Page 24 - Bruegemanns FH
P. 24
Informing a funeral director it need not be. How can you summarize
Once everything has been cleared with the somebody’s life in a few short minutes,
proper authorities, the next call you place while being both somber and funny at the
should be to a licensed funeral director. same time? Writing and delivering a eulogy
Funeral directors are here to help you obtain is a therapeutic tool to help deal with your
a death certificate, transport the body, and grief, and being chosen to give a eulogy is
in the event pre-planning was not done, an honor and should be treated that way.
select a casket/urn and arrange the funeral/ Here are some tips for writing and delivering
memorial service. Funeral directors are an eloquent and memorable eulogy.
here to help and advise you and will work
very hard to relieve the stress and logistics Gather information. Talk with family
involved in funeral planning. members, close friends and co- workers to
get important information on the deceased.
Making arrangements Some important information to include in
First the funeral director will gather the eulogy is the person’s family and other
information required for the death close relationships, their education/career,
certificate. This includes: hobbies or special interests, places the
person lived or travelled to, and any special
• Full Name and Address accomplishments they had.
• Marital Status
• Race/Ethnicity Organize your thoughts. Jot down your ideas
• Date and City of Birth by whatever means are most comfortable
• Highest Level of Education and familiar to you. Create an outline of
• Father’s Name, Mother’s Name your speech, and fill in the information that
(including maiden name) you gathered about the person.
• Name of Spouse (if married or
widowed) Write it down. Writing it all down allows
• Occupation and Employer you to include and remember every detail
• Veteran – DD214 (Discharge Papers) you wanted to incorporate in your speech.
When you bring a copy of your eulogy to
If no pre-planning has been done, necessary the podium make sure it is easy to read,
arrangements need to be made for the print it out in a large font, or if hand-written
funeral service. These include: leave a few spaces between the lines. Keep
in mind your time constraints, it’s best to
• Scheduling the location, date and time keep things on the short side, especially if
of the visitation and funeral service there are other speakers.
• Selecting burial or cremation
• Choosing funeral products Review and Revise. The more you practice
• Arranging a cemetery plot the more comfortable you will be. Don’t
• Preparing an obituary notice be afraid to show emotion. Funerals are an
• Scheduling transportation extremely emotional event, nobody expects
arrangements you not to shed a few tears. However, if you
feel that you will be too strongly overcome
by your emotions, have a back-up plan in
Eulogies place where someone you trust can deliver
the eulogy for you. Give them a copy well
in advance if you feel this could be an issue.
Giving a meaningful, moving eulogy can
be a nerve-wracking situation for even the
most accomplished public speaker, but
Page 24 - Brueggemann Funeral Home of East Northport, Inc.
