Intelligence Journal at 11:56, 29 April 2021

2021-04-29T11:56:07Z

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{{Short description|Death care business}}
{{For|the 1980 slasher film|Funeral Home (1980 film)}}
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A '''funeral home''', '''funeral parlor''' or '''mortuary''', is a business that provides [[burial]] and [[funeral]] services for the dead and their families. These services may include a prepared [[wake (ceremony)|wake]] and funeral, and the provision of a [[chapel]] for the funeral.

==Services==
Funeral homes arrange services in accordance with the wishes of surviving friends and family, whether immediate next of kin or an executor so named in a legal will. The funeral home often takes care of the necessary paperwork, permits, and other details, such as making arrangements with the [[cemetery]], and providing [[obituary|obituaries]] to the news media. The funeral business has a history that dates to the age of the Egyptians who mastered the science of preservation. In recent years many funeral homes have started posting obituaries online and use materials submitted by families to create memorial websites.<ref name=Support>{{Cite journal|last=Lensing|first=Vicki|date=2001-01-01|title=Grief Support: The Role of Funeral Service|journal=Journal of Loss and Trauma|volume=6|issue=1|pages=45–63|doi=10.1080/108114401753197468|s2cid=144836917|issn=1532-5024}}</ref>

There are certain common types of services in [[North America]].<ref>{{Cite news|url=https://www.women.com/sophiematthews/lists/how-to-plan-a-funeral-or-memorial-service-checklist|title=Checklist: All You Need to Know About Planning a Funeral|access-date=2018-05-15|language=en-US}}</ref><ref name=Support />
A traditional funeral service consists of a viewing (sometimes referred to as a visitation), a funeral service in a place of worship or the funeral home chapel and a graveside committal service.
Direct cremation consists of the funeral home receiving the body, preparing it for the [[crematory]] and filing the necessary legal paperwork.
Direct/immediate burial is the forgoing of a funeral ceremony for a prompt, simple burial.
Moving a body between mortuaries involves preparing it for shipment in a [[coffin]] strapped into an arbitrary or a combination unit (mac pac / airtray). This is common when it is to be buried in a different locality than where the person died.<ref name=Support />

When a body is brought to a funeral home, it is sometimes [[embalming|embalmed]] to delay decomposition or to make the viewing of the body more pleasant. The procedure typically involves removing sufficient blood material to accommodate the preservative chemicals and dyes, aspirating the internal [[Organ (anatomy)|organs]] and setting the facial features. Cosmetics are used with the consent of the family to improve the appearance of face and hands for a more natural look. If the face or hands are disfigured by accident, illness or decomposition, the embalmer may utilize restorative techniques to make them presentable for an "open casket" service. If this is not possible, or the family wishes, the funeral home can perform a "closed casket" service.<ref name=Support />

The funeral home often sets aside one or more large areas for people to gather at a visitation. This area may contain a space to display the body in a casket to visitors who may pay their respects. Funeral and memorial services may also take place at the funeral home. Many funeral homes offer prearrangement options for those who wish to plan their own funerals.<ref>{{cite web |title=Planning Your Own Funeral |url=https://www.consumer.ftc.gov/articles/0305-planning-your-own-funeral |website=Federal Trade Commission. Consumer Information |publisher=Federal Trade Commission |access-date=23 February 2019}}</ref><ref name=Support />

Several large multi-national corporations in this service field have received exposure from high-profile litigation.<ref name ="test">Dummer, Stephen W., ''Mississippi Judicial System: Failing to Meet the Minimum Standard of Justice in Loewen Group, Inc. v. O’Keefe'', 6 GEO. J. L. & PUB. POL’Y 531 (2008).</ref> The [[Loewen Group]], Inc., received a particularly large jury verdict in [[Mississippi]], which was later found to be in error, as the allegations against Loewen Group proved false. The [[Canada|Canadian]]-based company then brought suit against the [[United States]] alleging violations under [[NAFTA]].<ref name="test" />

[[Houston]] based [[Service Corporation International]] has also had its share of legal troubles in its operations of both funeral homes and cemeteries. In 2009, a class-action lawsuit was filed against SCI and Eden Memorial Park, one of the cemeteries the corporation manages, based on allegations that remains were being moved around to create additional space for future interments. A settlement of $80 million was reached in 2014.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Moshtaghian |first=Artemis |date=2014-02-27|title=California cemetery agrees to $80 million settlement over desecrating remains|url=https://www.cnn.com/2014/02/27/us/california-cemetery-settlement/index.html|access-date=2018-07-11|language=en-US}}</ref>

==See also==
{{Commons category|Funeral homes}}
* [[Funeral Consumers Alliance]]

==Image gallery==
<gallery class="center">
Image:Seattle - Butterworth funeral home office - 1900.jpg|thumb|Offices of the Butterworth & Sons mortuary in [[Seattle, Washington]], 1900
Image:J. Levy & Bro.jpg|thumb|J. Levy & Bro Funeral Home in [[Galveston]]
Image:Abbey Chapel, Lubbock, TX IMG 4738.JPG|thumb|Abbey Chapel at the Resthaven Memorial Park Cemetery in [[Lubbock, Texas|Lubbock]], [[Texas]]
Image:Salmisen hautaustoimisto.jpg|thumb|A funeral home Salmisen hautaustoimisto in [[Jyväskylä]], [[Finland]]
Image:Purpose of a funeral, Lubbock, TX IMG 4737.JPG|thumb|Reasons for funerals, from "The Funeral from Ancient [[Egypt]] to Present-day America", Resthaven Memorial Park
Image:OVERTONFH.jpg|thumb|Overton Funeral Home in [[Islip, New York]]
Image:Seattle - Columbia Funeral Home 01.jpg|thumb|Columbia Funeral Home in Seattle, Washington
</gallery>

== References ==
{{Reflist}}

{{Authority control}}

[[Category:Death care companies of the United States| ]]
[[Category:Funerals]]
[[Category:Burials]]

Funeral home - Revision history

Intelligence Journal at 11:56, 29 April 2021