Monthly Archives: January 2020

funeral homes in Clinton Township, MI

Attending a Funeral

When you attend a funeral at funeral homes in Clinton Township, MI, you are there to show support for a family who has lost a loved one and to show respect for the person who has died. There are things that are appropriate to do at a funeral and things that are not appropriate to do.

Attending a funeral is never easy, even if you didn’t know the deceased well or you didn’t know them at all, but know or are friends with a member of their immediate family. You may find that you are unexpectedly feeling emotionally vulnerable when you’re attending a funeral, so one of the things that you need to do is to make sure to keep your own emotions in check while you’re attending the funeral.

Your presence at the funeral should be respectful, caring, and empathetic toward the family who has lost their loved one, so one of the things that is appropriate is to express your condolences to the family. If they choose not to have a viewing or visitation, then one way to show your condolences is to send a plant or floral arrangement to the funeral home for the funeral, or to make a donation to a charity that the family requests that contributions be given to.

When you offer condolences, make sure to let the family know how you are connected to their loved one, whether you’re a friend of one of the immediate family members, were a coworker of their loved one, or you knew them from a church or fraternal organization.

If you send a floral arrangement or plant or make a charitable contribution in the deceased’s name, be sure to include your full name so that the family doesn’t confuse you with someone else who may share the same first name as yours.

Be sure to sign the guest register at the funeral. Include your full name and your address so that the family has this information when they are sending thank-you notes after the funeral for gifts, flowers, and charitable donations.

During the funeral service, be sure to mute your cellphone or turn it off altogether. There is nothing more jarring – or disrespectful – than to hear a ringtone (and with the plethora of ringtones available, some of these may be very inappropriate) during a solemn service like a funeral.

Do not be late to the funeral. Be sure to leave enough time to allow for heavy traffic or a traffic accident so that you are not arriving at the funeral service after the it has begun. The disruption caused by a latecomer trying to find a seat is very disrespectful to the deceased and to the grieving family.

Be thoughtful about seating at the funeral. The first three rows are usually reserved for the immediate family, extended family, and close friends of the deceased. The appropriate way to find a seat at a funeral is to find the next available seat at the back (mourners typically fill in the seating from back to front).

Do not sit in an aisle seat if there are other seats available further inside the row. People who arrive after you should not have to crawl over you to get a place to sit.

Do not show up at a funeral uninvited. Public funerals are considered to be open to anyone who would like to attend. Private funerals, on the other hand, are invitation-only, where the family specifically invites the people that they want to attend the funeral. If the obituary says that the funeral is private and you don’t receive an invitation, then you should not attend.

For more information about attending funerals at funeral homes in Clinton Township, MI, our compassionate and experienced staff at Lee-Ellena Funeral Home can help. You can come by our funeral home at 46530 Romeo Plank Rd., Macomb, MI, 48044 or you can contact us today at (586) 412-8999.

cremation services offered in Macomb, MI

What to Say and Do When Someone Dies

Funeral visitations and viewings are some of the cremation services offered in Macomb, MI. Many people will hold funeral viewings or visitations, and services before their loved one is cremated. If you knew the deceased or you know the family (or a specific family member), then you should attend the visitation or viewing and the funeral service, unless the family has specifically requested that these be private and by invitation only, and you have not received an invitation.

You might not have any qualms about attending the funeral service for someone who has died, because this is typically a service where you don’t have to interact or engage with the family of the deceased.

However, attending the viewing or visitation does require one-on-one interaction with the bereaved family, and you may not be sure what to say or do when you talk with them. Here are a few things that should help make this easier.

One of the simplest and most heartfelt things that you can do as soon as you hear of the death is to send a card letting the family know that you are sorry for their loss. You don’t have to run out and buy a sympathy card.

If you have a card with a beautiful cover that is blank on the inside, then you have all you need. If you knew the deceased, be sure to acknowledge them or share a warm memory of them in the card. Sign your full name so that the family knows exactly who you are. Get the card mailed as soon as possible.

At the visitation or viewing, simply be sincere when you talk with the family. If you knew their loved one well, then be sure to let each family member know what their loved one meant to you and how sad you are for their loss.

Be sure not to be negative or disparaging about the deceased. For a grieving family, this can be very painful, hurtful, and can intensify the grief they are feeling. They need to be supported, encouraged, and comforted, so be kind and empathetic to what they are going through.

There are many funeral clichés that people instinctively fall back on in times of loss and grief. While they may be well-meaning, they can feel dismissive, disrespectful, and cold to the bereaved family. Some of these include phrases such as, “You’re better off without them,” “I know how you feel,” “At least they’re not suffering anymore,” “You’ll feel better soon,” “You need to be strong,” or “At least you had them for a little while.”

Don’t linger talking with family members, because there are other people in the line for the visitation or viewing who want to talk with them. If you monopolize their time, then they may not be able to greet all the mourners who’ve come to offer them support and encouragement, and this may leave some mourners feeling slighted.

If you want to talk to the family or a specific family member at length, call them after the viewing or visitation and ask if you can stop by and visit with them. Be sure to bring something with you when you visit. You can bring something as simple as a plant or you can bring food or grocery items.

For information about cremation services in Macomb, MI, our caring and knowledgeable staff at Lee-Ellena Funeral is here to assist you. You can visit our funeral home at 46530 Romeo Plank Rd., Macomb, MI 48044, or you can call us today at (586) 412-8999.

funeral homes in Macomb, MI

Food for a Funeral Reception

Receptions after funerals at funeral homes in Macomb, MI are common. Receptions offer an opportunity for the bereaved family and mourners to gather together in an informal setting and share food and stories about the deceased. If you’re planning to have a reception after the funeral service of your loved one or you are coordinating a reception for a family who has lost someone, you will need to take several things into consideration in your planning.

