Monthly Archives: November 2022

cremation services in Monroeville, PA

The “Why” of Organ Donation

Every day, at least twenty people in the United States alone die due to a lack of organ donations. Tissue and organ donation has wide-reaching benefits, as those who need skin, bones, ligaments, tendons, heart valves, and more often have no other options. While organ donation is a great choice for before cremation services in Monroeville, PA it’s not necessary right for everyone. Should you donate your organs or not? 

There are many reasons to donate your organs, including: 

  • Save Lives – It’s a fact that organ donation saves lives. Depending on your donation preferences, your organs can save up to eight different people if you choose to donate your heart, intestines, pancreas, liver, two lungs, and two kidneys. If you choose to donate tissue, eyes, and other parts, your donation can improve and save the lives of even more people.  
  • Find Meaning – Death is scary, but choosing to donate your organs will ensure there’s meaning in your death.  
  • Move the List – The organ donation list has over 107,000 people! By donating, you are moving the list so those people can get the help they need and so there’s more room on the list for new people that need help. 
  • Advance Science – Whole body donation to research is how most medical and scientific advancements are made. Your body can be used to study and treat diseases, development new medical procedures, and educate future generations of healthcare providers.   

Here are some common reasons to not to donate to help guide your choice, like religion.  Many religions forbid organ donation, oftentimes because they believe the body needs to be whole in order to reunite with the soul in the afterlife. The most common religions that discourage organ donation include Native Americans, Shintoists, Confucians, Roma Gypsies, and some Orthodox Jews. There are also personal beliefs. Some feel that organ donation doesn’t save lives, but instead that it only puts off the inevitable. Organ donation is your choice, so this belief is well within your right. Certain diseases or conditions including HIV, heart or kidney disease, cancer, and diabetes make organ donation unsafe for the donor and the recipient, and other people choose not to donate because of distrust. 

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Many people don’t want to donate their organs because they’re worried that medical professionals won’t work as hard to save their life so the doctors can harvest their organs. They don’t trust that doctors or hospitals will look out for their best interests. Also, others don’t want to donate because they don’t have any control over the recipient. In most cases, organ donors have no control over who will receive their organs or tissues. Instead, organs go to the next person on the list, no matter the donor’s preferences. Whether any or all of these reasons apply to you, or you’re not comfortable donating for another reason, you don’t have to do it. Simply make sure your family and loved ones are aware of and understand your feelings. 

Organ, tissue, and body donation is a personal choice. No one can decide for you, and no choice is wrong. We are here to help if you want to learn more about body donation or Monroeville, PA cremation services.

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Creative Funeral Alternatives

Your lost loved one was unique, so why honor their life with a standard funeral home service in Monroeville, PA? Thanks to new technology, flexibility in tradition, and creative people, there are many ways to celebrate your lost loved one with a funeral alternative. 

Here are creative funeral alternatives to help inspire you, like donating to science. If your lost loved one consented, you can donate their body to science. This donation comes at no cost to you or your family and goes a long way towards advancing medicine and healthcare. Plus, donations often come with a free cremation. What about a celebration of life? A celebration of life is all about celebrating your lost loved one’s life instead of mourning their passing. Most celebrations of life include sharing memories, jokes, and anecdotes about the deceased to help remember the good times. 

Virtual services became popular in 2020 and 2021, but they’re not going anywhere because of the opportunities for creativity they offer. Not only does no one have to travel for a virtual service, but you can create videos, slideshows, and other digital additions to make the memorial special. What about cremains portraits? Professional cremains portrait artists will mix some of your loved one’s cremated remains with paint and create a special portrait of him or her. It doesn’t take a lot of cremains, but the portrait will surely be cherished by family and friends for generations to come. 

You could also do a scattering ceremony or make a memorial ornament. Scattering ceremonies are when you scatter or release your lost loved one’s cremated remains. There are many different ways to scatter cremations, from in the air or on the ground to in the water. From homemade personalized ornaments to custom, store-bought pieces, it’s easy to honor your loved one every holiday season with a memorial ornament.  

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Go big with cremation fireworks or natural with a reef burial. Cremation fireworks take around three tablespoons of cremated remains, load them into a shell, and launch them into the sky. These beautiful displays are perfect send-offs for deceased who loved being the centers of attention. Did you know you can bury cremated remains in coral reefs? The cremated remains are mixed with cement and then placed in the reef. The cremains help nourish and build coral, contributing to the marine ecosystem and helping the deceased’s memory live on in nature.You can order a diamond made from your lost loved one’s cremains. The process uses about a half teaspoon of cremains, depending on the diamond size you want, and takes seven to 10 months. However, it’s well worth the wait to have a stunning memorial you can wear always. You can also plant a tree in memory of your lost loved one. Memorial trees are meaningful tributes that your family and friends can enjoy for generations to come. The memory of your lost loved one will live on for years. 

