Each year, funeral homes and other community organizations put on holiday remembrance programs.
These remembrance programs are a positive way many funeral homes bring the community together to remember and honor a loved one. They also show families that their funeral home is there for them year-round.
Inside Look at Funeral Homes That Hosted Holiday Remembrance Programs
Now that the holidays are officially wrapped up, we wanted to look back at funeral homes who made that extra effort to make everyone’s holiday memorable with a holiday remembrance program.
We reached out to a few funeral homes, and here’s what they had to say:
Caruth-Hale Funeral Home in Hot Springs, Arkansas said that:
“This past Christmas was our 20th annual Tree of Remembrance Service. There have been a few changes through the years but it still holds its basic theme.
Our service consists of two Christmas trees that we have on display in our funeral home starting the week of Thanksgiving. There is a male and female tree. Each tree has personalized ornaments of every person that we served that year. Personal invitations are sent to the families inviting them to the service which is held the first Sunday of December. The day of the service the trees are brought into our chapel and placed center stage with lights on them. Our team does all the service. There is a staff member who gives the message, others on our team are in our band where we perform several songs. At the end of the service we invite the family members up to the trees and we help them find their loved ones’ ornament. After they receive their ornament they are invited into our family lounge where there is party food prepared for their enjoyment. When we started this program we never expected it to be an annual event but after the reactions of the guests, we knew we would have to carry this forward.”
Crowder-Hite-Crews Funeral Home and Crematory of South Hill, Virginia held their 27th annual service. It was held, “on Sunday, January 15, 2017, for all of those families we served in 2016. With about 160 in attendance, the service was highlighted by a brief message, special music and the lighting of an individual candle for each deceased person by an acolyte. The Service is always greatly appreciated by the families.”
Ideas for Engaging with Your Funeral Home’s Community
Events like a holiday remembrance program are important for the families you serve, but they also are important for your funeral home. These events help funeral professionals engage and establish relationships with past and future families in the community.
And these programs don’t have to be once a year. Here are some other great ways to engage with your families this new year:
- Put on an educational program about funeral service or offer a grief therapy workshop.
- Participate in volunteer opportunities like fundraisers, food drives, or even donate your time to a charity event.
- Hold a monthly exercise class for the elderly in your community.
- Sponsor a movie night or other entertainment event to bring the community together.
- Hold a community picnic or potluck dinner to reconnect with past families and to meet new ones.
Click here for even more community involvement ideas!
We want to thank funeral directors everywhere who took the time to honor the lives of those lost. If you have a story you’d like to tell, share with us in the comments below!
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