Bible Verse of the Month
Fear thou not;
for I am with thee:
be not dismayed;
for I am thy God:
I will strengthen thee; yea, I will help thee;
yea, I will uphold thee with the right hand of my righteousness.
Isaiah 41:10
Monuments
Monuments are the most prestigious and the most enduring way we commemorate people, places and events. There are many examples of monuments that predate written history – clear testament to their endurance and their lofty role in human history. Placing a monument at a loved one’s grave site immortalizes their memory and ensures that generations far into the future will have an opportunity to visit and pay respects to those who came before them. Visitors to the monument will immediately feel the importance of the individual it honors. Please watch the following video to get more information and see some concepts of personal monuments.
How Would A Pre-Need Help?
Pre-planning is a loving gift you can make for your family and survivors that provides complete peace of mind to everyone involved.
Why should you make pre-arrangements for your funeral?
• You can plan together as a family
• You help spare your loved ones from having to make difficult decisions
• It ensures your wishes are well-documented and carried out
• It ensures all your personal documents are organized and easy for your survivors to locate
• It helps control costs and reduces emotional overspending
• You can personalize your plan to reflect your unique personality
Here are some tips that may help you start the advance planning conversation with your loved ones:
• Set a time to have the conversation. Schedule it as an
appointment with your loved ones, whether you want to
share your plans with them or ask them to make their
plans to share with you.
• Tell your parent or loved one that you want to ensure
their final arrangements are done according to their
wishes, and you need their help to make that happen.
To open the discussion to learn more details about your loved one’s wishes, ease into the conversation with questions such as:
• “Have you ever thought about where you would like to be buried?”
• “What type of funeral would you like to have?”
Take advantage of funeral-related opportunities. Attending the funeral of a friend, family member, or colleague or watching a movie or television show with funeral scenes may naturally prompt the discussion with your own loved ones. Talk about what you liked or didn’t like about the services you saw or attended.
Grief Support
Many people do not have the time to locate a proper grief counselor. Others do not live in an area where there are any grief counselors available. And finally, many people are not prepared to pay a professional for grief counseling. Fortunately, the internet provides some solutions for those who wish to seek grief counseling or to interact with groups of people who are also coping with grief. Many such services exist, as do professional counselors who will assist people privately on line, hence eliminating the need for travel. Not all services are the same, nor are all chat rooms/groups. You should research what you are interested in and follow-up on the leads you believe will be most helpful to your personal situation until you locate exactly what works best for you. In your search engine look for terms like “grief chat rooms” “bereavement support groups” “professional grief counseling” or “grief management.” Good research is the path to successfully linking up with what, or who, will work the best for you. Another option would be to start your search at the Mental Health American website. Lots of information, and many places to research groups, centers and more.
Supporting Others
If you know someone who would benefit from the uplifting messages and support information we provide in these monthly newsletters, they can sign up to receive their own copy here (https://stevensonandsons.com/news/sign-up/). It’s a great way to lend your support to a friend or a family member.
