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Funeral Services

Funeral Services

When you first begin the process of arranging a funeral, the decisions you'll face might seem overwhelming at first. Sometimes the thought of planning a funeral seems too daunting for those who've suffered a loss, however our family is here to help your family tackle the choices one by one and make the journey one of love, healing, and remembrance. The process can be broken down into two stages: decisions regarding the service to honor your loved one's life, and decisions regarding how you'd like to care for your loved one's physical remains.

Designing a Service

We’ve heard families say they want to “get things over with” as quickly as possible sheltering their grief by denying services. Research shows, however, that those who have given their loved ones an intentional farewell have less trouble adjusting to death, finding a funeral to be a healing experience that helps the survivors move through grief and provides friends and relatives the opportunity to share memories, grieve publicly, and comfort one another.

Whether it's formal or informal, traditional or offbeat, a funeral provides an opportunity for family and friends to gather and support one another in taking the first steps of their healing journey. Funeral services are as unique as the people they honor. What makes a service special is not the amount spent or saved, it’s the opportunity to act out your faith and love. A service can take place in any setting - at your home, outdoors, at a family's place of worship, or at our facilities. All services can incorporate music, poetry, or art in the celebration of a life well-lived. There are endless possibilities for what the service can be, and we're honored to go above and beyond in our duty to meet your personalized and specific requests.

Designing Service

Our staff is experienced in understanding and graciously accommodating the needs of all beliefs, faiths, lifestyles, and relationships. We're here to answer your questions and guide you through the decisions you'll need to make, and will encourage you to take your time to figure out the most meaningful and fitting way to honor your loved one and incorporate the elements that you and your family find meaningful.

Caring for a Loved one's Physical Remains

Once you've chosen how you'd like to memorialize your loved one's life, the next decision you'll face is about how you'd like to care for their physical remains. This can be a difficult or emotional choice for you and your family, and we'll provide you with the information you need as we help you to consider your options and make the decision that is right for your loved one and for your family. Once you've chosen between burial and cremation, there are a few additional decisions you'll face without much time to mull them over. We’ll help you with those choices by providing clear options, allowing you to rest on our experience and calm-mindedness during what is often a disorienting time

For a burial, you'll need to select a casket, an outer burial container (required by the cemetery) and a cemetery lot, and choose between a ground burial and entombment in a mausoleum.

For cremation, you'll need to select an urn and choose whether to bury, entomb, or scatter the cremated remains, as well as where you'd like to do so. If you chose to bury you will need to choose an outer burial container (as required by the cemetery).

No matter which path you decide to take, we'll be there to support you and assist you in exploring your options and aiding in making an informed decision that feels right for you and your loved ones.

Different Types of Services We Offer

Traditional Funeral Services

Coping with a loss is never easy, and services are an essential part of the recovery process. A Funeral service provides those who are grieving with a supportive environment in which they can begin to find closure, say goodbye, and come to terms with the loss. Gathering with friends and family gives everyone the opportunity to connect, share memories, offer words of sympathy, and create a lasting network of comfort and support as they start the journey toward healing and peace. No matter the setting, style, or direction you choose, our professional staff are honored to assist you in creating a service that reflects your loved one's unique life journey.

traditional-funeral
  • Visitation (also called a "viewing", "wake" or "calling hours") allows family and friends to gather in a room with the departed loved one (in an open or closed casket) and gives everyone the opportunity to say goodbye and offer their support and sympathy to the bereaved.
  • A Funeral or Memorial Service that can take place in a funeral home, a church, or even at your home. The service is a ceremony which serves to celebrate, honor, and remember the life of the deceased. Whether traditional or unique, both the visitation and the funeral service can be personalized to reflect the individuality of your loved one. For more information on personalization, visit our page on Celebrating Life.
  • Graveside, Chapel, or Committal Services are held at the cemetery, and allow family and friends to be present as their loved one is transferred to his or her final disposition through ground burial.

Cremation Services

The biggest misconception about cremation is that there can't be a viewing or funeral service. This is absolutely not the case - when you choose to care for the physical remains through cremation, we encourage you to consider holding a visitation, memorial service as well as a funeral service. There are many options open to you when it comes to honoring your loved one's life: you can provide a chance for friends and family to say goodbye through a final viewing before the cremation, and you can also hold a formal service either before or after the cremation occurs. After the cremation itself, there are a variety of choices for your loved one's final disposition:

cremation-funeral
  • Inturnment means that you'll bury or entomb your loved one's cremated remains. This can be in the family plot, a memorial site, a cremation niche or urn garden, or in a variety of other indoor and outdoor locations. Ask our staff for a detailed list of inturnment possibilities.
  • Graveside Services are similar to those celebrated alongside a traditional ground burial, in which loved ones are present at the burial of the cremated remains and honor the deceased through memorial prayers or other meaningful tributes.
  • Scattering allows you to spread your loved one's cremated remains in a memorial garden, a cemetery, over water, or across any other meaningful site. You can also choose to scatter some of the cremated remains and retain the rest in an urn for internment or another form of disposition.
  • Placing cremated remains in multiple urns (known as keepsake urns) allows family members who are separated by distance to each feel the comfort of having their loved one's final resting place in a nearby location.

Charles M. Noll Funeral Home | (570) 322-0743
1 East Central Ave., South Williamsport, PA

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