The Family Plot Blog
Funeral Cost Management Issues on A Good Goodbye TV
If you don't do funeral planning BEFORE there's a death in the family, sticker shock may set in when you start making funeral arrangements. This week's episode of A Good Goodbye TV focuses on the costs of funerals and memorial services and the different ways to pay, either in advance or at-need. Jeff Harbeson, Executive Vice President and Chief Operating Officer of Funeral Finance LLC, is the special guest interviewed on this show. Their...
Pet Loss and Disenfranchised Grief on A Good Goodbye Radio
Any dog or cat owner will tell you pets are members of the family. Yet when a fur child dies or disappears, grief over pet loss is often dismissed. What can pet parents do? Coleen Ellis, founder of Two Hearts Pet Loss Center and co-chair of the Pet Loss Professionals Alliance (PLPA), has been there. When she lost her beloved “Mico” in 2003, no one understood how she could be so upset over losing "just a dog." She was devastated and struggled...
What Were the Vital Topics of Discussion at ABQ Death Cafe?
The third Albuquerque Death Cafe on May 23 was a big success! About 14 participants were expected and 20 showed up. Asked if the group wanted to split into two smaller groups of 10 for discussion, the consensus was to keep everyone in on the same conversation. As one participant described it, our main concerns at this Death Cafe were medical/healthcare issues, legal/estate topics, and spiritual elements, including passing on our values, and...
Memorial Day History Video from Arlington Memorial Gardens
As we slide into the long Memorial Day weekend, let's not forget why the holiday was established. This short video comes from the lovely and historic Arlington Memorial Gardens in Cincinnati, OH. This is different from the more famous Arlington National Cemetery in Virginia. Thanks to Dan Applegate for sharing this timely history lesson that goes back to aftermath of the Civil War (a.k.a. The War Between the States, depending on which side of...
Audition for TV Show on Fabulous Women of the Funeral Industry
There is a reality TV show looking to cast Fabulous Women of the Funeral Industry - and who else is more fabulous than yours truly, The Doyenne of Death? Could A Good Goodbye be on national television? The producers put out a call for women to be considered, so why not shoot for the moon? I may land among the stars. While I'm not a funeral director, consider my extensive credentials: Author of the award-winning book, A Good Goodbye: Funeral...
Estate Planning Issues on A Good Goodbye TV
Before you get to funeral planning, it's vital to do estate planning. This week's episode of A Good Goodbye TV focuses on the legal and financial issues that every adult needs to address BEFORE there's a death in the family. Jim Plitz with Morris, Hall & Kinghorn, an estate planning law firm with offices in Arizona and New Mexico, is the special guest interviewed on this show. He provides great information on topics such as: Who needs to do...
Donating Your Body to Science Discussed on A Good Goodbye Radio
Donating your body to science after your death can be an easy, altruistic and frugal way to go – but you have to make arrangements! A Good Goodbye Radio examines body donation for medical research this Wednesday, May 22 at 6:00 p.m. ET/3:00 p.m. PT. The guest is Valere Beck with MedCure.org, a national body donation program that supports medical science. Download the podcast! MedCure works with local licensed funeral directors to arrange for...
LoveUrns at ICCFA 2013
You can certainly find a lot of options for cremated remains at the International Cemetery, Cremation and Funeral Association's annual convention and expo. The cremation urns offerings there range from fine ceramics and hand-turned wood to metal, Himalayan salt, biodegradable paper and much more. In this video, Naseem Khan with LoveUrns shows and tells about the company's stunning metal urns for holding the cremated remains of people and pets....
Bronze Statuary from The Garden Gallery
At the 2013 ICCFA convention and expo, you could see everything for a cemetery: from granite markers to bronze statues; niche walls for cremated remains and vaults for below ground burials; mausoleum architecture and cemetery land use planning. In this video from the ICCFA expo, Donna Angel with The Garden Gallery shows a lovely collection of bronze statuary for cemeteries that can be uses for cremation scattering areas and cremated remains...
Friday Funeral Film: The Great Gatsby
The life and death of F. Scott Fitzgerald draws a strong parallel to that of Jay Gatsby, the namesake of the book’s title.
Do Your Own Obit Now – Vennie White Did!
While most folks avoid the idea of writing their own obituaries, Vennie White has already penned hers and shared it with family and friends - to mixed reactions. I met her over the weekend at the Southwest Book Fiesta. She very enthusiastically told me about her own obituary project. Here's what she wrote to me about it: Though I have six siblings and I'm next to the youngest, I became the person to plan my mother's service and write my dad's...
