The Women Who Love Death
By JEN ORTIZ Oct 31, 2016 for Marie Claire Young women are more paranoid about their own demise than ever before. Enter "death positivity," a new female-driven trend aimed at turning that fear on its head. About a dozen people are gathered at the Morbid Anatomy Museum in Brooklyn, New York for ...
Continue ReadingFCA Philadelphia Newsletter: Summer 2016
Beating the high cost of funerals: With hard work from our board and volunteers, we now have over 140 General Price Lists from funeral homes all over the greater Philadelphia area. Direct cremation ranges from $700 to $4,465 (for the same thing!), and immediate burial from $900 to over $7,000! ...
Continue ReadingCremation Not Included: FCA Study Reveals All
When a loved one passes away, those tasked with arranging funerals and settling estates have to make a multitude of decisions during a stressful time and on a deadline. Cremation? Burial? Embalming? Organ Donation? The possibilities are endless and the choices made often have a lasting effect and although we ...
Continue ReadingEverything You Need to Know About Death Certificates
Photo: Alan Crawford, Getty Images When a loved one dies, you'll need to order death certificates to submit to certain agencies to shut down accounts or collect benefits. But how many death certificates should you order? Below you'll learn about the purpose of death certificates, typical uses, how to order ...
Continue ReadingFuneral Customs & Traditions: The Surprising History Behind Gravestones
"Shhh," I'd whisper to my little brother, index finger pressed tightly to my lips, "Don't make any noise or you'll wake the dead." We'd stare out the window, holding our breath, as our car passed yet another cemetery. Watching in anticipation as the granite gravestones rushed past in a grey ...
Continue ReadingEstate Planning: When We Leave Pets Behind
Since 1947, when the term 'nuclear family,' was first popularized, house-pets have been considered a crucial part of the basic social unit in America. There are over 70 million cats and over 70 million dogs occupying over 30% of American households. That is more than enough furry friends to stretch ...
Continue ReadingThe cost of dying is steep for the unprepared
By Marion Callahan for PhillyBurbs The last thing grief-stricken people may think about when a loved one dies is the cost of the final arrangements. With little time to plan during a vulnerable time, they could end up with a hefty bill, paying far more on services than they planned -- ...
Continue Reading10 Do's & Don'ts of Condolence Etiquette
Mourning online can be a difficult line to walk; between the giving and receiving of condolences, there is no universally acceptable or unacceptable way to pay your respects. There are many unspoken rules of social media etiquette and when combined with a topic like death, it becomes nearly impossible to ...
Continue ReadingThe Cremation Process
What is cremation? Cremation is a means of final body disposition that uses intense heat to break down the body to bone fragments which are often pulverized along with the other organic matter to an ash-like substance. The Cremation Process Cremation is performed by placing the deceased in a cremation container of your ...
Continue ReadingEverything You Want to Know About Immediate Burials
Immediate burial, also known as direct burial or simple burial, is the interment of a body in the days immediately following death. Immedited burial, similar to direct cremation, is one of the most cost effective burial options available and is offered by all funeral homes in the United States. What is Immediate Burial? Immediate burial ...
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