Representing all local funeral directors, Mr. Hanna discussed the kinds of support available to families upon the death of a loved one:

Notification of death - Directors are available 24 hours a day, 365 days a year. Notification comes from the family, the hospital, hospice, the nursing home, or the police. Directors need to know the family contact and the doctor's name.

If the death occurs at home the coroner must be notified. If the person has not seen a doctor within 2 weeks, the body must go to the Coroner's Office.

First family contact - At this point the director needs to know whether the family has already made arrangements; if not they can make an appointment to talk it over.

Arrangements conference - Directors will need clothing and personal items, and, of course information about the deceased. Once you decide on when the funeral will be scheduled you will discuss the newspaper notice/obituary, the visitation/viewing/wake, embalming, the funeral ceremony, cremation, and final disposition.

A newspaper notice costs about $120 a day. The obituary is written by the paper with no charge. A form is provided for information from the family. A death listing also costs nothing, is done by county, and includes the deceased' age, town, and the funeral home.

The AARP reported it is "not necessary" to embalm the body. This is true for direct burial or a sealed casket. Funeral homes do require it when the family wishes visitation.

The visitation/viewing/wake used to be 2-3 days but is now typically one day. Research suggests that an open casket helps the survivors' healing process. Most viewings are public, though some are family only.

For the funeral ceremony, the funeral home serves as the liaison with the church.

For final disposition of the body, the majority of Catholic families choose a Catholic cemetery. If the body is cremated the family can make a decision about disposition later.

Veterans, their spouse and dependent children can be buried at the new Western Reserve National Cemetery in Rittman (which is in southern Medina County).

For burial in Cuyahoga County you have to have been a Cuyahoga County resident for five years (not necessarily at time of death). Burial in Cuyahoga County costs $1000.

Costs - An average traditional funeral with wake requires 16-18 hours of work. Overhead and costs vary from home to home. The funeral home will provide a summary of the costs.

Pre-Planning - This is becoming ever more popular. Medicaid will allow a family to pre-plan and exclude the expenses from their assets. Pre-Paid funerals allow purchase of services at today's prices. The State of Ohio requires the investment of pre-paid fees into insurance or a trust. This money can be transferred to another part of the country if you move.