Dyin' ain't cheap

[Roberta]

I went today and did the funeral pre-planning on my mom. She's 91, with late stage Alzheimers and not too many months away from running out of money. It was time.
I used as much economy as I could without getting too cheap and it still cost a bloody fortune. If she had done this ten years ago like I wanted her to, she could have had a nicer funeral for a lot less money.
The moral of the story is: if you want a big send-off, plan and pay for it now. The prices aren't getting any cheaper and it's a lot easier to deal with it when you're not a victim of your emotions.

I've told Doug I want direct cremation; no services, so he can get off pretty cheap. Heck, I don't care what he does with my ashes.He can mix them with Quickrete and make crappie structure for all Icare .I'll be dead and probably won't care. ;-) - Roberta

[frank lawhead]

RIGHT ON ROBERTA --- HAD ONE FRIEND SPEND 11,000 ON WIFE FUNERAL AND COVER HER UP
WIFE AND I BOTH AGREE ON CREMATION

[Pooch]

I went through through the same with my dad, back in the midnineties. I've made the same wishes for myself known to my family. If my mom is still around, there may be a fight about it. She doesn't understand my thinking.---Pooch

[J White]

I've been saying for quite awhile now, that it was pointless for me to go get
a check-up, that if they found something wrong with me, they'd just have
to put me down - hospitals cost too much. Now you're telling me I can't
afford to die either?

But in all seriousness, sorry to hear about your Mom, Roberta.

[Mrs. Crappie Stalker]

Here's the good news --- you've had your mom well into your adult life, which in my mind has a much higher value than the cost of a funeral and burial. I'd trade places with you in a New York minute to get Dad back.

[crap-king]

Yeah I know the cost are terribly expensive - I have had to bury my Dad, a Great Aunt - and my Grand Dad - all of them had the preplanned deal but I have still spent close to $10,000 all together over what there plans paid for and everything was fairly simple - but you are right it is an emotional time and Mom wants the perfect flowers and music and the obituaries was in like 5 different newspapers for 2 days - that is costly

[mike732]

Hi there, I'm a Funeral Director and Embalmer, (Must do Something to buy Tackle) anyway prepaying is one of the best things you can do. If you live ten years you may save your family thousands I started in 1989 and at that time the average Funeral was around $4000.00 now the national average $8800.00 which is over double. My advice would be, if you have more than one Funeral Home to choose from go to a local owned F. H. and try to stay away from a corporation. You can even go back and forth and compare prices just like buying a car, It may take a couple trips back and forth but it will be worth it. Funeral Homes don't like to be undersold. Mike

[crap-king]

thanks for that input Mike - lot of folks are thinking smart enough at that time to make informed decesions - A good local FH will help make those choices and help keep folks emotions in check where as some of the corp are just making money - I am not saying all because I am sure both local and corporate have good to shady - like the guy that was supposed to be cremating bodies and they ended up finding bodies stuffed everywhere buried all over his property

[reelcrappie]

I want to be cremated and my ashes dumped into the river just above West Point lake. That way I'll get to go through West Point, Lke Harding, Goat Rock, Eufaula and Lake Seminole before reaching the Gulf. My heart goes out to you. Alzheimers is a terrible thing to have to deal with, it takes a very determined and strong person to be able to deal with it.

[driller]

My son-in-law is a funeral director, he told me the hardest part of the job is keeping a straight face when he sells a $12,000 funeral.