Services Overview

• Traditional Services
• Non-Traditional Services
• Memorial Services
• Pre-Arrangements
• Pre-Payment
• Out-of-Town Arrangements
• Cremation Services

 

• In-home Appointments
• Trade Services
• Cemetery Coordination
• Public Speaking
• Memorial Marker Assistance
• V A Assistance
• Insurance Claim Assistance

Although services may be selected individually, the following list of commonly selected services may help you select the appropriate arrangements.

Traditional Service

A traditional service for burial, entombment or cremation, is usually the service of choice. At Brown Funeral Home we believe in the traditional funeral, because it best serves the needs of family and friends.

The traditional funeral service may include the following:
 

• Casket
• Transfer of the deceased to the funeral home
• Embalming
• Dressing, cosmetology and other care of the deceased
• Professional support and administrative staff assistance
• Use of visitation rooms

• General use of the facilities for the service and arrangements
• Funeral service
• Use of funeral coach
• Utility car
• Register book
• Acknowledgment cards
• Memorial folders or prayer cards

The traditional service is a meaningful expression for the family, and it gives friends and associates an opportunity to offer their tributes in the way of flowers or memorials to churches or organizations.

Generally, a member of the clergy, or another person chosen by the family, conducts a service of remembrance. We encourage the active participation of the family in helping plan this part of the service. Many times family members take part by giving a reading, singing or assisting the clergy. If the ceremony is held in a church, there is no additional charge. Nor is there an additional charge for arranging and conducting fraternal services.

Cremation Services

With cremation services, we at Brown Funeral Home believe you should be able to choose the type of service that you find most meaningful. That's why our list of services includes many options.

Once cremated, a loved one's ashes may be placed in an urn and taken to a final resting place such as a family plot, urn garden, columbarium or a family member's home.

Sometimes cremated remains are divided into several urns. This option works well when loved ones are spread out across the country.

Others choose to have their ashes scattered in a special cemetery garden or over land or water (where permitted by law). In this case, a portion of the cremated remains is usually kept in a keepsake urn as a remembrance.

If you choose cremation, a funeral service is appropriate, and recommended. Survivors still need the time and setting to grieve. We offer many types of services specifically for cremations, from direct cremation with no casket present, to traditional cremation with a visitation, procession and memorial service.

Additional Services

Non-Traditional Burial, Entombment or Cremation without visitation. For this type of funeral service, you select the services and merchandise from several itemized options.

Private Family Viewing. A private viewing is limited to one hour. Additional charges will be made for a viewing lasting more than one hour or during times other than office hours.

A Memorial Service is the same as a traditional service, except the body is not present for the visitation or the funeral. The private family viewing explained above also applies here.

Traditional Ship-out allows you to select the type of services and merchandise for local arrangements and then the remains are shipped out of town for final services.

Limited Graveside Service is designed for those who want a ground burial or interment of cremains with a service only at the cemetery. Itemized options may be selected at the family's discretion.

Limited Family Viewing with Shipment is designed for those who want a private family viewing, but no other visitation prior to shipment of the casketed remains. Itemized options are also available to the family.

Ship-in Services are for those who want remains shipped to Brown for final services. Itemized options are available.

Direct Burial is a service for those who want only a ground burial, without visitation or services. This service is provided at the convenience of the funeral home and cemetery. Itemized options are available.

Direct Ship-out is when there is to be no local service and the remains are to be shipped to a funeral home out of town.

Direct Cremation is for those who wish the remains cremated without services. Itemized options are available. (A rigid cremation container for the body is required by the local crematory.)


Embalming Policy

Although law does not require embalming, embalming may be necessary if you select certain funeral arrangements, such as a funeral with a viewing. If you do not want embalming, you have the right to choose an arrangement which does not require you to pay for it, such as direct cremation or immediate burial.


If you choose not to embalm, it is our policy to be notified prior to transporting the deceased to the funeral home. A non-embalmed body will be permitted in our funeral home for no longer than 24 hours without refrigeration.

Funeral Arrangement or Pre-arrangement Conference

The importance of our ability to dedicate the personal time and attention to your family is critical to us. For this reason we suggest that we schedule a convenient time for our conference, for either arrangements, or for pre-planning. At your time of need, one of our funeral directors will contact the appropriate family member to schedule this appointment. If you are interested in a pre-arrangement conference, you may contact our Certified Preplanning Consultant, Steve Hedges or one of our staff.

When you come to our conference, we suggest the following confidential information and/or items be brought along:

• Social Security number
• Military discharge papers (Form DD-214) if applicable
• Date of birth
• Place of birth
• Formal education level
• Recent photo for newspaper and preparation purposes
• Clothing – all normal items including undergarments. An outfit with a closed neckline and long sleeves is preferred for women.
• Jewelry and personal Items – to be included in the casket for service and/or burial

 

A standard service of Brown Funeral Home is to obtain certified copies of the death certificate for the family. The family will need to determine how many copies should be ordered. A certified copy may be required for:
 

• Each life iInsurance policy
• Retirement / pension accounts
• Banks
• Real property
• Stocks / bonds
 

• DMV
• Probate of will
• Final tax return
• Personal files