When Death Occurs

When Death Occurs

Immediately following the death of a loved one, many decisions must be made. At this time, you may find your emotions are heightened, and for that reason, it is a good idea to ask for help in making important decisions and arrangements. The information below can help further assist you in what needs to be done.

Contact The Proper Authorities

Before any arrangements and decisions can be made, a legal pronouncement of death must be declared. This legal declaration must be made before the family can proceed with making any funeral arrangements or handling any legal affairs.

• If your loved one passes away inside a medical or nursing facility like a hospital or nursing home, the staff will handle getting this declaration made.
• If your loved one passes away at home, you need to immediately contact the local emergency officials to come, and they can be legally declared dead.
• Family members who pass away under hospice care can be declared dead by the hospice staff.
  

Begin To Make Arrangements

Once your loved one has been declared dead you and your family can proceed with making any type of funeral arrangements. Your loved one may have pre-planned any type of service, and you and your family should first look into those choices. If your loved one has not made any previous type of arrangements, and you have decided on which funeral home you would like to use for the services, you will contact them and meet with the funeral director and begin discussing options.

During this time, if the deceased hasn’t made their final wishes known, the family will need to decide if they will bury or cremate the body and what type of service should be held.

These decisions include the:

• Time
• Date
• Location of any service
• What type of casket or urn your loved one needs
• Drafting an obituary notice
• Deciding on pallbearers
• Making any decisions about the specifics of the service, such as:
• Who the minister will be
• What music will be played
• Who will speak
  

As part of the process to begin making the funeral arrangements, if the deceased was active or retired military, contact the Veterans Administration to determine if they offer any death benefits or service options.

Information Funeral Directors May Need

     Information Needed:

• Full legal name and address
• Social Security Number
• Date and place of birth
• Race/Ethnicity
• Life insurance information (if they have one)
• Marital status (spouses name if they have one)
• Father's name and mother's maiden name
• Next of kin and other survivors
• Highest level of education
• Occupation and employer
• Armed Forces service dates and serial number
• Military Discharge Papers
• Advance Directives - If the deceased left any written advance directives concerning the disposition of his remains and memorialization, you need to bring them with you.

These instructions may be found in:

• A will
• A formally witnessed disposition directive
• Funeral pre-arrangements
• A pre-need contract
• Details on any cemetery property owned by the deceased or the family (grave plot, columbarium space, etc.)
• Recent photograph of the deceased and any personal effects that you wish to be included in the viewing or burial

Taking Care Of Personal Property

Following the death of your loved one, there are a few things you need to attend to involving the deceased’s personal life.

• Secure your loved one’s property. Make sure their home and vehicle are properly secure.
• If your loved one has a pet, make the necessary arrangements for the pet to be taken care of by family or friends.
• Any mail that comes to your loved one should be forwarded to a family member who plans to handle the deceased’s estate. Any mail that piles up at a vacant home only alarms potential intruders that a home is empty.
• Make sure to contact the deceased’s boss and inform them of the death.
• If your loved one has any upcoming appointments, make contact to notify them about the death and to cancel the appointment.