These are just a few ideas to inspire you for your loved one’s service. We are here to help if you want more inspiration or desire more information on Monroeville, PA funeral homes. Call or visit us today. 

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Did You Know? Cremation Service Urn Facts

Is the first time you’ve ever thought about cremation urns right before or after a cremation service in Penn Township, PA? Here is a list of things you should know about cremation urns to help you get ready for the death of a loved one or to prepare for your own passing.  

  1. You can pre-purchase urns. If you’re planning for your own eventual passing, you can prepurchase a cremation urn. This way, you’ll not only ensure that you get the urn that you want but you will also take one thing off your loved one’s to-do list. Simply store your urn in a box until its needed.  
  2. You don’t have to buy a cremation urn from a funeral home or cremation provider. While its often very convenient to get a cremation urn from your provider, you don’t have to. You can buy an urn online, at a store, or wherever you can find one. You can also make an urn or use the one that comes free with the cremation.  
  3. You can rent an urn for a service. If you only want to have an urn for a funeral or memorial service, you can rent one. This is a great way to save money if you’d rather use the expensive, fancy urn for the service but want to scatter, bury, or otherwise inter the ashes afterward. Most funeral homes or cremation providers have a selection of urns you can rent, so check with your provider. 
  4. Capacity is important. While you should check an urn’s exterior measurements to see if it will suit your needs, you also need to check its capacity to make sure it will fit the cremains. Many urns have decorative edges or accents, making exterior dimensions useless when it comes to determining the urn’s interior size. Always double check an urn’s interior dimensions before you make a purchase.  
  5. A Cremation urn is just a container. An urn can be whatever kind of container you want or need it to be. As long as the container can hold the cremated remains, it counts as a cremation urn.  
  6. The funeral home will transfer the remains for you. Since funeral homes are required to use a cremation container of your choosing, they will transfer the cremated remains into that container for you.  
  7. Use exterior measurements for placement. Do check an urn’s exterior measurements to make sure that it will fit in the place of your choosing. For example, if you want to house the urn in a columbarium niche, make sure it fits the niche’s dimensions. Or, if you want to keep the urn on your mantle, ensure it’s not too wide or too tall to fit safely

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We are here to help you, as there are a lot of things to think about when you’re planning a Penn Township, PA cremation service. Call or visit us today to learn more about what we can do for you in your time of loss or preplanning.

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Body Donation and Funeral Home

Body donation saves and improves lives all over the world every single day, and it is a common choice for before or after a funeral home service in Penn Township, PA.

There are several ways to donate your body. The first is organ donation, which is when someone donates their organs like heart, lungs, kidneys, or liver for transplant. Organ donation, depending on the organ being donated, can be performed when the donator is alive or deceased. If the donator is deceased, the organs must be removed immediately after death in order to remain viable. There is also tissue donation, when a deceased person donates body tissue such as skin, heart valves, ligaments, bones, veins, or corneas. The final most common type is full-body donation, or when a deceased person donates their entire body to science like a medical or scientific program for research. Body donation, no matter the type, is a noble, important act. 

Want to learn more about body donation? Here are answers to some of the most commonly asked questions: 

  1. How long does organ donation take? Depending on which organs are recovered, the procedure can range anywhere from four to six hours in length as the doctors must remove the organs as quickly as possible to keep them viable for transplantation.  
  2. Do organ donors get free cremation? Usually, no. After the medical professional completes the necessary donation procedures, they will call the funeral home to come pick up the body and perform the chosen final disposition. However, free cremation is generally included in full-body donation.  
  3. Are there extra funeral costs for being an organ donor? More work goes into preparing a donor’s body. However, most funeral homes do not charge extra out of respect for the deceased’s choice to save or benefit others through donation.  
  4. Can organ donors have an open casket? Depending on the type of donation, the deceased can still have an open casket. Funeral homes can hide any signs of donation, embalm, dress, and place the body in a casket.  
  5. Can I still be cremated if I’m an organ donor? The organ or body donation process does not have any effect on cremation.  
  6. Can you still have a funeral if you donate your organs? Yes! Body donation, whether organ or tissue, often has little to no effect on your funeral service plans. This is especially true if you plan to have a closed casket or choose to be cremated 
  7. How long do organs last after death? Harvesting organs or tissues is generally done within the first 24 hours after a death, but the sooner the better to maintain viability.  
  8. Will organ donation delay the funeral? On average, funeral or memorial services take place about a week after a death. Therefore, organ donation is easily performed long before any service takes place.

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We are here to help if you want to learn more about body donation or Penn Township, PA funeral homes.