Food is a central part of the funeral process because it reflects the region of the country you live in, your heritage, and your own family traditions. It is comforting to both the grieving family and to friends and other family members who are assembled to honor the memory of your loved one.

One of the considerations for food in a funeral reception is where the reception will be held. This will be one of the determining factors in how simple or elaborate the food the food needs to be.

Most funeral homes now have facilities that can accommodate funeral receptions. However, the food may need to be already prepared or catered. This would mean that the best types of food to prepare are light fare, such as finger foods, or a sit-down catered meal.

If you’re holding the reception somewhere that has a full kitchen, such as a private home or church hall, then food can be prepared there, so you can plan on having a full, cooked meal.

Another consideration for food is how much you will need. If everyone who attends the funeral service is invited to the funeral reception, then you’ll need to plan for a larger group of people and make sure there is enough food to feed everyone. If the funeral reception is for family and close friends, then you will need less food.

Preparation of the food that will be served at the funeral reception is a big part of the planning process. If you are planning a funeral reception to be held after the death of your loved one, then it’s best to delegate food preparation – and the majority of the planning – to other people, because you and your family will have enough to do taking care of funeral arrangements without adding something else.

If a full cooked meal at a private home or church hall is going to be served, then you should let people know what they should bring to contribute to the meal. Slow cooker dishes and casseroles are great entrees for this type of meal, and one-dish sides, breads, and desserts will round out the menu. Drinks should include coffee, tea, juice, sodas, and water. As much as possible, cook in disposable containers and use disposable plates, cups, and dinnerware to make cleanup as easy as possible.

If you will be providing light fare at the funeral home, then assign each type of item to friends and extended family members to bring to the reception. The funeral home can provide paper goods and drinks.

If the meal will be catered, you can either organize the menu with the caterer of your choice or the funeral home can work with one of their preferred caterers to create a menu. The caterer will provide everything needed for the reception food, including plates, cups, and dinnerware, and they will also take care of cleanup afterward.

For more information about funeral receptions at funeral homes in Macomb, MI, our compassionate and experienced staff at Lee-Ellena Funeral Home can help. You can come by our funeral home at 46530 Romeo Plank Rd., Macomb, MI, 48044 or you can contact us today at (586) 412-8999.

cremation services offered in Mount Sterling Heights, MI

Choosing Music for a Memorial Service

Memorial services are one of the cremation services offered in Mount Sterling Heights, MI. An important part of memorial services is the music that is selected and played. Music speaks to the soul and it can add great meaning to the service where people are gathered to remember you and remember your life.

While in times past, music associated with memorial services was likely to be limited to a very narrow genre of traditional hymns or classical music, now many different types of music are played at memorial services.

You can choose music that you like. You can choose music that will remind people of things about you. You can choose music that is connected to a special event in your life, such as your wedding day, or that has special meaning to your family, such as a favorite song that you all shared in common.

However, although your choice of music to be played at your memorial service can be virtually unlimited, there are a few guidelines to keep in mind as you are making your selections.

Avoid music that includes expletives or has vulgar lyrics. There will be a wide variety of people attending your memorial service. There will be very young people and very elderly people. If you are affiliated with a religious congregation, many of them are likely to attend your memorial service. Work colleagues will also likely be in attendance.

While expletives and vulgar lyrics are ubiquitous in modern music, they are still offensive to many people, and the last thing you want at your memorial service is people who are shocked and offended by the lyrics of the music you have chosen.

Before choosing music, make sure you double-check the lyrics to ensure that they’re not inappropriate in any other way (suggestive, double-entendre, etc.) that might cause offense to the people who are attending your memorial service.

The next step is to decide at what points during your memorial service that music should be played. There’s no set format, so it’s up to you as to when you think it would be most appropriate.

Most funeral homes have equipment that can play streaming or MP3 files, so all you will need to do is make sure, especially if the music is a rare recording or a deep cut, that you have them somewhere (such as on a Spotify playlist) that is easily accessible for the funeral home to play them.

If you’re unsure what music you’d like to have played at your memorial service, here are a few suggestions from different genres to help you get started.

If you are interested in having hymns played at your memorial service, some of the more popular ones are “Amazing Grace,” “Oh Happy Day,” “Ave Maria,” and “Blessed Assurance.”

Some popular music choices that are often heard at memorials services include “Somewhere Over the Rainbow” – Israel Kamakawiwo ‘Ole, “I Can See Clearly Now” – Johnny Nash, “Angel” – Sarah Mclachlan, and “Imagine” – John Lennon.

For more soothing music, favorites include “Bridge Over Troubled Water” – Simon & Garfunkel, “I’ll Be Missing You“– Puff Daddy and Faith Evans, “One Sweet Day” – Mariah Carey & Boyz II Men, and “Go Rest High on That Mountain” – Vince Gill.

If you want uplifting music, consider “What a Wonderful World” by Louis Armstrong or “Wherever You Will Go” by The Calling.

For more information about cremation services in Mount Sterling Heights, MI, our caring and knowledgeable staff at Lee-Ellena Funeral is here to assist you. You can visit our funeral home at 46530 Romeo Plank Rd., Macomb, MI 48044, or you can call us today at (586) 412-8999.