After grieving and saying goodbye to a loved one through a funeral service or celebration of life, how can you continue to keep their memory alive beyond their death?
Memorialization is an essential part of the grieving process. Some many families and individuals, preserving and externalizing their memories of someone who has died helps to commemorate their life and the impact they’ve made during their lifetime.
The form of memorializing a person has no limits, ranging from a small keepsake to a large-scale online memorialization event. No matter the scope, the way you choose to remember your loved one should be both personal and meaningful.
So what are some things you can do to pay tribute to someone’s memory after the funeral? Kearney Funeral Services shares some ideas.
Customized urns
As a way of setting a final resting place, urns keep what physically remains of the person who has passed close to their family. By customizing the urn, families can continue to preserve and commemorate their loved one for years to come.
Personalization can come in the form of the choice of material – from marble and metal to reclaimed wood sourced locally in B.C., as provided by Kearney partner BAM Woodworks on Salt Spring Island — to the choice of design that represents the essence of the individual’s personality and existence.
Virtual memorialization event
Since current circumstances have led families to keep funeral ceremonies much smaller in attendance, there’s an opportunity to open up the invite list to everyone who played an integral role in your loved one’s life.
With an online memorialization, you can allow family, friends, coworkers, and other people who were important to them into a virtual room where you can all talk about your favourite memories.
Ink and digital fingerprints
At Kearney, 80% of clients have requested ink and digital fingerprints of their loved ones for memorialization purposes.
Some commemoration projects have included everything from footprints cast in cement for garden stepping stones, to printing on pendant jewelry.
Photo: Unsplash.
Keepsake memorial jewelry
One way to keep a loved one close to the heart is through beautiful keepsake jewelry.
Memorial jewelry — such as ones offered by Eternity’s Touch — can store a piece of your loved one (in the form of their cremated remains) into a special locket, ring, or other piece to wear so you’ll have them with you wherever you go.
Heartfelt written tributes
Words live on past our own lifetimes. To keep your loved one’s memory alive, written tributes in the form of obituaries, essays, and poems are effective in passing on their story for generations to come.
Whether telling their life story or sharing a fond memory of them, this meaningful manner of memorialization will carry on their impact and legacy.
Funeral providers, such as the directors at Kearney Funeral Services, can guide families through the challenges of grieving in a socially-distanced time.
Throughout the COVID-19 pandemic, Kearney has been dedicated to their purpose of caring for those dealing with the loss of a loved one with the highest level of care and compassion, as well as ensuring the highest commitment to the health and safety of their clients and their team.
Families can call and book an in-person appointment with a funeral director at one of their locations, or seek assistance from Kearney’s team remotely.
For more information, visit kearneyfs.com.
