What is a Memorial Service?

Unlike a traditional funeral, a memorial service is a gathering where a casket is not present (although the urn with the cremated remains may be on display). A memorial service can be held weeks or even months after the death.

A memorial service can be held in a church, the funeral home or a community hall, or somewhere of importance to the deceased and family. There is usually music, selected readings, and a eulogy. Memorial services can be further personalized as a celebration-of-life.

Memorial Service Ideas

Our experience has shown us that many of today's families want more than a traditional funeral. This can be done by bringing more of the personality and lifestyle of the deceased into the arrangements. By displaying photographs or staging the event around a favorite pastime, a memorial service can become more personal and meaningful.

If a personalized memorial service suits the needs of your family, we suggest you consider the following questions:
  • What did your loved one like to do?
  • What was he or she like as an individual?
  • What was their profession and how did that shape their life?
  • Was your loved one spiritual?
  • Was he or she proud of their cultural or ethnic heritage? 

    How Does a Celebration of Life Differ from a Traditional Funeral?

    As mentioned in the page Traditional Funeral Services, there are four basic components which make up the conventional approach to funerals:
    1. A Visitation
    2. The Funeral Service
    3. A Committal Service
    4. The Funeral Reception
    A traditional funeral then is a series of events; it's a ritualized process where the deceased, and the attendees, pass from one social status to another; a process where the torn fabric of a family and community is repaired. According to the online article "Six Characteristics of Helpful Ceremonies", by William Hoy, Director of Grief Connect, this is done by including:
    • Symbols of shared significance intended to communicate beyond words
    • Ritual actions shared by a group of individuals
    • Gathered people providing comfort to one another
    • Connection to heritage through recognized readings
    • Increased physical contact between attendees provide comfort
    • Witnessing the transition of the body through burial or cremation
    In knowing these characteristics, you can design a Celebration of Life as unique as the life of your loved. Learn how to create a Celebration of Life.