Charitable Donations
For families wishing to have donations to charities rather than floral tributes, here are links to some of the more popular organisations.
If you're undecided as to which charity to support, you may use the Give Well website to find a local organisation that is involved in projects close to your heart. http://www.givewell.com.au
Hunter Region Organisations
Make Today Count Inc
Hunter Medical Research Institute (HMRI)
Hunter SIDS and KIDS
State and Federal Organisations
Cancer Council
Heart Foundation
Breast Cancer Foundation
Alzheimers Foundation
Prostate Cancer Foundation
McGrath Foundation
Leukaemia Foundation
Diabetes Australia
Asthma Foundation
Vision Australia
Guide Dogs Australia
The Alannah and Madeline Foundation
Beyond Blue
Australian Red Cross
Starlight Foundation
World Vision Australia
Bible Society NSW
Writing a Eulogy
Writing a eulogy is something that is always done under time and emotional pressures. The word "eulogy" means a "good word" and that is what you want to write about. It needs to be honest and recognisable to people who knew the deceased person whilst the deceased was alive. Keep your language simple and honest. The eulogy needs to flow like a good personal story. Bring in some of the stories others tell about the deceased.
Simple Guide to Writing a Eulogy
- Briefly describe the highlights & achievements of his or her life
- Write three nouns you would use to describe him or her. For example "William Wright lived his life full of fun, compassion & community service"
- Provide stories that typified these three elements of his or her life
- Report on his or her favourite phrases or sayings
- Talk about one cause or a movement that he or she felt strongly about & supported
- Recount what made him or her laugh or cry
- Name one value or lesson he or she wanted to teach the next generation & why he or she will be missed
Whilst in our care
To help families of the deceased to understand what happens to the body of the deceased person whilst in our care we provide you with a brief overview. The deceased is lifted from his or her place of death, placed on a stretcher and covered with a clean cloth. He or she is wheeled or carried to a custom built vehicle and transferred into our care at one of our mortuaries.
The person will be placed in a cool room until preparation is commenced. After preparation is completed a viewing can be arranged (if required) to pay your final respects, and the funeral service can proceed.
France Family Funerals staff are trained to ensure that the deceased person obtains the highest levels of respect at all times. Qualified staff wash and groom the deceased, disinfect and preserving fluids may be used to preserve the body and prevent the spread of infection. Sometimes embalming may be involved if the body is to be interred above ground (in a crypt or vault). If the body is to be cremated, surgical implants such as pacemakers and radioactive implants have to be removed. Your religious norms or personal preferences are strictly followed in all aspects in preparing the deceased.
Trained staff undertake the preparation procedure which varies in time depending upon your religious and personal preferences. To ensure that the viewing experience meets your expectations it is prudent to allow enough for the preparation process to be completed. Procedures are the same for babies and young children.
During the funeral arrangements you have the option of choosing the type of coffin or casket that meets your preferences and budgetary requirements. Sometimes the person may list their preferences prior to their death (e.g. Pre-Arranged Funerals).
The deceased needs to be transported from the place of death to a mortuary, then to the place of the funeral service, and to the cemetery or crematorium. The vehicle has to meet certain health and safety requirements, and a hearse is usually required. The deceased is usually taken from the mortuary to the cemetery or crematorium at a time that suits the family and the cemetery or crematorium. Although many families may choose not to attend at the cemetery or crematorium if the funeral service has been completed elsewhere (e.g. chapel or church).
Glossary
| Arrangement Room | A room of the funeral home where you and your family can make funeral arrangements. |
| Autopsy | Medical procedure used to determine the cause of death. |
| Bereaved | The family of the deceased who are suffering from the death of a loved one. |
| Burial | Placing the deceased person in a grave. |
| Columbarium | A structure with small spaces (niches) for placement of cremated remains in urn containers. |
| Casket | A receptacle of wood, metal or plastic into which the deceased is placed for burial. |
| Cemetery | An area of ground set aside for burial or entombment of the deceased. |
| Chapel | A room in the funeral home, church, cremetorium or cemetery, or other building used for farewell/viewing/memorial services. |
| Commital Service | The final portion of the funeral service at which time the deceased is interred or entombed. |
| Coroner | A government official whose duty it is to investigate the cause of death if it appears to be from other than natural causes. |
| Cortege | The funeral procession led by a hearse. |
| Cremation | Reduction of the body to ashes by fire. |
| Death Notice | A notice placed in the newspaper classifieds, radio or on the Internet, publicising the death of a person and providing funeral service details and listing the names of the relatives of the deceased. |
| Deceased | A person whose physical life has ended. |
| Embalm | The process of preserving a deceased person by means of circulating preservative and antiseptic through the veins and arteries to delay decomposition and allow the body to be presented for viewing and prevent transfer of infections. Embalming is normally required for above ground interment (crypts or vaults) as well as for transportation overseas. |
| Ethics | The moral code, which guides the members of the funeral profession in proper conduct of their duties and obligations. |
| Eulogy | A brief speech that offers praises and celebrates the life of the deceased. |
| Final Rites | Communication offered to the sick prior to death. |
| Funeral Arrangements | Funeral director's conference with the family for the purpose of completing service details and financial arrangements of a funeral. |
| Funeral Director | A professional who prepares for the cremation, burial or other disposition, supervises such disposition and maintains a funeral establishment for such purposes. |
| Funeral Home | A building used for the purpose of embalming, arranging and conducting funerals. |
| Funeral Service | The religious or other rites conducted immediately before final disposition of the deceased. |
| Grave | An excavation in the earth for the purpose of burying the deceased. |
| Mausoleum | A public or private building designed as an above ground resting place for the dead. |
| Mortuary | A building designed and constructed for the caring of the deceased. |
| Niche | A compartment that holds cremated remains of the deceased |
| Obituary | A death notice placed in a newspaper or on the radio or Internet, containing a biographical sketch of the deceased. |
| Pre-Arranged Funeral | Funeral arrangements completed by an individual prior to his or her death. |
| Pre-Arranged Funeral Fund | A method by which an individual can prepay for his or her funeral expenses. |
| Urn | A metal, wood or stone container in which cremated remains of a deceased are placed. |
| Vault | A wholly or partly underground burial chamber, or an outside metal or concrete casket container. |
| Viewing | A private time for mourners to visit the deceased in an open casket to pay final respects in a special room or chapel within the funeral home. |
