Preplanning Your Funeral Post-Pandemic

A global tragedy has given individuals a new outlook on the future.

The COVID-19 crisis isn’t over. Many families in the US and around the world are still grappling with illness and death due to the virus. However, the world seems to be starting to emerge from it. In New Mexico and elsewhere, businesses are opening up, mask mandates are being dropped, and schools are returning to pre-pandemic protocols. And many individuals are seeing death differently.

The pandemic has forced families to think about death, when for so long it has been a topic most people would rather blissfully ignore. Death is real. Death happens to everyone. Death will happen to you. And death is unpredictable. No one knows when their last day is. What we do know is that when the time comes, someone will have to deal with the grief of loss and the handling of a loved one’s final arrangements.

Many individuals are choosing to plan their own funerals in advance, and for a multitude of good reasons. For one, it takes the burden of planning off their family members. Planning a memorial service, wake, rosary, burial, cremation—all of it requires time, decision-making, and lengthy conversations with a funeral director. When someone is grappling with loss and the emotions that come with it, those details can be extremely overwhelming and difficult, even if they knew exactly what your final wishes were.

Others don’t want their spouses or children to have to carry the weight of paying for a ceremony and burial or cremation. Funerals and memorial services vary greatly financially, but they all come with a price tag. Even the simplest of ceremonies or basic cremation cost money. Life insurance plans may cover some expenses, but oftentimes come with unexpected surprises, such as additional third-party fees, payment complications or limited benefits. Prepaying for your final arrangements alleviates the financial burden from loved ones. And that’s not the only monetary benefit a family receives. A funeral that is paid for today locks in today’s prices. So when you pass, be it years or decades from now, you help your family avoid inevitable inflated costs.

Preplanning has become very appealing to individuals who want to design their own goodbye, to ensure their funeral is exactly the way they want it to be. The pandemic has opened the eyes of many people, both young and senior, to the fact that if they died, to the fact that someone else could be planning their services, quite possibly in a way that doesn’t reflect their wishes. Planning your own memorial service in advance means you get to decide what’s involved, who you’d like to officiate, the music that you love, the clothes you want to wear, and the casket or urn you’d like your remains to be placed in. And, importantly, preplanning means you get to decide whether you’re buried or cremated. Whether you want to plan your funeral down to the last detail, or prefer to just have all the basics covered, preplanning allows you to make sure it happens your way.

Planning your final wishes is a lot easier than you might think, when you have help. All you have to do is call an advanced planner, like the experts we have on staff at French Funerals & Cremations, and they’ll walk you through the process. Based on your preferences and your budget, they’ll help you plan the funeral you want. They’ll keep your plan until it’s needed, and your plan policy is held and protected by an insurance company until the time of your death, in accordance with New Mexico state law.

Covid has hit close to home for so many New Mexicans, and has forced them to think about their own death and what will happen when they pass. But a global catastrophe shouldn’t be the only motivator to plan for the future. It’s always a wise time to prepare for the inevitable, and to save your loved ones the added stress and financial burden of making your funeral arrangements while grieving.

We know our communities in Albuquerque and Rio Rancho have shouldered so much in the last couple of years, and French Funerals & Cremations continue to be a source of knowledge and comfort for anyone who needs it. If you have any questions about preplanning, grief resources, cremation, or any other services we provide, please reach out at any time at 505-843-6333.