Arrangement conference
The meeting with the funeral director in which you discuss your wishes for the funeral and the disposition of the body

Burial
Also called interment, earth burial at a cemetery is the most traditional method for final disposition of the body

Celebrant
A person who provides personalized services to a family to create a meaningful ceremony or ritual during a life transition.

Columbarium
An above-ground structure for final disposition of cremated remains

Committal service
A brief graveside ceremony held with the casket or urn present before it is lowered into the ground

Cremation
A form of disposition that involves reducing the body through intense heat to cremated remains

Crypt
An above ground burial site in a mausoleum

Direct cremation
Cremation without a funeral or memorial service

Embalming
A method of preserving the body for a number of days following the death, allowing the family to view the body and hold the funeral service on a day that is convenient for out-of-town friends and relatives

Entombment
Placement of the casket in an above-ground structure called a mausoleum

Funeral
The ceremony that honors the end of a person’s life

Grave liner
An unlined outer burial container

Honorarium
The fee typically paid to a clergyperson or celebrant for officiating the funeral ceremony and to musicians or soloists for their contributions

Mausoleum
A small building in a cemetery that is like a burial plot above the ground

Niche
One of a number of recesses in the wall of a columbarium where the urn containing cremated remains is placed

Obituary
A notice in the newspaper that announces the death to the community, summarizes the person’s life and invites readers to attend the funeral and/or make memorial contributions in the name of the person who died

Pallbearers
The people who carry the casket from the ceremony to the hearse and from the hearse to the gravesite

Urn
A small vase-like container specially designed for holding cremated remains

Vault
A concrete or metal container into which the casket is placed before burial at a cemetery

Visitation
A scheduled time for family and friends to see the person who died, perhaps for the final time