongful death can be caused by medical malpractice resulting in the deceased’s death, neglect or abuse on part of a nursing home, an automobile, bus, train or airplane or other common carrier accident, occupational exposure to hazardous material or substances.

Spouses and the deceased’s immediate family members generally file wrongful death lawsuits. They are entitled to monetary damages as a result of the deceased’s death.

The lawsuits mainly award financial damages. This includes loss of support, lost prospect of inheritance, medical and funeral expenses and services. Any damages awarded pass on the estate of the deceased and then can be directed by the deceased’s will. If there is no will, the damages will be directed as the state law permits.

For a wrongful death lawsuit, there are various time limitations and other legal implications.

There are well-experienced wrongful death lawyers available in Colorado.

Colorado Lawyers provides detailed information on Colorado Lawyers, Colorado Accident Lawyers, Colorado Employment Lawyers, Colorado Divorce Lawyers and more. Colorado Lawyers is affiliated with Arizona Criminal Defense Lawyers.