How & Where to make Arrangements

The arrangement conference is your family’s opportunity to meet with one of our Spring Grove Funeral Home’s licensed funeral director and discuss how you wish to honor your loved one’s life. Your family’s funeral director will take the time to answer your questions, learn more about your loved one’s life and share the choices available for memorialization.

Whether your family decides to plan a traditional funeral service or a more informal gathering, the funeral director will guide your family through the planning process. Items discussed will include the venue, merchandise, music, published tribute and/or final resting place and any financial concerns. During the arrangement conference the funeral director will also collect personal information about your loved one, which is needed to complete legal documents.

The arrangement conference may occur at the funeral home or the funeral director may come to your home. While it is nice to have an in-person discussion and tour the funeral home, especially if that is where the service will be held, you can also make arrangements by phone or email. At Spring Grove Funeral Homes we also offer an online collaboration center to allow one or many family members to participate in the planning. We utilize DocuSign in some cases to allow family to securely and electronically sign documents.

One unique part of the arrangement conference that is different than many funeral homes is that you will also meet with one of our licensed family service advisors. Our family service advisors are there to assist with cemetery offerings and options, permanent memorialization, follow up support and grief resources. Our circle of excellence and family service promise program are provided to help with decisions today and in the future.

An arrangement conference can be as brief as a half hour or as long as several hours. The length depends on a variety of factors, including your level of emotion and grief, the number of details involved in the service and the decisions you are prepared to make at the time. It is perfectly acceptable to request a break during the meeting or reschedule for another day. It is important to take care of yourself during periods of loss and ensure you get plenty of rest. Remember to stay hydrated in addition to eating regular meals and snacks. We provide refreshments during the arrangement conference.

A death can be an emotionally and physically exhausting experience. We work with grieving family members and friends daily and recognize the arrangement conference may be a very difficult process. We understand that you may need to take your time and that tears – sometimes even anger - are common. Expressing grief as well as other emotions is a natural part of the process and your funeral director is prepared to lend a caring and sympathetic ear.

Checklist – What to bring

When your funeral director calls to schedule a time for you and your family to come in for the arrangement conference, you may be asked to bring in some information, documents and other items that will be needed for the services you select.

If you have a preneed plan with Spring Grove Funeral Homes, we will probably have a lot of information and detail on record. This will certainly make things easier and some of the

larger decisions and even smaller details may already be made. You will be asked to confirm the details and we can work with you on any changes you may wish to make.

Some of the items you may want to bring to the arrangement consultation allow us to verify information required to complete the death certificate, a legal document. Some items are used for our signature services we provide, like memorial tribute videos and our custom collage cards. Other items will assist in our preparation, such as a current photo and clothing. If your loved one was a veteran, we will ask you to bring in a copy of the discharge papers or DD214. If you have copies of insurance policies or deeds to cemetery property outside of Spring Grove Cemetery, these documents are helpful in confirming your wishes and selections.

1. Locate any important paperwork related to the deceased's funeral plans and required legal forms. These include:

• Life insurance policies (policy numbers, beneficiaries), bank accounts, Will
• Copy of Social Security card to verify number
• Copy of birth certificate for parent(s) names, mother’s maiden name and to verify place of birth
• Discharge papers – DD214

2. Select a photo(s) that might be used in the obituary or to help the funeral home prepare your loved one for viewing and identification.

• Current Photograph – used for identification, hair and/or makeup
• Photo for obituary or newspaper notice – our website obituary with a photo is complimentary. This may be the same or different from the current photograph

3. Gather any clothing or jewelry you would like your loved one to be wearing for the service (or visitation/burial), if applicable. This also applies if you are selecting cremation.

• Clothing, including undergarments (shoes are optional) is used for burial or cremation. Clothing is a personal choice and some families bring in more formal attire and others bring in casual clothing.
• You may bring in other items that you would like placed with your loved one and may include a favorite blanket, slippers, scarf, pin, glasses or other favorite item.
• You are welcome to bring in sentimental or valuable items on the day of the viewing to be placed on your loved one at that time.

4. Gather any other information or photos that might be used for an obituary or memorial video.

• Photos if they are ready and selected – for tribute video, collage cards, prayer cards, guest/registry book, other items. We will scan these and return the originals to you. You may also bring these on a flash drive or send them to us as jpegs in email.

5. When you meet with your funeral director, he or she many ask you to bring some additional information or documentation to the meeting. You'll discuss all the details of the service (as applicable), including the date, time, venue, type of service, streaming and recording options, officiants, music and reception plans. You'll also discuss burial and cremation options and make casket, outer burial or urn selections. You may also discuss permanent memorialization, keepsakes and remembrance choices. Your funeral director will help coordinate all funeral plans, handle securing the death certificate, write and submit death notices and obituaries as needed and help with any other concerns that pertain to services for your loved one.

Other steps we can guide you through include:

• Contacting the individual's employer, if applicable (even if individual was retired), to discuss life insurance benefits, compensation, pension and other benefits.
• Contacting life insurance companies to discuss benefits and request claim forms. Update your own life insurance beneficiaries if necessary.
• Contacting service clubs, alumni associations, veterans' and other membership associations to notify them of the death.
• Setting up any memorial funds and donations.