Dealing with the loss of a loved one can be overwhelming to the surviving family members and friends. Pre-planning your funeral service at Westhaven Memorial Funeral Homes can help them better deal with the stress of losing someone close to them. Below you will find our helpful checklist for preplanning a funeral or memorial. For more information, call us at (601) 281-5615 and we'll be glad to discuss your options with you.

Pre-planning your funeral service can not only ease the burden on your loved ones but help to ensure that your final wishes are correctly carried out. Some families struggle with making those final decisions after losing someone, but by pre-planning, your family won’t have to worry about those hard choices. Some of the questions and decisions that come with pre-planning include:

• Choose your funeral home and director to use to handle your service.
• Decide what type of service you want (traditional, cremation, donation, etc.).
• If you choose a traditional service with a burial, decide exactly where you want to be buried.
• Meet with the funeral director and look at caskets and urns.
• If you decide on a burial, select clothing options.
• Look at options for a location to hold the service (funeral home, religious facility, sentimental building, graveside).
• What type of flowers do you want? Or in lieu of flowers, would you rather donations be given to charity?
• Who will be part of your service? Decide who will be pallbearers - you should even ask them personally. You also should decide who you would like to officiate or participate in the service.
• Select which songs you would like played at your service.
• Write an obituary or make notes about what details you would like to be included in your obituary.

You will likely want your family and friends to take part in the process of fulfilling your final wishes. They will need instructions on what to do as part of your service.

• Make sure someone has a copy of the will. This is preferably your executor.
• Give a family member or a friend a list of all important account information that will need to be handled following your death. Make sure someone knows your final wishes for your desired service as well.
• Designate someone to be your power of attorney.
• Ensure someone is prepared to cancel basic utility services and subscriptions (cell phone, utilities, any automated billing, etc.).