WGN Radio Interview on Funeral Planning Issues
Gail Rubin was interviewed on WGN Radio in Chicago on Monday night! Here's the description of the show: Bill Leff visits with Gail Rubin, the Doyenne of Death and the author of A Good Goodbye: Funeral Planning for Those Who Don’t Plan to Die. In this podcast, they discuss four reasons why it’s good to plan your funeral when you’re healthy, green burials and her annual ’30 Funerals in 30 Days’ experience. And for more information about green...
Pet Loss Issues on Episode 6 of A Good Goodbye TV
Pet loss and ways to memorialize a pet are covered in this week's episode of A Good Goodbye TV. The guests interviewed are pet loss grief counselor Ann Beyke and Vaughn Hendren with Best Friends Pet Cremation Services and Best Friends Forever cemetery. This episode also features the pet loss resources available at Funeralwise.com. This site has information on euthanasia decisions, pet funerals, pet loss and children, and a host of online...
Green Burial on A Good Goodbye Radio
On A Good Goodbye radio this Wednesday, May 15, the topic is green burial and eco-friendly funerals. The guest is Brian Flowers, president of the Green Burial Council, an international non-profit engaged in certifying funeral homes and cemeteries offering green burial as well as green burial products. Brian Flowers is a funeral director and cemeterian with Moles Farewell Tributes and Greenacres Memorial Park in Ferndale, Washington. Brian...
Death Cafe Returns to Albuquerque for Third Time
The Death Café returns to Albuquerque! The third Death Café in Albuquerque will be held Thursday, May 23, 2013 from 7:00 p.m. to 8:30 p.m.at the Center for Holistic Health, 9412 Indian School Road NE (just east of Moon). At this free event, people come together in a relaxed, confidential and safe setting to discuss mortality, drink tea and eat delicious cake or cookies. The objective of Death Café is “To increase awareness of death with a view...
Talking About Sex Won’t Make You Pregnant…
"Talking about sex won't make you pregnant, and talking about funerals won't make you dead." That's the title for my talk on the Main Stage at the Southwest Book Fiesta tomorrow, Friday May 10 at 4:00 p.m. The big event takes place at the Albuquerque Convention Center in the east building. Actually, I won't be talking about sex, but I will be talking about death and funerals, and how humor helps us deal with this inevitability of life. And I'll...
Disney Wanted to Trademark Dia De Los Muertos
The Walt Disney Company tried to trademark the cultural tradition of Dia de los Muertos, the Day of the Dead celebration November 1 and 2, in advance of releasing a Pixar animated film. The trademark story was first reported Tuesday by Fronteras, a coalition of public radio stations based in Phoenix. By the end of the day, Disney had issued a statement saying that it had withdrawn the application and that the company’s intent was only to...
Celebrants and Funerals: Episode 5 of A Good Goodbye TV
Starting today, Episode Five of A Good Goodbye TV looks at the elements of life celebrations and how celebrants make memorial services all about the person who died and the people who love them. The guests interviewed are Paul Layer with FRENCH Funerals and Cremations and Certified Celebrant Samara Rivett. The discussion includes topics such as: The steps a family takes to say goodbye to a loved one How clergy and religion fit into funeral...
Baby Boomers and Funerals: The Party of Your Life?
Who would plan a wedding in only three to five days? Yet that’s what most people do with the life cycle event known as a funeral. Talk about stress! Funeral planning with flair is the topic of the May 8 Internet radio show A Good Goodbye: Funeral Planning for Those Who Don’t Plan to Die. The guest is Erika Dillman, author of The Party of Your Life: Get the Funeral You Want by Planning It Yourself. This upbeat book helps baby boomers design a...
EterniTrees Urns Grow a Living Monument
Want to honor your loved one by growing a tree? Here's something cool I saw at the recent ICCFA convention and expo. EterniTrees offers the chance to put cremated remains in a biodegradable urn that contains tree seeds. Your loved one's remains can help grow a tree that's reflective of their character and the climatic zone of your area. EterniTrees won first place in the KIP Awards as the most innovative personalized product in 2012. In this...
Where and How to Bury a Muslim Terrorist
There's a fascinating story in yesterday's New York Times about the funeral director who has the body of Tamerlan Tsarnaev, one of the Boston Marathon bombers. Peter A. Stefan, who runs Graham Putnam & Mahoney Funeral Parlors in Worcester, has experience doing Muslim funerals and burial. However, he is stuck with Tsarnaev's body, because he can't find a cemetery that will allow his burial. Tsarnaev's uncle Ruslan Tsarni had requested a...