“… Nothing Can Be Said to be Certain, Except Death and Taxes.” We have all heard the line “… nothing can be said to certain, except death and taxes.” Which was written by Benjamin Franklin in a letter to French scientist Jean-Baptiste LeRoy, when talking about the newly implemented Constitution of the United States in 1789. Surprisingly, this was not the first time nor the last time that this sentiment would be expressed in writing by others through the ages. Knowing that death, at some point is certain, we can plan for it, just like we plan for major purchases and other events. Talking about one’s final demise can be uncomfortable and unsettling, but by letting family (or others) know about your final wishes this can be very helpful for those left behind, in a very stressful time. Did you know that the average traditional funeral costs around $13,500, now granted this includes middle of the road casket, average vault and lowering devices, opening and closing of the grave, visitation, graveside services, print package, DVD, weekend charges, death certificates, honorariums obituary notices? A cremation with memorial service starts at $5,780 and usually finishes out between $7,500 and $8,000 depending upon the urn, if an urn vault is needed, print package, DVD, obituary, death certificates, honorariums, weekend and cemetery fees. An immediate cremation starts at $3,690 and will finish out around $4,000 or more depending on death certificates, obituary notices and urn. Unfortunately, these costs are not getting any cheaper, prearranging is becoming a way of preparing for the future and protecting your loved ones from increasing costs. Did you know that there is a difference between preplanning and prearranging, both are ways you can help give yourself and your family peace of mind, but prearranging can add the benefit of an inflation-proof guarantee, safety of your funds, protection from the nursing home, and is a great investment? What is preplanning? Preplanning can mean many things to different people. Preplanning can mean purchasing a plot in a cemetery, leaving notes somewhere that is easy for others to find, talking a funeral home, having discussions with family and friends, talking with a lawyer about certain wants or needs. Preplanning in a nutshell helps removed the guesswork from what your final wishes are. Preplanning will give your family direction on whether you wanted to have a traditional funeral or to be cremated, if you wanted a chapel service, celebration of life at the lake or a private family gathering. Preplanning is the first step in making your wishes known and a great way to give your family a road map to follow when you pass away. Why is preplanning important? Preplanning is important because you are letting others know what your wishes are, which will provide piece of mind in knowing they are doing what you wanted. What is prearranging? Prearranging is the term for arranging payment for your final wishes. Some people set this up through trusts and life insurances while others set up these arrangements directly with the funeral home. The gift of prearranging is that you are letting your loved ones know what your wishes are, and you are providing that this is paid for, leaving them without the financial stress of paying for a funeral. Is there a difference in how prearranging is done? When prearranging is done through a life insurance company or trust there are just funds held for your final expenses. There is often a person(s) listed as beneficiary or trustee that pays your expenses out of the insurance or trust. When prearranging is done with a funeral home there are a couple of types of arrangements: guaranteed and non-guaranteed. A guaranteed arrangement with a funeral home is one where your preplanning is done (you have picked out the kind or service: traditional, traditional followed by cremation, cremation with memorial service, or cremation and the merchandise (print package, casket, vault, urn, urn vault, DVD, etc.) you desire) and you pay for these items in advance locking in the price on those funeral home related items. Non-guaranteed would be where you have preplanned a list of items that you wish to have but have not locked those prices in with a contract through the funeral home, this would be if you have a trust, life insurance, or will be putting funds toward an arrangement but not paying in full. Why should I prearrange? When you prearrange, meaning you preplan and you prepay, you are giving your family piece of mind of what you want for services and giving them the financial means to do so. This means your family is not emotionally purchasing what they think that you want, they are not having a significant financial burden put on them to pay for services and they do not have to try to make difficult decisions during a highly emotional time. When families prearrange, they do not have to spend as much time at the funeral home making decisions and they can spend that time with family and grieving and not worrying about the next step. Come talk to one of the funeral directors from Bell Mortuary on Thursday, Nov 13, at noon at the Glasgow Senior Center.